Good Sunday Morning!
This was one of those weeks that made me double check the date, sometimes within the same 24 hours… did I lose a few days? The pace of events was dizzying. Last week I shared the CPAC video of my January 3 press conference replying to Donald Trump. Three days later, Justin Trudeau announced he will resign as soon as his party selects a new leader – with that date unnamed. As well, in major news, the Governor General had already agreed to prorogation, meaning most of parliament’s work on new legislation just died on the Order Paper. Our G-G Mary Simon, just as Michaëlle Jean in 2008 on Harper’s request, had no real option because both prime ministers had recently received votes in the House of Commons, expressing confidence. I chair an informal group of MPs called the Democracy Caucus. Former NDP MP Daniel Blaikie and I worked to advance reforms to ensure prorogation powers are not misused. In this case, it is clear we will go straight (or at most within a matter of weeks) from prorogation into an election. That makes Trudeau’s use of prorogation far less offensive than Harper’s prorogation to avoid a confidence vote he knew he would lose, with no election for more than another two years. I am attempting to gain support from other party leaders to meet and agree on resuscitating the bills with the highest level of cross-party support.
The House will resume on March 24th with March 26 the likely first opportunity for a vote of non confidence. Federal election campaigns must be at least 37 days long so the earliest election day would be in early April, but a 51-day election is also allowed. The Liberal Party executive announced its leadership contest rules January 9; the next Liberal leader will be announced March 9. Things are moving fast! A new Liberal leader will likely have the shortest term as prime minister in Canadian history – at the earliest sworn in March 9th, possibly to be defeated in early April. This would break the record held by Charles Tupper, who served from May 1 to July 8, 1896.
The events of January 6th, while unsurprising, included some unexpected elements. This is my statement on Trudeau’s resignation:
“This morning, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau finally admitted the inescapable conclusion that he had to step aside to make room for new leadership. The fact that the announcement could surprise no one is to admit the obvious—over the last year, but particularly the last few weeks since December 16, the decline in his support has been painful to watch, like a slow-motion train wreck.
But the partisan and political moment should not distract from the basic human things that should be said. Justin Trudeau was never groomed to fill his father’s shoes. As a young man, he did not seek out a future in politics—he decided to be a teacher. As the Liberal Party was knocked so far back following the 2011 election, the MP for Papineau was assigned the far rear corner of the chamber of Centre Block, sitting with me, the first Green MP, and the then-small remnants of the Bloc, with four MPs.
I know how he struggled with the decision of whether to run for Liberal leader, weighing how it might impact his personal life. He was being recruited as someone who could rescue the Liberals. A majority win was not a likelihood. If anyone knew what it would mean for his children if he were to become PM—as the child of a PM—Justin Trudeau knew. I have observed for many years how he has consistently prioritized his family’s time and his children.
To say public service is a sacrifice is to state the obvious. For that, and especially at a time when basic civility has eroded to where he could be attacked verbally and rudely in front of his youngest on a Christmas holiday, underscores how hard that public service has become.
So no matter how Liberal broken promises variously sadden me and make me very angry indeed, those are points to be made in the 2025 election. Today, I want to thank Justin Trudeau for his service to his country and wish him and his family much happiness and peace in the years ahead.”
I found it interesting how the tone of my message was contrasted with the aggressive partisan nastiness of those of Pierre Poilievre and Jagmeet Singh. One comment on the CBC The National’s At Issue panel made me laugh out loud, chiefly because Chantal Hebert is so smart and generally, even when cutting, polite. She said, with a suggestion of incredulity, “Jagmeet Singh is a bigger jerk than Pierre Poilievre.”
Still the biggest surprise of my week came from an unexpected and massive level of support for my comments about President-elect Trump. US social media channels posted my press conference and, as the saying goes, it went viral. With John having long Covid, the idea that I was going viral seemed even more absurd.
- Occupy Democrats broke the story, with their coverage racking up over 800,000 views from engaged audiences across America. Similar YouTube coverage from Rebel HQ and MeidasTouch received a combined 1 Million views.
- Twitter? #OnFire! Reposts from Hot Spot, National Newswatch, and PoliticsVideoChannel reached a staggering 8 million views. Talk about trending!
- Over on Instagram, Reels by Occupy Democrats, Lisa Sharon Harper, Joy Ann Reid, and others attracted 2.9 million views. Even social media icon Saint Hoax joined the conversation, helping to propel the story further.
Our message didn’t just resonate in North America, it traveled across the Atlantic and Latin America, making headlines in the UK and beyond. Even Elon Musk attacked me in, of course, a tweet: “Hey girl you’re not even governor anymore.” I will not even try to gauge what he is talking about. Strangely, the mainstream Canadian media – Globe and Mail, Times Colonist, CBC, CTV and Global etc have completely ignored my retort to Trump and the subsequent social media firestorm (with the exception of Saturday’s episode of CBC’s “Because News” which included my Trump inspired offer to California and Vermont in its news quiz. Happily, Eric Peterson even owned up that he is my brother-in-law. It made may day!)
Honestly, I worry that they want to avoid having to assign reporters to the Green Party in the election. Freezing us out now seems like a management and not a journalistic decision. Just a hunch.
For a real treat, on the spur of the moment Thursday night, John and I headed to Sidney’s Star Cinema to see the Bob Dylan movie, A Complete Unknown. We were transported. It was emotional. We both loved the music that brough back memories of key parts of our life, the songs of Woody Guthrie, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger. Edward Norton played Pete Seeger so brilliantly. He had his body language. He stood and held himself just like Pete. Pete Seeger was a friend. I first met him after successfully begging him to play at a 1971 Earth Day event for a youth rally I organized in high school. And we stayed in touch. He and his wife Toshi answered every letter, pounded out on an old Underwood typewriter. In 1986, I asked him to sing and speak to an amazing Ottawa conference “On the Fate of the Earth” held in June 1986. I was co-chair. In addition to singing, I asked Pete to conduct a workshop on how to do grassroots activism. He gave the best mobilizing advice I have ever heard – “never have the kind of meetings that only attract the kind of people who like going to meetings.”
Here are two great photos from that conference taken by anti-nuclear activist photographer Robert Del Tredici. How am I so lucky to be able to count such a kind, generous, talented and inspirational human as the late Pete Seeger, a friend. I hope the film may revive for a whole generation the power of a good protest song. We need them more than ever.
Please stay focused on the possibilities. We are headed into an election that will be hugely consequential. How do we encourage our friends and neighbours, children and work colleagues to vote in large numbers? Higher voter turn out is essential, yet voter participation has been going down. Can we embrace “The times they are a changing!” Down with Bullies and Billionaires. In the fight between Life and Money, let’s know, as in one of Pete’s classic union ballads: “whose side are you on?” We must sign up for a global movement for democracy, compassion and a healthy planet! Whose side are you on?
Much love and I hope to see you at one of these upcoming events:
Elizabeth
Upcoming Meetings (you can check the website for updates):
Friday Jan 17 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm:
Sidney Community Meeting – January 17
Saturday Jan 18 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm:
Cordova Bay Community Meeting – January 18
Saturday Jan 18 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm:
Gordon Head Community Meeting – January 18
Sunday Jan 19 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm:
Raoul Wallenberg Day in Vancouver
Wednesday Jan 22 7:00 – 8:30 pm: