Flashback – originally appeared November 12, 2013.

If we are to believe the mainstream media’s pundits and polls, in the next federal general election, the unpopular PM Stephen Harper will be trounced by the dashing Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau. The left-of-centre mainstream media and chattering classes has excitedly ordained this to be so. The only thing that might overturn this prognosis is a few hard slaps of reality to awaken the Canadian electorate.   

 Well, here’s a slap in the face. Here is a comment recently made by Justin Trudeau at a Liberal “Ladies Night” fundraiser in Toronto that could not have been fabricated – and believed. We have reproduced it verbatim because the comment is something that should not be forgotten. It speaks volumes for Justin Trudeau’s (lack of) political perspective and thinking process.

This is what Justin Trudeau said in response to a question about which foreign country’s government he most admires (verbatim):  “You know, there’s a level of admiration I actually have for China because, ah, because their basic dictatorship is allowing them to actually turn their economy around on a dime and say ‘we need to go green fastest, we need to start investing in solar.’ I mean there is a flexibility that I know Stephen Harper must dream about of having, a dictatorship that he can do everything he wanted, that I find quite interesting.”

And here’s how Trudeau rephrased his response to correct himself, during a TV interview the next day (again, verbatim):  “Ah, in this world we are competing with countries that have the capacity to react to big issues quickly and completely. We need to make sure that even though we have to compete with them, ah, we can get things done completely, and that means that not, that not falling back on our, ah, not weakening on our human rights, making sure that we are still protecting all of the things we know. But we do need to get together to support people.”

An Ottawa Citizen editorial on these remarks rightly observes: “A Miss Teen USA contestant wouldn’t get away with saying something like that.”

This same editorial concludes with the comment: “This is not to impugn Trudeau’s intentions, of course. A more charitable and fair-minded conclusion is called for, one that recognizes the Liberal party as a shambles, and its leader, Justin Trudeau, as a ridiculous, morally illiterate and fathomlessly unserious person.”

 Again, this is an instance that should not be forgotten a few years from now when Canadians head to the polls to select their next Prime Minister.

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• Sunny ways my friends, sunny ways. This is what positive politics can do.
• We believe in our hearts that this country’s unique diversity is a blessing bestowed upon us by previous generations of Canadians, Canadians who stared down prejudice and fought discrimination in all its forms. We know that our enviable, inclusive society didn’t happen by accident and won’t continue without effort. … Have faith in your fellow citizens, my friends. They are kind and generous. They are openminded and optimistic. And they know in their heart of hearts that a Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian.
• We have created a society where individual rights and freedoms, compassion and diversity are core to our citizenship. But underlying that idea of Canada is the promise that we all have a chance to build a better life for ourselves and our children.
• Canada has always been there to help people who need it.
• Openness, respect, integrity – these are principles that need to underpin pretty much every other decision that you make.
• A Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian. And you devalue the citizenship of every Canadian in this place and in this country when you break down and make it conditional for anyone.
• We need to make sure we’re all working together to change mindsets, to change attitudes, and to fight against the bad habits that we have as a society.
• Who cares about winning? We should focus on serving.
• I am a teacher. It’s how I define myself. A good teacher isn’t someone who gives the answers out to their kids but is understanding of needs and challenges and gives tools to help other people succeed. That’s the way I see myself, so whatever it is that I will do eventually after politics, it’ll have to do a lot with teaching.
• The fact is Canadians understand that immigration, that people fleeing for their lives, that people wanting to build a better life for themselves and their kids is what created Canada, it’s what created North America.
• You get more diversity and creativity in your problem solving, and you end up having a much better and more representative approach to solving the challenges faced by the population you serve.
• We know that trade, NAFTA, the free and open trade between Canada and the U.S. creates millions of good jobs on both sides of the border.
• I have always acknowledged that I come from a place of privilege, but I now need to acknowledge that that comes with a massive blind spot.
• I’m not perfect. But not being perfect is not a free pass to not do the right thing.

