Tag: Justin Trudeau

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Andrew Scheer’s India trip good for Conservatives but does nothing for Canada

I’m no fan of Justin Trudeau’s foreign policy, and like most around the world found myself laughing and shaking my head at the blunder that was his trip to India earlier this year. That being said, trips to represent Canada abroad are the prerogative of the elected prime minister and not opposition leaders.

I tackle this in my latest Loonie Politics column. If you’re not a subscriber, use promo code Lawton for a discounted annual subscription.

As always, here’s an excerpt:

The fact that so few people seem to be hearing about Conservative leader Andrew Scheer’s visit to India means it’s probably a success.

Scheer is leading a delegation this week to promote and bolster trade between Canada and India.  Or so he says.  I don’t think it takes a political genius to figure out that the Conservatives are trying to remind people how Trudeau made such a mockery of himself and the country when he went in February.

I was on a cruise last week with dozens of American conservatives who still enjoy mocking Justin Trudeau’s ill-fated trip that somehow managed to include more costume changes than a Cher concert.

Oh, and let’s not forget the invitation extended to Jaspal Atwal, a man who attempted to murder an Indian politician in the 1980s.

Scheer’s trip appears to be assassin-free and so far features only business suits, which shows how low a bar Trudeau has set for international visits.

Just a few days in, Scheer has already sat down with a number of Indian cabinet members as well as prime minister Narendra Modi, who seemed rather disinterested when Trudeau landed in India earlier this year.  It bodes well for Scheer how close a relationship his predecessor, Stephen Harper, had with Modi.

The trip will be a win for the Conservatives, but not for Canada.  Scheer is a key player in Canadian politics, but he isn’t one in the Canadian government.  He’s in no position to negotiate on Canada’s behalf, and there’s no guarantee he ever will be.  Whether he wants to admit it or not, this trip was undoubtedly a political calculation, aimed to show Canadians he’s up for the job of being prime minister.

Unfortunately, this political move violates the unwritten rule that countries must present a unified front and speak with one voice outside their own borders.  When Scheer takes these sorts of high level meetings, he’s representing Canada, despite not having the authority to do so.

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Mark Steyn on diversity, citizenship and western values

As I write this, I’m cruising the Atlantic with legendary author and broadcaster Mark Steyn as part of the first Mark Steyn Cruise, which I’m both producing and speaking on.

It’s a fitting time to release a full-length interview I did with Mark for the True North Initiative at his New England headquarters.

We spoke about immigration, free speech and diversity. While global issues, they’re of particular concern in Canada, where the ruling government has prioritized diversity above any other aspect of Canadian identity and culture. Justin Trudeau won’t even recognize the existence of any such identity and culture.

It was a true delight, and I can only hope western lawmakers pay attention. Either way, enjoy!

These things are made possible by the generous support of True North Initiative patrons, so please consider becoming one if you aren’t already.

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Discount Maxime Bernier at your peril

A part of me feels as though I’m spending too much time writing and talking about Maxime Bernier and his exit from the Conservative Party. But, at the same time, it’s one of the most interesting–and potentially disruptive–episodes of Canada’s politics for several years.

While I will endeavor to diversify, I also won’t apologize for shining the necessary light on this, especially as what it is Bernier is creating continues to become a bit more clear. In my Loonie Politics column this week, I look at Bernier’s fundraising success right out of the gate, and also the polling that’s showing he’s making an impact. As I note, there’s no guarantee he’ll maintain that support for the next 13 months, but it’s a start that should worry the Conservatives.

You can read the full column at Loonie Politics, for which you can pick up a discounted subscription by using the promo code ‘Lawton’.

A Nanos poll, commissioned by the Globe and Mail, found Bernier’s as-of-yet-unnamed party enjoys 17 per cent support among Canadians, with 12 per cent unsure.

This is far from majority — or even minority — government territory, but it’s a strong enough showing for him to be a spoiler for the Conservatives, or, if the number increases, a potential official opposition leader.

What Bernier is able to accomplish electorally will depend not only on his support, but also the distribution of it.  He’ll be able to win votes in Quebec that are generally closed off to conservatives.  His support in Alberta will be strong.  In Ontario, where Conservatives sometimes win with razor thin margins, he has the potential to sabotage the Conservative Party of Canada’s path to a majority.

Anyone telling a pollster this far out from an election that they’ll vote for Maxime Bernier’s party irrespective of its name, platform, candidates and debate performance is either a diehard supporter or someone merely flirting with an exciting, new anti-establishment party.

A fuller picture of what the party is all about will help cement new supporters, but it may also lose support from the fair-weather types who so readily boarded the Bernier bus.

This is all to say that no one should count him out.  Not Andrew Scheer, not the media, and not the Liberals.

This isn’t a prediction, but a warning.  Ignoring or downplaying grassroots movements is an easy way to look like a fool.

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Trudeau reveals gun-grabbing ambitions in mandate letter to Bill Blair

I can’t say I’m surprised, but that doesn’t make it any easier to stomach. In this week’s Loonie Politics column, I tackle the quiet announcement—buried in a 1,780 word letter—that the government will be exploring a national handgun ban.

