Party trick justin trudeau biography

A former teacher and the son of former Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the younger Trudeau, then 43, promised to unify the country and end years of divisive politics under Harper, who had been in power since We beat cynicism with hard work. The party had finished third in the previous election four years earlier. Recent polls show the two parties hovering around 20 percent support heading into the next election, which must take place before late October.

Both are far behind the Conservatives, who clock about 40 percent of public support. Yet, when Trudeau first took office, he enjoyed good approval ratings, particularly among younger Canadians, as he began to implement his campaign promises. To make matters worse, the quietly increasing threat of a referendum in Quebec hangs over everything.

Pierre Poilievre, meanwhile, is likely already practicing his reaction. But he should be careful. Arrogance and self-interest are dangerous habits, even when the polls look good. And that brings us to the NDP. The NDP has the opportunity to break through, and the time is now. Ultimately, it was the key to the historic increases in seats in and , it is also what Trudeau was able to wrestle back for his party in Jonathan Kay: Yeah, this takes us back to when you were about a wee lass.

This was the year before Trudeau got elected as Prime Minister. He was already a big deal as leader of the Liberal Party. Explaining it to Americans is trickier. But like many politicians, he wanted to write a book that contextualised his life. In his case, there was a lot to explain because his dad, Pierre Trudeau, was a former Prime Minister.

That gave him famous name recognition, but it also made him a target—especially for conservatives, who liked to frame him as a silver-spoon nepo baby. They wanted someone who could push back during the editorial process, which I did because they wanted the book to appeal to a mainstream audience—not just Trudeau enthusiasts. JK: Exactly.

They wanted someone who might offer a bit of scepticism towards progressive dogmas. Anyway, the process was great. Trudeau was a gentleman—friendly, charming, and intelligent. He was thoughtful. He was a schoolteacher and even taught snowboarding. He was athletic and charismatic. Actually, I wrote a piece about that at the time. He loved intellectual puzzles and brainteasers.

You could tell he was intellectually restless. There was something childlike about him—a genuine curiosity. That charm worked well at first, but politics can ruin even the most likeable people. Trudeau had this energy, this curiosity—it was a big part of what made him likeable. You really laid it all out in your piece—I found it really honest.

I saw comments calling you an idiot for supporting him in the first place. But I actually think it takes guts to admit when you were wrong. Look, you have to trust politicians to some degree, right? And in his first term, Trudeau did a lot of the stuff I expected him to do. He raised taxes on the wealthy to fight income inequality, legalised marijuana—which I was in favour of—and even legalised assisted suicide, which is more controversial, but I support it.

But of course, politicians never do that—they hang on until things fall apart. ZB: So what happened? Did the culture change and Trudeau just went along with it? How can the country move forward? Still, change may well be on the horizon. Yes please, I'd like to receive the IPS newsletter! Twitter Facebook Send this page to a friend Recommend this page.

Longing for EU. The cost of authoritarianism. The land of limited opportunities.