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• If you want to be a government in a minority Parliament, you have to work with other people.
• But I’m very libertarian in the sense that I believe in small government and, as a general rule, I don’t believe in imposing values upon people.
• This party will not take its position based on public opinion polls. We will not take a stand based on focus groups. We will not take a stand based on phone-in shows or householder surveys or any other vagaries of pubic opinion.
• There’s going to be a new code on Parliament Hill: bend the rules, you will be punished; break the law, you will be charged; abuse the public trust, you will go to prison.
• It’s never enough to show the country what we are against. We will offer them a positive vision for the future of this country.
• I will strive to make this not the highest-spending country in the world, but instead the lowest taxing one.
• If Ottawa giveth, then Ottawa can taketh away.
• There is a Canadian culture that is in some ways unique to Canada, but I don’t think Canadian culture coincides neatly with borders.
• In this context, given our common values and the political, economic and security interests that we share with the United States, there is now no more important foreign policy interest for Canada than maintaining the ability to exercise effective influence in Washington so as to advance unique Canadian policy objectives.
• The world is now unipolar and contains only one superpower. Canada shares a continent with that superpower.
• The time has come to recognize that the U.S. will continue to exercise unprecedented power in a world where international rules are still unreliable and where security and advancing of the free democratic order still depend significantly on the possession and use of military might.
• We have in this country a federal government that increasingly is engaged in trying to determine which business, which regions, which industries will succeed, which will not through a whole range of economic development, regional development corporate subsidization programs.
• Canada appears content to become a second-tier socialistic country, boasting ever more loudly about its economy and social services to mask its second-rate status.
• Make no mistake. Canada is not a bilingual country. In fact it is less bilingual today than it has ever been.
• As a religion, bilingualism is the god that failed. It has led to no fairness, produced no unity, and cost Canadian taxpayers untold millions.
• You don’t defend national sovereignty with flags, cheap election rhetoric, and advertising campaigns.
• I have always said that controversial issues of a moral or religious nature, such as abortion, should be settled by free votes of MPs, not by party policy.
• Canada appears content to become a second-tier socialistic country, boasting ever more loudly about its economy and social services to mask its second-rate status.
• The nature of our constitution is that everyone is supposed to be able to do their own thing in their own area of jurisdiction.
• Canadians can disagree, but it takes a lot to get Canadians to intensely hate something or hate somebody. And it usually involves hockey.
• I think there is a dangerous rise in defeatist sentiment in this country. I have said that repeatedly, and I mean it and believe it.
• I believe that all taxes are bad.

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• For years governments have been promising more than they can deliver, and delivering more than they can afford.
• As a people, we know what we can do, we know how to do it, and we just want to get on with it. How? By ensuring that Canada’s place in the world is one of influence and pride.
  I rise in support of a Canada in which liberties are safeguarded, rights are protected and the people of this land are treated as equals under the law.
• If we do not step forward, then we step back. If we do not protect a right, then we deny it.
• The achievements we forge in this place and in our nation will not be those of one person or one party.
• The people of Canada have worked hard to build a country that opens its doors to include all, regardless of their differences; a country that respects all, regardless of their differences; a country that demands equality for all, regardless of their differences.
• We were caught in a trap of our own making – a vicious circle in which our chronic deficits contributed to economic lethargy, which in turn contributed to even higher deficits, and then to greater malaise.
• We will strengthen the integrity of government.  To achieve that goal, we must create an environment in which the reporting of wrongdoing can be made without repercussion for someone who comes forward. We are doing just that. The political process in Ottawa will never be the same again.
• We are going to condemn to history the practice and politics of cronyism I am going to change the way Ottawa works and we are going to do it come hell or high water.

