Is the tide beginning to turn in Justin Trudeau’s Canada? Shortly after Thanksgiving, Trudeau met with President-elect Donald Trump in an effort to ingratiate himself with the incoming administration and avoid tariffs on Canadian goods. The left went apoplectic, especially after Trump joked about making Canada the 51st state.
The meeting with Trump has led to some serious political fallout. Trudeau’s Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland tendered her resignation from the Cabinet on Monday morning, although she will remain in Parliament.
See my letter to the Prime Minister below // Veuillez trouver ma lettre au Premier ministre ci-dessous pic.twitter.com/NMMMcXUh7A
— Chrystia Freeland (@cafreeland) December 16, 2024
Freeland’s letter to Trudeau included barbs at Trump administration policies:
Our country today faces a grave challenge. The incoming administration in the United States is pursuing a policy of aggressive economic nationalism, including a threat of 25 per cent tariffs.
[…]
That means pushing back against 'America First' economic nationalism with a determined effort to fight for capital and investment and the jobs they bring. That means working in good faith and humility with the Premiers of the provinces and territories of our great and diverse country, and building a true Team Canada response.
She also took shots at her government’s scheme to give Canadians a “holiday” from federal sales taxes on groceries, toys, diapers, and some alcohol through February.
“We need to take that [tariff] threat extremely seriously,” she wrote. “That means keeping our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war. That means eschewing costly political gimmicks, which we can ill afford and which make Canadians doubt that we recognize the gravity of the moment.”
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Trudeau removed her as finance minister. That move came at a time when Canada’s economy is struggling.
“Freeland’s removal comes as Canada grapples with soaring inflation, a worsening housing crisis, and rising discontent over out-of-control immigration targets that are straining infrastructure and affordability,” reports Sheila Gunn Reid at Rebel News. “Freeland missed the deadline to deliver the Fall Economic Statement, now overdue by two months, although she was set to deliver it Monday.”
Freeland is a leftist’s leftist and a globalist’s globalist. So does her resignation reflect a Trudeau turn away from Freeland’s brand of liberalism? Or does she simply view the government’s attempts to make life easier for its citizens as a betrayal of her far-left principles? Either way, things don’t look good for Canada’s Liberal Party — especially since Freeland wasn’t the first to drop out of Trudeau’s cabinet.
“The stunning development on Parliament Hill only makes Trudeau’s hold on power more untenable,” Politico reports. “His housing minister, Sean Fraser, announced Monday he wouldn’t seek another term — a loss of a top communicator on the PM’s front bench.”
“Trudeau’s party has trailed rival Conservatives by double digits in polls, and he is personally deeply unpopular with voters, the report adds. “The progressive New Democratic Party abandoned a governing deal in September, leaving the Liberals with no reliable allies in Parliament.”
Canada has 10 months until its next election, and Trudeau may be seeing the writing on the wall:
DEVELOPING: Multiple reports that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is considering resigning, and he may address parliament this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/K4mI4p1pnV
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) December 16, 2024
Pop some popcorn, folks. It’s gonna be fun to watch our northern neighbors.
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