The Last Thing Mark Carney Needs Is Trudeau-Era Rhetoric | The Walrus

A prime minister delivered prepared remarks at a Toronto summit attended by Canadian Liberals, UK Labour figures, US Democrats, and aligned international participants. The remarks followed nervous, informal preliminaries and included an apology for speaking French to mostly English speakers. The core message called for resisting any temptation to preserve or restore elements of the past. The preferred approach was to build anew through new infrastructure, new energy systems, new trade relationships, and new institutions. The surrounding context included multiple political events in Ottawa during the same week, affecting responsiveness to calls. The remarks were criticized as empty and disconnected from likely policy priorities.

"Today, I want to talk to you about the rupture in the world. Our response, at this time, must be to resist any temptation to preserve or restore elements of the past. We prefer to build anew. New infrastructure, new energy systems, new trade relationships, and new institutions. This is what the new progressive politics could be."

"The prime minister read from his prepared remarks after a few minutes of impromptu nervous-jokey preliminaries of the sort he often indulges when he knows a lot of the people in a room. He also half-apologized for speaking French to a room of mostly anglophones, which is also something he unfortunately can't seem to stop doing."

"Which is why, if you work in Ottawa, you might have had a hard time getting calls returned that week. The Global Progress Action Summit is an annual gathering of Canadian Liberals, United Kingdom Labour figures, United States Democrats, and assorted compatible figures from other countries."

"I'm wondering how this sort of writing made it past quality control. The best that can be said for it is that it means nothing. I'm pretty sure the Carney government will continue trying to preserve supply management, the CBC, the St. Lawrence Seaway, federalism, the monarchy, and other elements of the past."

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