It shouldn’t be a surprise that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s polling numbers are doing well. The coronavirus crisis may be a horror story for the planet as a whole, but for incumbent politicians it’s an opportunity to be seized. Nothing adds to a political reputation more than signs of ability in a crisis, and Canada’s senior electees have, on the whole, displayed an acceptable level of competence.
Polls suggest most Canadians are satisfied with Ottawa’s performance, while premiers do even better. A Léger sounding indicates approval levels for provincial leaders range from 65 per cent in Alberta to 95 per cent in Quebec, with Ontario’s new and improved Premier Doug Ford scoring a 79 per cent positive response, an unimaginable number before the virus hit.
And why not? Premiers and the prime minister get a chance to appear, seizing the spotlight at a time when little other news can crack the headlines, to emote, empathize and announce new handouts. This is particularly true for Ottawa, which happens to be home to the mint that churns out the money that is being sent out in great heaping loads to each and every group of deserving voters the government can identify. On Saturday it was $62.5 million for fish and seafood companies, which are, of course, “playing a crucial role when it comes to getting food to our tables,” according to the prime minister. Before that it was $1.1 billion for medical research because “the better we understand this virus … the better we can fight it and eventually defeat it.” That came hot on the heels of $9 billion in Emergency Student Benefit, because “there aren’t as many jobs out there for students, and without a job, it can be hard to pay for tuition.”
Polls suggest most Canadians are satisfied with Ottawa’s performance
Who’s going to complain? Certainly not the recipients, nor most of the opposition parties. If New Democrats or Bloc Québécois supporters have a beef, it’s that the money isn’t being pushed out the door even faster, and in larger numbers. Only the poor lonely Conservatives are left to wonder how it will be repaid, and whether there shouldn’t be a serious level of oversight to the extravaganza.
Who but crabs and spoilsports would worry about stuff like that when there’s an emergency in progress? In terms of future prospects, this outbreak has been a catastrophe for the party that won the most votes in the past election. Forced to postpone its attempt to pick a new leader, it’s stuck with Andrew Scheer, whose inability to rouse enthusiasm, even among disenchanted voters, has been confirmed anew. The Tories had a good case to make in arguing for more in-person sittings of Parliament, given the significance of the decisions being made and the Liberals’ attempt to sneak through legislation according themselves draconian powers through the end of next year. It wasn’t the first time Trudeau’s government has sought to boost its power at the expense of openness and accountability, underlining the need to keep a sharp eye on a government that can’t be entirely trusted to put the public good ahead of its own. But, again, the Bloc, NDP and Greens were more than happy to cheer on Trudeau as long as he keeps doling out the cash.
Scheer wasn’t the man to make the case, and followed up by refusing to denounce reprehensible remarks by Conservative dimwit Derek Sloan, who did his best backwoods hillbilly impression in portraying Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, as a stooge of China’s communist regime. The silence that followed Sloan’s remarks, not only from Scheer but would-be leadership contenders, spoke loudly of a party that can’t figure out what it is or what it should be doing. After moaning at length about their inability to campaign, neither Peter MacKay nor Erin O’Toole could think of anything leaderly-like to say in response to Sloan’s outburst. Like Scheer, neither seems to have the gumption to dissociate the party from the fringe faction that regularly smears dirt on the party’s reputation.
When a band of demonstrators showed up outside Ontario’s legislature to protest the coronavirus lockdown, Ford dismissed them as a “bunch of yahoos” and encouraged police to slap them with $880 fines. Scheer, MacKay and O’Toole should have censured Sloan in similar terms but appear to lack either the courage or basic humanity that has emerged in the Ontario premier, earning him respect even from previous critics . Their lack of direction leaves the Tories with a bleak-looking future. No one can say how long it will be before they’re able to choose a new leader. They are going nowhere with Scheer as extended interim boss, and none of the contenders to replace him has shown any signs of more inspiring skills.
The ugly politics of bitterness, anger and ignorance is tearing the U.S. into warring camps, and efforts to feed off the same divides will do nothing to benefit Canada. A reputable Conservative leader would say as much, and if none of those now accredited is willing, the party should reopen its nominating process until it finds one who will. Otherwise it will soon find the redundancy it seems to be searching for.
• Twitter: KellyMcParland
Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2020