You can read the full column at Loonie Politics, for which you can pick up a discounted subscription by using the promo code ‘Lawton’.

It was 18 years ago that Charlton Heston famously said the government would have to pry his guns from his “cold, dead hands.”  So memorable was the line that most have forgotten its preamble, which now applies to Canadian politics.

Moments earlier in his speech, Heston issued to gun owners a call to action, in the face of concerns presidential candidate Al Gore would curb gun rights, if elected.

“Will you remain silent?”, Heston asked.  “I will not remain silent.  If we are going to stop this, then it is vital to every law-abiding gun owner…(to) show up at the polls on Election Day.”

Canadian gun owners just got their call to action — from Justin Trudeau, oddly.

On Tuesday, the Prime Minister’s Office released its mandate letter for Bill Blair, laying out what Trudeau expects the former Toronto police chief to accomplish in his new role as Canada’s first Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction.

At least we know what Blair is supposed to be doing now.  For weeks, he was a minister-in-name only, existing without a mandate, a staff, or even an office.  I’ve heard of make-work positions, but this was a no-work position.

I was quite critical of this a few weeks ago, though now that I see the job description I find myself longing for the days when he didn’t have one.

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Trudeau’s contrived diversity is not real diversity

Just how much diversity is too much?

Conservative member of parliament Maxime Bernier is being chided by the left over a Twitter rant about what he calls Prime Minister’s Justin Trudeau’s “cult of diversity.”

The tweets, published in both official languages of course, take aim at Trudeau’s oft-repeated claim that “diversity is our strength.”

“But why should we promote ever more diversity?”, Bernier asks in one tweet. “If anything and everything is Canadian, does being Canadian mean something? Shouldn’t we emphasize our cultural traditions, what we have built and have in common, what makes us different from other cultures and societies?”

It wasn’t long before the Twittersphere leapt to accusations of racism. Former Liberal leader Bob Rae didn’t use the R-word himself, but compared Bernier’s comments to the racist scorn directed to Irish, Jewish, Italian, Chinese and Sikh newcomers in generations past.

“None of them were welcomed,” Rae said. “All were accused of not ‘fitting in.’”

Bernier wasn’t taking aim at the people who make Canada diverse, but rather the contrived diversity that Trudeau has championed in pursuit of the fantasy that Canada is a “post-national” country.

Trudeau’s view is that diversity is its own end. What makes Canada truly exceptional is that diversity has been a byproduct of our actual goals. It’s come about organically, by people from around the world flocking here because of, not in spite of, our homegrown identity.

Our commitment to religious freedom makes Canada a welcoming place for those of all belief systems. Our pursuit of individual liberty compels people from dismally unfree nations to make a home here. Our economic prosperity gives people hope Canada can be their future.

These values invite diversity without manufacturing it. Trudeau would rather offer a platitude and do a bhangra dance than accept this reality of where our diversity originates.

Putting diversity above liberty, opportunity and prosperity as national goals makes it a weakness, not a strength.

Immigrants understand this far better than white progressives do. When I was a candidate for office, it was mostly almost exclusively Canadians who raised concerns about the lack of cohesion among certain ethnic groups, and the disrespect they saw for Canadian values from certain pockets of immigrants.

It’s not unreasonable, nor is it racist, to acknowledge some areas in which there is no room for a diverse array of perspectives and views.

We would never accept diversity of thought surrounding women’s equality, gay rights, or barbaric practices like female genital mutilation. Nor should we.

When the government required organizations receiving Canada Summer Jobs funding to be pro-choice, Trudeau was, in effect, establishing an immovable Canadian value.

I happen to disagree with idea that being pro-choice is an inherent Canadian value, but Trudeau believes it is, which demonstrates how at odds his government is with ideological diversity.

I’m not arguing government should mandate specific values. Quite the contrary. By promoting a diversity-first approach to government, the federal Liberals are imposing their own ideological value, at the expense of what Canada is actually about.

There are moral standards about community, liberty and tolerance that lifelong and new Canadians have organized around for years, without the government’s hand.

When Brian Mulroney’s government passed the Canadian Multiculturalism Act in 1988, 17 years after Pierre Trudeau declared Canada a multicultural country, we had a mandate to make the country’s “social, cultural, economic and political institutions” “inclusive of Canada’s multicultural character.”

There wasn’t a detailed roadmap for now this would happen, just a proclamation of the “recognition and appreciation of the diverse cultures of Canadian society.”

This has given license to all lawmakers to distort what multiculturalism actually means in Canada.

Ontario created the Ministry of Citizenship and Culture with a mandate to “stress the full participation of all Ontarians as equal members of the community, encouraging the sharing of cultural heritage while affirming those elements held in common by all residents.”

That should be what multiculturalism is all about. An appreciation for the wide array of backgrounds of those in Canada, without every losing sight of Canadian society’s core tenets.

Instead, the progressive culture won’t even recognize any such tenets exist.

Without them, diversity erodes national identity. With them, diversity enhances it.

For the sake of all Canadians present and future, Canada must never lose sight of the values that make it so desirable to newcomers in the first place.

Doing this will be our real strength.