Canada and US: A shared border, and a state of Denial
Biden, and Trudeau facing key leadership questions
It’s a rare coincidence that Canadian, and US leaders face similar crises. This week we look at being faced with life after Trudeau in Canada, as the US faces potentially life without Joe Biden.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau finds himself with one foot out the door of his office. He lost a by-election in the riding of Toronto-St. Paul to the Conservative Party of Canada, led by Pierre Poilievre.
As Canada’s largest city, Toronto has been known as “fortress Toronto” due to its allegiance to the Liberal Party. They’ve held the riding of St. Paul solidly since 2011. The riding is approximately 15 per cent Jewish according to the 2021 census. True North reports that prior to the by-election, Mainstreet Research found that approximately 62% of Jewish voters said they would vote Conservative. This isn’t surprising because many Jewish Canadians dislike the way the Trudeau government has handled the Israel-Palestine conflict. What is surprising is that no one is using the argument that the Conservative by-election victory might the result of a protest vote based on the one issue, instead of something to be worried about.
All of that aside, this could also be the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. There’s the NISCOP report alleging 11 MPS are involved in acts amounting to treason with foreign governments. Trudeau is one of three party leaders who have seen the unredacted version, and knows the names. The other two Jagmeet Singh (NDP) and Elizabeth May (Green Party) have both read it, and have made public statements about it. Trudeau has not. As the Prime Minister, he should be taking the leadership on this.
Policy failures on a number of fronts, including the carbon tax, and C-18, and as well as the Capital Gains’ tax. Numerous scandals including the awarding of ArriveCan contracts, as well as other sole-sourced contracts, and a failure to get a clue about how Canadians are feeling about the rising costs of pretty much everything. And now a failure to win one of the safest Liberal ridings in the country. If this isn’t a recipe to step aside, I don’t know what is.
Six months ago Trudeau could’ve resigned, the party could’ve rebounded. They’d have a new face at the helm, hopefully willing to make sensible policy changes. The lack of a caucus meeting or any indication of a strategy to move forward sets him up as leader deep in denial over the fact that his time is up.
In the United States (US) the Democratic Party is trying to replace President Joe Biden in the Presidential election this November. It follows a worrying performance during a debate with Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump. I watched the whole thing, and sadly the concerns about Biden are not unfounded.
The debate brought home the idea that we really have gotten to be an “appearances first society” the last few years. Nobody remembers what was said, although Biden told more of the truth than Trump did. But everyone remembers the stammering, and the blinking, as well as the hoarse voice, and shuffling. Biden appeared every bit the part of the doddering old man who should be anywhere but running for President. In the end, Donald Trump could lie all he wanted, he only had to look half-healthy, and can string sentences together.
This could be dismissed as the usual ‘bad debate performance,’ but for what happened on July 1st. The Supreme Court issued the ruling on Presidential immunity. You could the foundations shift in the worst possible way. The idea of a second Donald Trump Presidency with immunity for a wide variety of crimes puts shivers down your spine. This could very well be the end of American democracy as we know it. And the best the Democrats can field is a Joe Biden who looks every second of his 81 years. For his last act of public service Biden should resign for the sake of his party, his country, and the world.