Nate Erskine-Smith Has Built a Political Career on Saying the Quiet Part Out Loud | The Walrus

"D isrespected. That's the word that made national headlines this past May, after Nate Erskine-Smith was dropped as a Liberal minister. While the title of Erskine-Smith's Substack post read, diplomatically, " Congrats to the new cabinet," media coverage largely zeroed in on a moment in the fourth paragraph: "The way it played out doesn't sit right and it's impossible not to feel"-well, you know."

"But plans changed. Nearly a year later, with the Justin Trudeau Liberals at their lowest point, Erskine-Smith was appointed minister of housing, infrastructure, and communities. Weeks later, Trudeau announced his resignation. Erskine-Smith soon endorsed Mark Carney as the party's next leader. When Carney took over as prime minister in March, Erskine-Smith kept his post and went on to win re-election in Beaches-East York for the fourth straight time. But after Carney's victory and the subsequent cabinet shuffle, Erskine-Smith was cut loose."

"'Disrespected' is, of course, one way to look at the situation. In a scathing Toronto Star op-ed, Martin Regg Cohn wrote that Erskine-Smith was 'playing the victim in his own political game' and accused him of temper tantrums. Cohn notes that of all the ministers dropped, Erskine-Smith was the only one to complain. Users on X and Reddit echoed the sentiment: no one is entitled to a cabinet post, and no one whines when they don't get it. That's show business, baby."

Nate Erskine-Smith lost a close Ontario Liberal leadership race in December 2023 and initially signaled he would not seek re-election. Plans shifted as federal Liberals weakened, and he was appointed minister of housing, infrastructure and communities under Justin Trudeau. Trudeau announced his resignation and Erskine-Smith endorsed Mark Carney, who kept him in cabinet and saw him re-elected in Beaches–East York. After Carney's subsequent cabinet shuffle, Erskine-Smith was dropped and publicly expressed feeling disrespected. Commentators and social-media users criticized his response, arguing cabinet posts are not entitlements and accusing him of playing the victim.

Read at The Walrus