Justin Trudeau may be riding an almost unprecedented wave of popular support, but the West Block’s panel of political experts predicts this fall will bring fresh challenges for the prime minister.
The Globe and Mail‘s Robert Fife and The Toronto Star‘s Susan Delacourt joined Tom Clark this weekend to discuss what Canadians can expect from the fall session of Parliament, which kicks off Monday.
“You’re going to start to see (Trudeau’s) capital erode,” predicted Fife. “He has no choice but to spend his political capital because the clock is ticking.”
A recent Angus Reid poll suggests Trudeau is still riding high in terms of approval ratings nearly a year after his government was elected. The results show 65 per cent of people surveyed approved of Trudeau’s on-the-job performance, more than double the 30 per cent who disapprove.
But among other things, Fife said, the Trudeau government is facing big decisions this fall on environmental policy, the Trans-Mountain pipeline project, federal relief for aerospace giant Bombardier Inc., the choice of a new fighter jet, and a decision on where to send peacekeeping troops.
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If those troops end up in conflict-ridden Mali, for example, Fife noted that there’s a good chance some could be killed.
“All of this stuff begins to wear away,” he said.
But Delacourt argued that even if voters begin to become disillusioned with Trudeau, they don’t exactly have a wealth of alternate options. Both the Conservatives and NDP are in the middle of a leadership race.
“Some might make the argument that the NDP already does have a leader and his name is Justin Trudeau,” she said.
“Since the election it has been true that some of the people most satisfied with the current government are people who voted New Democrat.”
The government is “occupying the moderate ends” of both the Conservative and NDP camps, she added, meaning it’s harder for the Opposition parties to define what they’re all about.
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Meanwhile, Delacourt suggested, the prime minister seems to have set his sights more and more on the international stage. Trudeau will be in New York City this week when the House resumes.
“It already looks like he’s got his sights set on more than domestic considerations.”
Watch the full panel discussion above.
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