Back when I lived in Geneva, a Canadian friend was explaining Trudeaumania to me. Pierre Trudeau was this charismatic political leader, apparently, who was kind of like a rock star in Canada. Just for fun, I said something along the lines of, "so he was like the Canadian version of Ronald Reagan"? That got me what can best be described as an icy stare of death (which was what I was shooting for!).
Now we have this:
The nine-year reign of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his Conservative Party came to a sudden and stunning end on Monday night at the hands of Justin Trudeau, the young leader of the Liberal Party.
Trade plays only a minor role in most national elections, and this one was no different, but nevertheless here is Trudeau's recent statement on the TPP:
“The Liberal Party of Canada strongly supports free trade, as this is how we open markets to Canadian goods and services, grow Canadian businesses, create good-paying jobs, and provide choice and lower prices to Canadian consumers.
“The Trans-Pacific Partnership stands to remove trade barriers, widely expand free trade for Canada, and increase opportunities for our middle class and those working hard to join it. Liberals will take a responsible approach to thoroughly examining the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The Harper Conservatives have failed to be transparent through the entirety of the negotiations – especially in regards to what Canada is conceding in order to be accepted into this partnership.
“The government has an obligation to be open and honest about the negotiation process, and immediately share all the details of any agreement. Canadians deserve to know what impacts this agreement will have on different industries across our country. The federal government must keep its word and defend Canadian interests during the TPP’s ratification process – which includes defending supply management, our auto sector, and Canadian manufacturers across the country.
“If the Liberal Party of Canada earns the honour of forming a government after October 19th, we will hold a full and open public debate in Parliament to ensure Canadians are consulted on this historic trade agreement.”
Based on this, it is hard to imagine Trudeau doing anything radical on TPP, like demanding enforceable currency manipulation provisions (à la Hillary Clinton). His focus seems to be on transparency, which is a safe criticism, because as soon as the text becomes public, it mostly goes away. Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to the full and open (and polite!) TPP debate in the Canadian parliament!
