Don Martin: Trudeau’s government finally performed well in freedom protests

It’s a bit like a tick attacking a pit bull, but the Trudeau government deserves some credit for trying to inflict a painful Canadian bite on Russia for its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

This is a government that, until this crisis came, was lost in the muddled affairs of every foreign file.

It is led by a prime minister who appears powerless by the Chinese hostage and is still undecided about allowing Huawei technology into 5G networks.

This is the prime minister who angered India with his over-dressing and meddling in peasant protests.

And after being repeatedly ignored or opposed by the Biden administration, Justin Trudeau has become former US president Donald Trump’s favorite punching bag for his reckless handling of the Freedom Convoy despite being, in my view, called a “far-left lunatic” by an all-around madman. badge of honor.

Now comes Putin’s Stupidity — and suddenly all is not entirely in vain for a third-term Liberal government that recently appeared to need a change of leadership.

A government that took weeks to clear the way in front of its Parliament building did everything right in trying to stop the intruders who sent convoys of tanks to force the reincarnation of the Soviet Union.

It’s almost as if adult supervision or someone with a spine has taken hold of a government that often seems stymied by difficult (and sometimes easy) decision-making.

The government stars are finally starting to shine. And sadly for Trudeau, he wasn’t among them. Instead, they were standing right beside him.

There comes a time when you study Opposition leaders or cabinet ministers and you find out that they are ready to become prime minister one day.

In Trudeau’s case, while he was delivering a usually breathless dramatization of the situation at Monday’s press conference, heirs set him up on the television screen.

To his right, deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland, fidgeted with a thick pile of documents. To his left, looking calm and cool, Minister of Defense Anita Anand.

One looks poised to step into Trudeau’s position and provide far superior leadership.

The bonus is that both are women in a country that still needs to move forward by electing women as prime ministers.

Both are savvy, providing scandal-free service so far in the portfolio they have defined.

And, as their handling of the invasion of Ukraine shows, the two have stepped into this character-testing crisis by orchestrating furious political retaliation for Russia’s unforgivable invasion.

Freeland, in particular, has prepared for this fight most of his adult life.

Fluent in Ukrainian and a published author of Russia’s post-communist transition and rise to its oligarchy, he was such a journalistic pest while living in Moscow that the KGB tapped his phone and eventually denied him re-entry into the former Soviet Union.

He delivered a particularly poignant statement on Monday, calling for Martin Luther King, Gettysburg, and the Battle of England as analogies to this as a historic democratic fight against the bloodthirsty tyrants who turned Russia into pariahs.

If that sounds like hyperbole, maybe, but no doubt Canada will turn its words into every possible action against Putin.

Frankly it’s hard to see what more Canada could have done other than put actual army boots on Ukrainian soil, but that probably means we’re marching into World War 3 and Russian nukes are heating up in their silos.

Consider the list of retaliations, which saw Canada lead a global demand to shut down international transaction technology to freeze Russian banks from global markets.

Lethal weapons, including anti-tank systems, are on their way; Canadian sanctions against Putin and his billionaire friends have been dropped; a blockade of most exports to Russia was declared; appropriate donations to humanitarian charities offered; an imposed crude oil import ban (although we don’t currently import anything); a request to stop all Russian television broadcasts from broadcasting Canada (which Bell and Rogers have done); and fast-track immigration for Ukrainian refugees is offered.

This is a unified reflection of Russia’s disgust; diplomatic ostracism unlike anything experienced in recent memory. How we still have an ambassador in Moscow is beyond me.

But the crisis has also exposed Liberal leaders awaiting the prime minister’s job, at least until the Conservatives figure out how their next leader can reclaim the pending government position.

Thanks to the best and brightest in Trudeau’s cabinet, Canada’s little flea is poised to deliver a larger-than-life bite.

While sadly unlikely to happen, the world can only hope that enough bites will propel fleas like Putin from irritation to capitulation.

That’s the point…

Jackson Wintringham

"Coffee aficionado nerd. Troublemaker. General communicator. Gamer. Analyst. Creator. Total brew ninja."

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