He’s been searching hard, ever since it became apparent the campaign wouldn’t be a cakewalk. He tried abortion, a Liberal favourite, but it didn’t work out, maybe because Conservative leader Erin O’Toole’s position is essentially the same as his, or perhaps because Liberals have been making the same hollow charges for so long the resonance has waned.
He took a stab at health care, backing up Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s effort to portray the Tories as proponents of private medicine, but that didn’t pan out either, and left the normally sure-footed Freeland looking clumsy and a bit diminished.
For a few days the Liberal leader went after Canada’s big banks, all of which committed the cardinal sin of continuing to make large profits during the pandemic. A Liberal government, Trudeau vowed, would tax those profits right back into the federal treasury! Once again the assault seemed to fizzle. Trudeau, who has boasted he doesn’t worry much about monetary policy, may also lack a firm grasp of banking practices as well. While hugely profitable, the banks pour the bulk of their gains into dividends that support pension plans, mutual funds, retirement packages and individual savings for millions of Canadians. Cripple the banks and you kick a hole in the financial security of a lot of people who aren’t likely to appreciate it.
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