Justin Trudeau makes first appearance in Edmonton as Liberal leader

Edmonton – Liberal leader Justin Trudeau was at the Churchill LRT station in Edmonton Friday morning, shaking hands and meeting with residents.

“The next two years are about an awful lot of hard work and meeting with as many people as possible,” the Liberal leader told one Edmontonian on Friday.

Trudeau believes many Edmontonians appear open to him and his ideas.

He says he recognizes Alberta’s role in building Canada’s prosperity and would not use one province’s wealth to cause a rift that would earn him votes in another part of the country.

“The approach I’m taking is very much one that that is the same across the country: just listening to people, being open to them, working with them to figure out big solutions that won’t divide the country into regions,” explains Trudeau.

The Liberal leader supports the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.

In fact, he praises Alberta Premier Alison Redford for her efforts to get the United States to approve the proposed pipeline.

Trudeau says Stephen Harper’s government, in contrast, hasn’t done enough to push the project.

Trudeau believes the proposed line, which would carry bitumen from the Alberta oilsands to Texas, is critical to Canada.

“I’m pleased to see Premier Redford taking such a strong and balanced position, and I look forward to working with her and any other politician at all levels of government to find solutions,” says Trudeau.

U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to make a final decision on the proposed pipeline in the near future.

The latest Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey suggests the Liberal party jumped into a seven-point lead over the Conservatives over the two weeks that followed Trudeau’s landslide leadership victory last month.

Liberal support stood at 35 per cent, while the Conservatives dropped to 28 and the NDP to 22. The Green party was at seven per cent.

But Trudeau told members of the media on Friday he isn’t putting much stock into the poll.

“I’ll let pundits spill an awful lot of ink what polls mean. Two years off an election, I’m not focused on that,” says Trudeau.

Trudeau is on his first western swing since becoming Liberal leader last month.