Justin Trudeau Misses Chance To Quote Father

They say that history tends to repeat itself. Given some of the rotten things that have taken place – wars, plagues, racism – I hope this supposition does not hold water.

Yet last night in London, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had an opportunity to draw on the past. During a gathering of what is known as the G7, Trudeau made an off the record remark about Donald Trump. Trudeau stated to two fellow leaders in what he thought was a private conversation, that Trump’s habit of holding very long press conferences had left the other leaders waiting for an event to begin last night.

“I’ve been called worse things by better people”

Foolish of him really, he should have known that at such a function the leaders are essentially always in the presence of live mics and cameras.

When informed of the slip, Trump, fully on the record, called Trudeau ‘two-faced’.

This afforded Trudeau an opportunity to cite his late father, former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. Upon learning in 1971 that then US President Richard M. Nixon had referred to him as ‘that asshole’ Trudeau senior merely reacted by saying “I’ve been called worse things by better people”.

Alas, Trudeau junior missed the chance, and instead dwelt on other aspects of Trump’s comments about himself and Canada’s lack of NATO spending.

Operation Prism: The state has no place in the chat rooms of the nation

With the recent palaver over Operation Prism in the United States, the leaking of secret information by Edward Snowden and subsequent media frenzy, I couldn’t help but think of former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. In 1969 he mentioned that the citizens have a right to privacy and was referring to sexual orientation when he said “The state has no place in the bedrooms of the nation”. In the present case of the US government spying on citizens’ Internet and mobile phone usage,  perhaps the following is more appropriate!

 

Justin Trudeau can’t recreate Trudeaumania – but maybe Justinmania!

(Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

From all the media buzz it appears Justin Trudeau is about to announce that he will throw his hat into the ring of the Liberal Party’s leadership race – but don’t look for it to be his father Pierre’s black beret, so familiar to many Montrealers who saw him making his way through the downtown streets.

Justin will have to contend with other leadership hopefuls, and should he win he’ll go toe-to-toe with a range of political adversaries. Pierre  Trudeau casts a long shadow from the grave, and Justin doesn’t need to add his father’s legacy to the list of obstacles he will face in the coming months and years.

Much has been written and said about Pierre Trudeau and interestingly people either loved or hated him. There is no middle ground when the subject is P.E. Trudeau. (I was a great admirer – and not just because I was once stuck in an elevator with him!)

Let’s hope that whatever the future holds for Justin Trudeau he will be judged on his own merit and not held up to his father’s successes or failures.

There will never be another Trudeaumania– but perhaps a Justinmania!!

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• Justin Trudeau to announce run for Liberal leadership: La Presse (with video)
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• Sources say Justin Trudeau to announce run for Liberal leadership: La Presse

No, the army has not been called in….

Shaney Komulainen of Canadian Press

Rumours abound about the army being called kin to quell the nightly student destruction! So far they have all been easily dispelled, including one film set! The appearance of the army on streets in most North American cities, other than providing disaster relief as was the case in the Ice Storm of 1998 is a rare thing. It is also a public relations nightmare for the government; thank back to the Oka Crisis of 1990. Even Pierre Trudeau’s use of the War Measures act in 1969 has its detractors and those were real bombs!!