Now the Trudeau Years

                             

 

Comments.    Considerations.     Questions.

               

               

 

                   by Kenneth Bagnell

            

     Having lived through the Harper era and barely entered the Trudeau era, a saying of no less a man than Albert Einstein has, for me, a very apt ring to it: “Learn from yesterday, live for today and hope for tomorrow.” The Harper years (nine of them) have been dreary years, devoid of even a sign of creative vision and filled with dark and dreary dogmatism. It was a one man show, in which the most senior of ministers was but a puppet whose strings were pulled by the prime minister.  But one example will suffice: the finance minister, Joe Oliver, by all indicators a highly qualified minister of finance and a reasonable man, but equally obvious, a man who had set aside any original public thought and served the country as if he was a butler handed a menu  by Stephen Harper.

        I’m surprised –- no, I’m in truth shocked — by today’s (December 30^th) full length editorial in The Globe & Mail (ethical disclosure: I was once a Globe editor, editorial writer and daily columnist) taking to task two former Conservative cabinet ministers, Clement and Kenney, for not “speaking out about their leaders oppressively dark and pessimistic conservatism, one that pitted Canadians against each other, sowed fear and put the party in a win-at-all costs headlock that brooked no dissent. These are two capable people – why did it take the disaster of the 2015 election for them to acknowledge truculence and distain for Parliament are political liabilities in Canada?”  I can barely believe this was written, then endorsed, as is policy, by the editor in chief and the publisher. Why am I amazed?  Because every half bright high school student knows that anyone who dared cross or challenge Stephen Harper was finished. If Clement or Kenney stood up to him, as the paper dreams, they’d be looking (or begging) for a job the next day.

        Already, the positive and progressive spirit and attitude of Justin Trudeau is in the body politic. The New York Times took notice immediately in its own lead editorial: “The sweeping victory of Justin Trudeau in Canada’s elections on Monday shows how ready Canadians were to emerge from a decade under the conservative government of the secretive and combative Stephen Harper…” The respected Times went on to make an apt point about the coming Trudeau years, saying he’d  “return the Liberal Party, and Canada, to the country’s core values, like a generous safety net, active participation in international organizations like the UN, a humanitarian foreign policy and an inclusive concept of nationhood.” Right.

        The gloomy Harper era is over. As to the new era, we can at least draw a deep breath of hope. I venture this opinion, not just for the Justin Trudeau years but the years that will follow Trudeau as if Canadian people will have learned a profound indeed stern lesson: that, at times Harperism was not that far from dictatorial statism. One example of that for me, at least given an aspect of my professional interests, was a window on the exploitation of his office for self-serving political interest. It still rankles: In January, 2014, Mr. Harper’s office made arrangements for his first official visit to Israel.  Fine. But there was more to it: he was accompanied, not just by six cabinet ministers, but also 30 business executives, twenty rabbis, and in total over 100 Canadians, many of whom had all expenses paid by the taxpayer. As a Canadian Press story, January 19th put it: “Twenty one rabbis and a priest are also along for the ride.”  My question? “How come the major churches were not represented?” I looked for representatives of our historic Christian denominations – Catholic, Orthodox, Protestants such as Anglican, United, Presbyterian, Lutheran and so on. Not one.  (As for Catholics, a priest was listed but he registered as a journalist.)

As Global News reported on January 20, 2014:  There are also representatives from Crossroads Christian Communications, Trinity Bible Church and the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada. Andrew Bennett, Canada’s Ambassador for Religious Freedom is also a part of the accompanying party. Global News reported: Canadian taxpayers are footing the bill for some members of the delegation that travelled to Israel with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, including former cabinet members, CEOs and  religious leaders. About 30 people among the 208 individuals who accompanied the prime minister reportedly got a free-ticket to travel with Harper on the Canadian government airplane and will have some of their accommodation expenses covered during the Middle East trip, while the remainder of the delegation participants are footing their own bills for the trip.    

      The junket was cheered by Harper supporters, including the Israeli PM, Benjamin Netanyahu  who went public by describing Mr. Harper as having shown “great moral leadership.” Question: what’s great about celebrating Israel, taking many conservative evangelicals, but not including one Christian leader from Canada? I still shake my head at the arrogance of this gross PR stunt which failed in its purpose, partly not entirely, because of the rudeness it flaunted, especially to the major faith groups. Not a Cardinal, not even a Bishop, but lots of fundamentalists. That is not representative of Canada’s religious community. But it was politics as played by Stephen Harper. Seriously let’s give thanks he was not around to “oversee” or probably cancel the rescue of the refugees helped to reach Canada by tens of thousands of men and women many motivated by Christian faith.

          Canada is facing a worrying era, not because of any internal issues, but an external one: the United States leadership. Few people realize it but in the United States political hierarchy, Canada is seen as its most important country. The US has many issues to face — a very worrying fact given the rise of the wild if not crazy Donald Trump — and it cherishes the relationship between Ottawa and Washington. The Obama relationship with Stephen Harper was not the best, partly because of Harper’s iron commitment to Keystone XL, and his ever more uncritical rapport with Israel, and other such sensitive issues. The resulting tension may have already eased but will become even more positive when Barack Obama – who did not do well with Stephen Harper – holds a state dinner he envisions by spring. It will be the first such Washington-Ottawa dinner in roughly 20 years. Our Prime Minister Trudeau is bright and very likeable; that said, he isn’t Pierre Trudeau the intellectual. We’ll see how it goes.              

      In any case our new Prime Minister is truly highly engaging. His very first utterance as PM has defined not only his vision but his style. It was a Monday night, October 19, in Montreal’s Queen Elizabeth Hotel. He spoke to the gathered and overjoyed assembly of supporters, to acknowledge his Prime Ministership but in doing so, deliberately or accidentally, he defined his coming style as Prime Minister. But it’s his by his own nature, which to me, is quite distinct and not inherited from, say, his father. Consciously or otherwise, he spoke as if he had heard the words spoken by Sir Wilfred Laurier in the 1890s, when in reference to a problem in a western province Laurier said he differed with the approach of the then Prime Minister, Sir Charles Tupper. “If it were in my power,” he said referring to Tupper’s cool style, “I’d would try the sunny way of patriotism, asking him to be fair, asking him to be generous with the minority…”

     Thus, it appears, was birth given to a phrase which will, it’s to be hoped, define the stewardship and destiny of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. On election night, in speaking to his supporters and his people across the land, he began with these words: “Sunny ways, my friends, sunny ways.” It was a clear, casual and cheerful indicator that the chilly years of Justin Trudeau’s predecessor were gone.  Canada should be very grateful. “Sunny ways, my friends, sunny ways.” I don’t know about you but I honestly sense something new and significant. I sense that a broad national dreariness has, been lifted from our shoulders, so that our lives and country know a sunnier atmosphere. May it be that way for us, and for those who will follow us, for decades yet to come.  Sunny Ways.

 

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   All past blogs are archived on my website: your comments are welcome here: www.kennethbagnell.com.

 

 

 

             

 

                          

 

 

 

 

    

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