QP: An exhausted slugging match over Ukraine

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The prime minister was present today, while his deputy was away doing pre-budget consultations. All other leaders were present as well, and it was the day where they decided it was going to be all about them. Pierre Poilievre led off in French, rattled off his slogans, and then worried about the increase in auto thefts, as though that wasn’t a policing issue at the provincial and municipal level. Justin Trudeau noted that the previous government cut budgets for policing and that his government has re-invested, that they’re working with provinces, and that Poilievre’s slogans won’t do anything. Poilievre insisted that they got better results for fewer dollars, and again blamed federal policies for this rise. Trudeau read from a script that they will be holding a national summit on the issue, and that they are getting results from investing in border officers. Poilievre switched to English to repeat his first question with added rhetorical flourish, and Trudeau dismissed Poilievre’s “whipping out empty slogans,” and reiterated the success of CBSA stopping more stolen cars from leaving the country. Poilievre quoted from the press release the government put out, and blamed the federal government for the rise. Trudeau reminded him that in 2015, Harper slashed funding for the RCMP and CBSA, and that he had to clean up the mess, before he got drowned out by the applause on his own side. Poilievre taunted that Trudeau was “losing control of himself” by screaming and yelling, before dismissing the notion of the auto theft summit. Trudeau shrugged off the attacks, said that they included facts in the release and that they were “rolling up their sleeves” to work with partners rather than just making political attacks.

Yves-François Blanchet led for the Bloc, and raised the pause on the MAiD extension, and wanted Quebec to be able to move ahead. Trudeau trotted out the line of this being a “deeply personal issue” and said that they were trying to find the right balance, and that they would be open to suggestions. Blanchet wanted advance directives to be allowed, and Trudeau reiterated that they were continuing to consider this issue.

Jagmeet Singh rose for the NDP, and he tried to call out a Liberal MP for her remark about the housing crisis in Toronto, and wondered if the prime minister would listen to front line workers instead. Trudeau recited that they are working with partners and listed the actions they are taking. Singh switched to French to decry a woman being kicked out of her apartment and said that the government has the power to resolve the real estate crisis. (How? With a Green Lantern ring?) Trudeau repeated his same response in French.

Round two, and Poilievre again asserted that Trudeau is personally responsible for the rise in auto theft in both English and French (Trudeau: You are only focused on attacks, while we are focused on solutions; You are again accusing Quebeckers of being incompetent, which is a pattern; If you want to talk about common sense and crime, why do you listen to the American gun lobby?), and went on digression about Vancouver paying “foreign hunters in helicopters” to slaughter deer when Canadian hunter would do it for free (Trudeau: The contortions you will go to in order to pander to the gun lobby).

Blanchet got back up to make a tortured analogy about heat pumps and asylum seekers in order to demand money paid to Quebec around these arrivals (Trudeau: We are working with the Quebec government on how to support them best).

Poilievre got back up to raise the carbon prices of a particular farm (Trudeau: It was funny that when this farm came to you for help in 2014 when you were in government, you told them they needed to stand on their own feet), Poilievre insisted he did help them then before railing about the carbon price (Trudeau: Do you know what is affecting farmers? Climate change, causing droughts and floods), demanding that the planned carbon price increase be cancelled (Trudeau: You’re only proposing to cut rebates that people rely on).

Singh got up again, and demanded funding to UNRWA be restored while the investigation into staff was ongoing (Trudeau: We are deeply concerned with the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, so we are working to support the investigation while we provide relief with other partners), and made a slam against the member for Halifax while decrying grocery prices (Trudeau: We are taking action with new powers for the Competition Bureau, and other supports for Canadians in need).

Round three saw Poilievre get back up yet again, and insisted the government has a “pro-Russia energy policy,” and accused Trudeau of using Ukraine as a political tool (Trudeau: Zelenskyy asked all of us to support the trade treaty and you voted against it; You can’t hide behind the misinformation and disinformation you peddle in), Poilievre went on a tear about carbon pricing in trade deals (Trudeau: You have an opportunity to correct the record and let your MPs vote in favour of the agreement), accused the prime minster of using Ukraine as a distraction from his record (Trudeau: This House used to be united in support of Ukraine but you changed that), rental costs (Trudeau: Let me give you another opportunity to apologise for disparaging Ukraine; We have signed dozens of Housing Accelerator Fund agreements with municipalities), construction starts slowing down (Trudeau: Your plan is to eliminate supports for Canadians; We are taking action on housing; Your only plan is to call people incompetence while we are working with them). It also saw questions on the appearance of the CBC president at committee regarding French language and culture (Trudeau: We need CBC to be strong, and we will make investments to fulfil their mandate), and to give all news media more assistance (Trudeau: C-18 will help journalists at all levels), Service Canada not processing passports in Nunavut (Trudeau: We are committed to working to resolve this issue), and Canada’s previous arms sales to Israel (Trudeau: We have always been responsible with regards to arms sales).

Overall, things got repetitive, and then they got kind of nasty and toxic the longer that it went on, which shows the fairly personal levels of disdain that both Trudeau and Poilievre have for each other. There seems to be no bottom to the depths of stupidity either, whether it’s blaming the prime minister personally for woes that are wholly outside of his area of jurisdiction, or simply making things up because nobody is going to refute it. And this is even before we got to the Ukraine stuff, where Poilievre was outright flailing as he tried to accuse the government of “pro-Putin energy policies” (reminder that there is no possible way that we could be shipping LNG from the east coast), or of insisting that Trudeau is responsible for the allegations of a Canadian company sending detonators to Russia, and his spinning out an enormous fiction about carbon pricing in trade agreements. It just gets so tiresome, especially as there is nothing there to turn this into an actual debate, or to make it entertaining through the use of self-deprecation or actual wit. It just becomes a lethargic slugging match with neither side really landing a blow because they’re just blindly throwing exhausted punches at one another.

Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to Adam Chambers for a tailored blue suit with a crisp white shirt and navy tie, and to Iqra Khalid for a taupe jacket and slacks over a white collared top. Style citations go out to Judy Sgro for an orange jacket over an orange-toned floral top and black slacks, and to Mark Gerretsen for a faded eggplant jacket and tie over a white shirt and black slacks.