Canada's Liberal Landslide - One More Reason for Rush's Head to Explode!

by Pa Rock

Citizen Journalist

I met my good friend, Andrew Liu, as he was standing in the street outside of the University of Taiwan a few years ago.  Valerie (another friend) and I were having a look around the campus during one of our mini-vacations from Okinawa.  Andrew, a dapper gent in his early 80's, was a graduate of the University of Taiwan who had returned for a class reunion.  He immediately latched onto us and spent most of the morning showing us around his old alma mater.

Andrew moved to Montreal, Canada (in the French-speaking province of Quebec) shortly after he graduated from the university, and he has spent his life in that large metropolis where he raised his family and worked as an attorney.  Today he does a lot of traveling and enjoys meeting people and collecting email addresses.  Once a person is on Andrew's email list, they never come off!

Andrew constantly sends out emails with wonderful attachments - things like nature scenes and symphonic music. Occasionally he will send out something more personal.  That happened this week.

A couple of days ago Andrew blasted out an email to his friends in which he was very excited about the Canadian national elections.  The liberals had won - a landslide victory - and Andrew seemed very, very pleased!  After nine years of conservative rule, Canada was about to do an about-face and interact with the future.

Canada, like the United Kingdom, has a parliamentary form of government - a structure that enables the legislature (parliament) once it is elected to, in turn, elect the country's executive leader - or the "Prime Minister."  If the system descends into gridlock, like that of their American cousins to the south, a new election is called and a complete new government is seated.  Therefore, at least in theory, the executive and legislative branches of government are of the same party and capable of working together.

So the Canadians have just elected a new legislature - which means that a new Prime Minister will soon be seated.  The liberal party, with its substantial majority, will elect their party leader to that post.

Andrew's email did not mention the new prime minister, but that individual was undoubtedly the reason  the Mr. Liu, from Montreal, Quebec, was so excited.  The next prime minister of Canada will be Justin Trudeau, also of Montreal, the oldest son of the first man from Quebec to be Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Elliot Trudeau.

As someone who often barks against the idea of political dynasties, I have to admit that I find the idea of this particular dynasty in Canada to be far less repugnant than the ones that the Clintons and Bushes are trying to foist upon the United States.  Justin Trudeau has been his own man and seems to have made it to the top with limited or no help from his family.  He is a former night club bouncer and public school teacher who bare-knuckled his way to the political top through tough races in challenging districts.  He came up through politics on his own, the hard way, and that seems to have been an intentional strategy on his part.  But, the Trudeau genetics and surname probably added a bit of shine to his already formidable political skills.

(Has anyone every accused Jeb Bush of making his own way to the top?)

Pierre Trudeau, Canada's fifteenth Prime Minister, died in 2000.  Margaret, Justin's mother, divorced Trudeau in the 1980's and went on to become a spokesperson for mental health issues.   Margaret Trudeau has survived to see her son return to the Prime Minister's residence.

Congratulations Justin - and Andrew - and Canada!  It looks as though happy days are there again!