KINSELLA: Politicians hate each other until they don't
I'll let you in on a little secret: they're lot friendlier than you know.
Members of Parliament, that is. Partisan differences notwithstanding, durable friendships persist behind the scenes. And evidence of that crept into full public view, this week, as King Charles alighted on Canadian soil to read the Liberal Platform Speech from the Throne. Ministers, MPs, Senators and staffers gathered on the Hill for the historic event, and things previously unseen became seen.
Conservative and Liberal partisans were astounded, for example, by the widely-circulated photo of former Prime Ministers Stephen Harper and Justin Trudeau, clearly enjoying each others' company. Harper was smiling, and Trudeau was seemingly convulsed with laughter. (Harper, unbeknownst to many, is a very, very funny guy.)
Some readers, who apparently actually believe Question Period is real life, were astounded and appalled. 'Two-faced!' said 'Macaw' over on a Reddit thread, although it is uncertain which leader he/she was referring to. Trudeau 'behaved like a child!' pronounced 'Ask Revolutionary1517.' And: 'Weak men in suits!' declared 'Basedregular1917.'
And so on, and so on. Knowledgeable commenters thought the Trudeau-Harper exchange wasn't all that unusual – it was nice, even – but the uninformed still don't seem to understand that Ottawa will always, always be our Hollywood for ugly people. It's like pro wrestling, but without the sparkly wrestling singlets. The hate is fake.
Another example: Trudeau's footwear. Several conservative members of the commentariat were positively in a lather that the former Liberal leader would have the effrontery to show up in running shoes. CBC (natch) even spent time researching the provenance of the Prime Ministerial sneakers: Trudeau was wearing a pair of Adidas Gazelle shoes, reported an agog CBC journalist — who (natch) was paid by you, the taxpayer, to find out.
The shoes cost about $150 over on the Adidas website, and Trudeau-haters were in a spit-flecked fury about the indignity of it all. Dimitri Soudas, who was one of Harper's PR fart-catchers, declared: 'I don't know what to say.' (That's a first.) Some Trudeau critics even consulted Debretts, the style guide for British etiquette: 'Those invited to royal events usually want to do their best to be correct. Specific dress codes, such as black tie, should be adhered to. It is generally best to err on the more conservative side.'
Well, Trudeau didn't. The world didn't end, no one died.
Perhaps the best response to Adidas-gate came from a longtime conservative, and a former Harper diplomatic appointee, no less: Vivian Bercovici, our former ambassador to Israel. Said Bercovici (who, full disclosure, is a smart and good friend): 'I think it was brilliant. Somebody made a point of telling staffers that he hates brown shoes. Justin always had a thing for brown dress shoes. This is the cleverest response.'
Pierre Poilievre, no longer a Member of Parliament, showed up as a guest to listen to the King read the Speech from the Throne. Some, like The Beaverton, were a tad uncharitable: 'Pierre Poilievre attends Speech From The Throne with face pressed against Senate window,' they headlined their satirical report.
'The unemployed Conservative Party leader began the royal visit following the throngs of well wishers along Wellington Street where the King and Queen traveled in their ceremonial horse-drawn carriage. Poilievre followed the procession as he ran behind the crowd, occasionally jumping up so he could be seen, calling the King's name,' chortled The Beaverton.
In reality, no one gave Poilievre a hard time for being in a spot typically reserved for elected Members. Quite a few extended friendly greetings, in fact.
The day was like that. When word came that former Prime Minister Jean Chretien was not present because of minor heart surgery, my inbox was flooded with Conservatives extending best wishes. I passed them along to my former boss, who is fine and resting comfortably at home.
Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, was spotted wearing the larger of his Officer of the Order of Canada medals — which, not only is he permitted to, he is actually required to do when in the presence of the King. Notwithstanding that, conservative complainers carped about it. One commented on my X feed: 'I'm surprised there has been zero commentary about our rather grand PM wearing a giant medal to the throne speech.'
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'A giant medal.' Good Lord. He's not dressing up as Flavor Flav, folks. My response: 'He's a member of the Order of Canada. It's allowed. Try and keep up.'
And that, perhaps, is the best advice of all: don't believe everything you see and hear, folks. Ottawa is a lot like a hockey game: everyone plays hard, everyone gets their elbows up. And then, when the game is over, the jerseys come off and everyone gets together for a beer.
It's Ottawa, after all: a few square acres surrounded by reality.
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