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• A proof is a proof. What kind of a proof? It’s a proof. A proof is a proof. And when you have a good proof, it’s because it’s proven.
• We are not going to change. We are going to continue defending our cause and our socialism.
• When you’re a mayor and you have a problem you blame the provincial government. If you are provincial government and you have a problem you blame the federal government. We don’t blame the Queen any more, so once in a while we might blame the Americans.
• Even some of the bureaucrats want to get you. They all may have an interest in making you look bad and they all have ambitions of their own. 
• You have to look at history as an evolution of society.
• Deficit reduction is not an end in itself. It is the means to an end, … Canadians must now decide what kind of country they want to build with the hard-won dividend.
• The challenge we all face as leaders is how best to steer our governments’ agenda back toward addressing the most critical problems facing our citizens. Globalization is certainly one factor affecting how democracies work.
• The free and civilized nations of the world have joined hands to press the first great struggle for justice of the 21st century – the struggle to defy and defeat the forces of terrorism.
• We are part of an unprecedented coalition of nations that has come together to fight the threat of terrorism … Canada will be part of this coalition every step of the way.
• Pierre Trudeau dreamed of a society that afforded all of its citizens an equal opportunity to succeed in life — whatever their background or beliefs, whether rich or poor.
• The art of politics is learning to walk with your back to the wall, your elbows high, and a smile on your face. It’s a survival game played under the glare of lights. If you don’t learn that you’re quickly finished. It’s damn tough and you can’t complain; you just have to take it and give it back. The press wants to get you. The opposition wants to get you.
• Perhaps there were a few million dollars that might have been stolen in the process. But how many millions of dollars have we saved because we have re-established the stability of Canada by keeping it a united country?

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• You had an option, sir. You could have said, ‘I am not going to do it. This is wrong for Canada, and I am not going to ask Canadians to pay the price.’ You had an option, sir–to say ‘no’–and you chose to say ‘yes’ to the old attitudes and the old stories of the Liberal Party. That sir, if I may say respectfully, that is not good enough for Canadians.
• You accumulate political capital to spend it on noble causes for Canada. If you’re afraid to spend your capital, you shouldn’t be there.
• There are so many demands on your time, on your resources, and on the prestige of the government.
• If everything is very important, then nothing is important.
• I am not denying anything I did not say.
• If your only objective is to be popular, you’re going to be popular but you will be known as the Prime Minister who achieved nothing.
• In politics, madame, you need two things: friends, but above all an enemy.
• Trudeau’s contribution was not to build Canada but to destroy it, and I had to come in and save it.
• Popularity’s bad for you. I avoid it like the plague.
• Trade is Canada’s life blood. Our objective is to strengthen Canada’s stature as a first-class world trader.
• Throughout our history, trade has been critical to Canada’s livelihood. Now, almost one third of what we produce is exported. Few countries in the world are so dependent on trade. This trend ultimately threatens the jobs of many Canadians and the living standards of the nation as a whole. We must confront this threat. We must reverse this trend. To do so, we need a better, a fairer, and a more predictable trade relationship with the United States. At stake are more than two million jobs which depend directly on Canadian access to the U.S. market. 
• Look, when I did the Free Trade Agreement, I didn’t know how it was going to turn out. I thought it was the right thing to do. I believed it was the way of the future. If you looked at it in the new millenium, you would say this was so obvious that it had to be done. Without it, Canada would be small and atrophied. The Free Trade Agreement and NAFTA will be regarded one hundred years from now as a major defining moment in the evolution of Canada.
• I think the government has to reposition environment on top of their national and international priorities.
• We decided that the environment was an integral part of our policies and the political thrust of our government. We gave it the priority and we sustained it with the money required to make it happen.
• Canadians have an obligation to help make the world a better and safer place. Not least, we owe it to ourselves to honor excellence and pursue it relentlessly. Canada must stand for the best in all fields of human endeavour. And we must be uncompromising in the pursuit of values that are the moral foundation of all great nations. That is my dream for my country: a Canada fair and generous, tolerant and just.

