We must give Caesar what is due Caesar, Pierre Poilievre has achieved a feat rarely achieved in politics for an opposition leader: single-handedly imposing the themes and parameters of the political debate.
Because it is not a liberal scandal that made it possible to exploit the electorate’s fatigue with Justin Trudeau.
It is rather the flair with which he juggled the issues which animate the anxieties of the electorate.
Faced with a Prime Minister who navigated from crisis to crisis all fall without ever fully regaining control, the Conservative leader nevertheless ended the year 2023 on a downward slope.
In two weeks, he lost 5% in voting intentions. As if the electorate had served him a warning.
We suspected it, the last few weeks have confirmed it. Pierre Poilievre is his own worst enemy.
Innovate
His resounding victory in the Conservative Party leadership race had already lifted the veil on his political weapon of choice: social media.
Shock video while smoking shisha, monologue on house prices, on the opioid crisis, it has become its own 24-hour news channel.
The result was not always happy. Consider here his ill-advised craze for cryptocurrency.
Never mind. He overtook the liberals in the area of political communication. He largely bypassed the media filter.
His political-documentary on the housing crisis, despite the inaccuracies, demonstrates this.
Skid
This is how the Trudeau government, which spent lavishly to help Canadians cope with the rising cost of living, was accused of both doing too much and not enough.
This government, which launched the biggest project in 30 years on affordable housing, has been blamed for the housing crisis.
The merciless crusade led by the Conservative Party against the carbon tax even pushed Justin Trudeau to sacrifice part of it to retain his electorate in the Atlantic!
Rarely have we seen a more humiliating and spectacular setback.
And yet, for Pierre Poilievre, it was not enough.
Like a gladiator who can’t just win the game, he had to literally destroy his opponent.
And that’s where everything went wrong.
Campaign of intimidation against two senators which led one of them to obtain police protection.
Opposition to the free trade treaty with Ukraine under the false risk that a carbon tax will be imposed.
Paralysis of the work of the House.
Surreal reproaches to the French-speaking Minister of Heritage because she did not want to respond in English.
In search of shocking clips to feed the infernal machine of social media, Pierre Poilievre gave in to his worst political instincts. He lost sight of the essential.
Convincing Canadians that the Trudeau government is worn out is not enough.
Now that he seems to be at the gates of power, he must reassure, establish the credibility of a possible conservative government.
Because despite Canadians’ appetite for change, Pierre Poilievre is once again arousing the fears that he had been able to calm until now.
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