There’s two weeks left before Canada’s federal election, and we’re dying over here. Former Bank of England governor Mark Carney seems more and more likely to walk away with the top job, while Poilievre is busy bowing and scraping before the sacred cows of the left.
This week, Poilievre decided, for some reason, to pledge to keep euthanasia legal. He said his government would not expand the eligibility for assisted suicide, but that people would ‘continue to have that right.’
This makes no sense. Canada’s euthanasia regime is the brainchild of the Liberal party, forced upon Canada by an activist Supreme Court with a majority of Liberal appointees, and it developed into the horrific regime that it is today thanks to a decade of Trudeau’s Liberals.
Why on earth would Poilievre decide that’s a legacy he wants to preserve?
Disabled people and the elderly are being bullied into assisted suicide. The poor and terminally ill are told their suffering is meaningless and their lives aren’t worth living. Veterans with PTSD are advised to consider ending it all. Whether the state should help children do themselves in, is a matter of open debate.
So far, the Conservatives can hold themselves innocent of these horrors. Their hands are clean. But if they get into power, Poilievre is telling us, they intend to legitimise some part of this horrible travesty? Are they completely heartless? Can’t they offer Canadians a vision of human life that is valued, protected, worth living?
This past week also saw Poilievre double down on his pro-choice position. He told Quebecois podcaster Olivier Primeau that a Conservative government would never pass pro-life legislation—and reaffirmed this position at a rally later on.
But why? Even if Poilievre doesn’t believe his government could successfully push through pro-life legislation, he’s offering incense to a Liberal idol. And Liberal idols don’t reward conservatives for good behaviour; they eat them for breakfast.
The anti-religious Trudeau – who famously said anger against the Catholic Church was ‘understandable’ when churches were being burned down – banned pro-life Liberals from the party.
He also denied some funding to charities that wouldn’t swear allegiance to so-called ‘reproductive rights’ (such an obfuscatory term; it means, of course, preventing reproduction, not encouraging it).
So why is Poilievre anxiously promising the Liberal team that they don’t need to worry, he won’t take a stand on such matters? Is he afraid someone will paint him as… well… er… you know… a conservative?
How disappointing to see an intelligent man like Poilievre cowering before the left. He’s probably just following the advice of the Conservative party machine, whose members really need to get out more. Their strengths are talking points, party discipline, and sticking to the strategy. But times have changed since they were last in power, and they haven’t quite realised it yet.
Tragically, Poilievre could easily act so differently. Instead of letting the Liberals and their media friends control the narrative, with just a little courage, he could flip the script. To the question ‘Will your government end access to euthanasia?’ he could try this: ‘The life of every Canadian is important, firstly to their family and friends, and secondly to our whole nation. A Conservative government will do everything in its power to protect the lives of its citizens, especially in their most vulnerable moments.’
Or on pro-life matters: ‘Will your government introduce pro-life legislation?’ ‘It seems unlikely to me that our government will be in a position to do so, but I can tell you that a Conservative government supports Canadian families and would like to see more, not fewer, Canadian children.’
‘So you don’t support a woman’s right to choose?’
‘That’s a radical leftist slogan. A Conservative government would encourage parents to love their children and take care of them, even the unexpected ones.’
A real leader doesn’t let himself be defined by the enemy’s terms. A real leader has a positive vision, in which he profoundly believes, which he can articulate in a way that’s appealing, but also genuine and heartfelt.
They say Poilievre has difficulty connecting with female voters. The leftist media pretends this is because Canadian women are all radical social progressives, which is, of course, complete nonsense. More likely, it’s because Poilievre is skirting the issues they care most about.
Instead of trying to impress the ladies on his own team, Poilievre is going out of his way – just as his ill-fated predecessors did – to show the Liberals that as far as social issues are concerned, they’ve got him wrapped around their little fingers. And now he expects conservative women to come out and vote for him?
That won’t impress them much. In fact, it may well lose Poilievre the election. Should he win it, he’ll forever be at the mercy of the leftist stranglehold on Canadian affairs, forever dancing to the media’s tune. It takes both vision and guts to change the course of history. Last week was a chance for Poilievre to display both – and he flubbed it.
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