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• We will not take this nation by storm, by stealth or by surprise. We will win it by work. – Joseph Clark
• This is a very complicated country. You have to understand it, you have to respect it, and I think our most successful prime ministers have been people who have drawn together the diversity of the country. – Joseph Clark
• I know there are scars and wounds from battles fought. It is a different day and a different process. – Joseph Clark
• One of the luxuries of a politician’s life is that you see yourself as others see you. – Joseph Clark
• You will know that in our most recent skirmishes, I won some debating points and he (Pierre Trudeau) won another general election. – Joespeh Clark 
• A recession is when your neighbour loses his job. A depression is when you lose your job. Recovery is when Pierre Trudeau loses his job. – Joseph Clark

• I had no option! – John Turner
• In any democracy, there is always a tug-of-war between policies to achieve equality and policies to promote excellence. I am certain that Canada can achieve both equality and excellence. – John Turner
• Any country that is willing to surrender economic levers inevitably yields levers politically and surrenders a large chunk of its ability to remain a sovereign nation. I don’t believe our future depends on our yielding those economic levers of sovereignty to become a junior partner in Fortress North America to the United States. – John Turner
• In opposition, there’s not much one can do. One doesn’t have the carrot and one doesn’t have the stick. One can’t promote and one can’t fire. And persuasion has its limits. – John Turner

• In the 126 years of our common history, anglophones and francophones, Aboriginal peoples and new Canadians have shown that our political system, founded on the profound respect of differences and the sharing of fundamental values, is our most powerful tool of development. – Kim Campbell
• In all modesty, we must admit that governments are not always the best doctors when it comes to diagnosing economic ailments and prescribing the right treatment. – Kim Campbell
• In a democracy, government isn’t something that a small group of people do to everybody else, it’s not even something they do for everybody else, it should be something they do with everybody else. – Kim Campbell
• Government cannot and must not replace private initiative. – Kim Campbell
• I have always believed governments must adapt to the needs of the people, not the other way around. – Kim Campbell

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com

• I have done it by hard work and long hours, by making it evident that I was available for whatever was to be done; by welcoming every opportunity for new and more responsible duties; and by accumulating all the experience possible in all the varied aspects of my profession.
• Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
• The choice, however, is as clear now for nations as it was once for the individual: peace or extinction.
• The grim fact is that we prepare for war like precocious giants, and for peace like retarded pygmies.
• It would be especially tragic if the people who most cherish ideals of peace, who are most anxious for political cooperation on a wider than national scale, made the mistake of underestimating the pace of economic change in our modern world.
• Of all our dreams today there is none more important – or so hard to realise – than that of peace in the world. May we never lose our faith in it or our resolve to do everything that can be done to convert it one day into reality.
• A great gulf, however, has been opened between man’s material advance and his social and moral progress, a gulf in which he may one day be lost if it is not closed or narrowed.
• The life of states cannot, any more than the life of individuals, be conditioned by the force and the will of a unit, however powerful, but by the consensus of a group, which must one day include all states.
• The stark and inescapable fact is that today we cannot defend our society by war since total war is total destruction, and if war is used as an instrument of policy, eventually we will have total war.
• The scientific and technological discoveries that have made war so infinitely more terrible for us are part of the same process that has knit us all so much more closely together.
• We must keep on trying to solve problems, one by one, stage by stage, if not on the basis of confidence and cooperation, at least on that of mutual toleration and self-interest.
• Our own country’s existence has always depended upon achieving unity of human purpose within the diversity of our linguistic cultural and social backgrounds.
• Whether we live together in confidence and cohesion; with more faith and pride in ourselves and less self-doubt and hesitation; strong in the conviction that the destiny of Canada is to unite, not divide; sharing in cooperation, not in separation or in conflict; respecting our past and welcoming our future.
• I refuse to believe that in a world subject to all the perils and where there is no security, where universal fraternity is the solution to the threat of extinction, where it is absolutely necessary for men to draw closer together in spirit as they are now closer in fact, I refuse to believe that in this world all Canadians cannot live together, work together, grow together in friendship and understanding, rejecting the dangerous counsels of extremism whence they come, so that together we can achieve the great destiny of Canada.
• At noon today, in this eighth month of our ninety-eighth year as a Confederation, our new Flag will fly for the first time in the skies above Canada and in places overseas where Canadians serve.  If our nation, by God’s grace, endures a thousand years, this day, the 15th day of February, 1965, will always be remembered as a milestone in Canada’s national progress.

Chris George is an Ottawa-based government affairs advisor and wordsmith, president of CG&A COMMUNICATIONS. Contact: ChrisG.George@gmail.com