![]() But as soon as I start asking questions, he snaps into place, admiringly forthcoming on his life journey and frustratingly on message when it comes to political answers. Trudeau reminds me of, well, Obama as he smiles and listens patiently to me droning on about my Canadian wife as if it is actually interesting. His sleeves are pushed up, his tie blue, his shirt white, his socks festooned with moose. On a recent summer afternoon, Trudeau takes off his suit jacket and we settle into two ornate chairs in a corner of his Parliament Hill office. He is using, let us say, different methods. Justin Trudeau is trying to Make Canada Great Again. “Our support for Ukraine, including militarily, is something that stands us very clearly on the ‘Russia is an unhelpful actor in the world’ side of the dynamic,” Trudeau tells me. Trudeau’s foreign minister is Chrystia Freeland, a Canadian of Ukrainian descent who is banned in Putin’s Russia. Trump’s son met with Russian nationals who promised dirt on Hillary Clinton. The opioid crisis that Trudeau spoke of in his press conference? His government is fast-tracking safe-usage areas to cut down on overdoses, while America’s opioid-related deaths have reached epidemic levels.Īnd then there’s Russia. Trudeau is urging American cities and states to work with their northern neighbors to cut emissions. Trump ditched the Paris environmental accord. Over the border, Trudeau, who admits he smoked pot after being elected to Parliament, campaigned on legalizing it across Canada. (We know Trump’s position on that issue.) Meanwhile, Attorney General Jeff Sessions is trying to roll back America’s weed laws to Reefer Madness days. Trudeau is firmly pro-choice abortions are provided as part of Canada’s universal health care. The contrasts between here and there are not just superficial. Join me as we visit a nation led by a man who wore a Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy T-shirt on national television, rides a unicycle and welcomed 40,000 Syrian refugees with open arms. Where are we? Narnia? Coachella recovery tent? 2009? We are in Ottawa, Ontario, a mere 560 miles from Washington, D.C.Īnd yet, we are half a world away. So thank you all for your tireless work.” “When you’re at your best, it reminds us and challenges us to be at ours. “The back and forth between the press and government is essential to any good democracy,” he says. Then he gives the press corps a high-five. ![]()
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