As a general rule, criticism of politicians should be kept at the level of policy, not the personal. It is certainly true that after eight years of Trudeau’s government there are countless policy blunders and incompetences that merit criticism and condemnation. However, to leave the discussion at the level of policy begs the question, namely, how policy choices related to the individual are proposing them. In view of the economic, military and social decline of Canada under Trudeau, it is reasonable to ask what kind of man is Justin Trudeau, given the disastrous results of his policies?
Another way of considering this question is to understand that character matters. It does no good to pretend it doesn’t matter and change the discussion to consider something less “judgemental”. In the case of politicians, Justin Trudeau is no exception, their characters matter a great deal. Character traits that matter include: honesty, empathy, respect for law and the rights of others, prudence and diligence, trustworthiness, humility, reliability, integrity, selflessness, fiscal responsibility, and mental and emotional maturity. Of course, being human, we all at times fail to live up to these requirements.
Why Character Matters
These character traits are essential for a civil society, healthy social interaction and human flourishing. Most of our personal, social and political ills are the direct result of not living up to those character traits—in other words, of failing to do what is right and prudent. These are the character traits we should look for, and expect in others, as well as in ourselves, and especially in our politicians, because of the power they wield in our name and on our behalf, over our country.
So important are these qualities to social life, that their absence in a person is recognized as a condition known as “antisocial personality disorder”. In more common parlance the terms sociopath and psychopath are more readily used, the difference between the two being largely one of degree with psychopaths typically exhibiting no conscience together with a persistent pattern of disregard for the rights of others.
The Character of Justin Trudeau
So, how do we measure Justin Trudeau? We can draw conclusions about him based on his repeated pattern of behaviour over the last eight years. This behaviour includes repeated ethics violations, disregard for constitutionally protected rights, repeated lying about mass indigenous graves, reckless spending, bullying of female members of his cabinet, inappropriate and impulsive behaviour in the House of Commons, deficit spending, and spending money abroad while ignoring problems in Canada.
Particularly instructive has been Trudeau’s callous attempt to push for death by expanding euthanasia (MAiD) in Canada through manipulation and deceit, suggesting that he lacks empathy as well as moral boundaries. Trudeau lacks an understanding or empathy for people by providing the cruel practice of death by lethal injection to end human life rather than focusing on delivering mental health care, medical treatment, and social services for those living on the margins of Canadian society. Moreover, it appears that Trudeau is unable to grasp right from wrong or understand ethical principles by authorizing a death bureaucracy within Health Canada to corrupt and coerce health care professionals to violate their primary moral imperative: first, do no harm. Trudeau does, however, know what he wants, when he wants it, and is infuriated when he is defied. He denigrates those who obstruct him, calling them shocking and appalling names as occurred with the Freedom Convoy. All too often, Trudeau’s character underlies a behaviour suggesting personal inadequacy: lying, temper tantrums, petulance, and failure to accept responsibility – adolescent behaviour which suggests he has yet to mature into a responsible adult.
After eight years of observing Trudeau, it is reasonable to summarize his behaviour as consistently breaking rules and laws, acting aggressively and impulsively, exhibiting little or no guilt or contrition for his mistakes while blaming others for them. He uses manipulation, deceit and control to achieve his goals. Finally, he does not learn from his mistakes, as in his repeated ethical violations. Trudeau has demonstrated an intellectual, emotional and moral incapacity which indicates he is unfit for political life.
Trudeau’s character flaws have driven Canada to a state of disaster. We no longer recognize our country. His character failures have led him to lose the respect of Canadians. As a result, he is now constantly travelling across Canada accompanied by his trusty personal photographers, supposedly “talking” to firemen, day care workers, factory workers, nurses, small business owners, etc., trying to convey the falsehood that he cares about Canadians or understands them, which he clearly does not. Trudeau seemed instead to regard Canadians as mere objects which he can manoeuvre for his own purposes.
It’s Not All Trudeau’s Fault
Unfortunately, Trudeau isn’t the only one to blame for Canada’s dismal state of affairs. There are many other politicians and bureaucrats at the federal, provincial and municipal levels who have serious character issues that raise questions about their fitness to serve Canadians. While their public behaviour may be less problematic than Trudeau’s, some political actions and policies certainly leave a great number of questions unanswered, all of which suggest the absence of the character traits necessary for a fair, just and compassionate society.
In assigning fault, we should not overlook our fellow Canadians, especially those in the media who are paid by the Trudeau government to push the narrative of the day and are not bothering to ask hard questions or engage in real investigative journalism. Canadians have perhaps been too complacent or disinterested in the disaster Canada has become. In a democracy, the people get the government they deserve, and if an individual doesn’t vote or pay attention, then we have the government we have now.
Martin Luther King Jr. fervently held the hope that one day his children “live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character.” That is the way it should be. We should all be judged on the content of our character and not judged on the basis of our race or sex. Canada is now embarrassed and its prosperity threatened because we failed to look closely at the character of Justin Trudeau when we had the opportunity to vote.