Since both have been in office, Jacinda Ardern and Justin Trudeau have been kindred political spirits. Both bring the kind of youthful glamor to public office that only seems to come once in a generation. Both share the same progressive values on issues such as climate change, diversity and social inclusion. And both have seen their popularity wane at home in the face of proactive pandemic policies and vocal opposition to them.
But while Trudeau has been adamant about staying on to fight the next election, Ardern surprised everyone with his recent announcement that he was stepping down after just over five years in power. “I am human, politicians are human. We give everything we can for as long as we can. And then it’s time. And for me, it’s time,” he said.
It has been tempting for Canadian pundits to draw a line between Ardern’s decision to leave and Trudeau’s insistence on staying, especially since both have faced similarly disappointing poll numbers of late. But there is another line they should draw, one that points to the increase in abuse and violent threats these leaders have faced.
For Trudeau, that abuse has become part of the background noise of his political life in recent years. Sometimes, as with the ugly protest in Hamilton the other day where an angry mob descended on the prime minister and police protection from him, it’s a bit scary. But Trudeau, who has yet to walk away from a fight in his political career, was not about to let that daunt him. “We are not going to allow a bunch of angry people to interfere with the democratic processes that Canadians have always been proud of,” he said. saying.
But in some respects, they are already interfering in the democratic process.
Anti-vaccine activists routinely consume far more political oxygen than their numbers would suggest is appropriate, often taking pride in directing criticism and abuse at elected officials. That makes it more difficult for those officials to meet with constituents, interact with the public and otherwise do their jobs. “Those kinds of things suck your energy”, Liberal MP Hedy Fry saying the toronto star. “I can understand the concept of exhaustion, but I also think that all the threats contribute to that. [Ardern] went online.”
And make no mistake: There’s a different kind of vitriol being directed at women in public life right now. Ardern refused to blame the threats that he faced for his surprise departure from politics. But as Michelle Rempel Garner, Conservative MP for Calgary Nose-Hill, pointed out in a to post on your Substack, it’s hard to ignore the correlation there. “While both Trudeau and Ardern have had to deal with increasing threats of violence, Ardern has fought against a greater degree of sexualized violence,” she wrote. “Indeed, unlike Ardern, Trudeau hasn’t had to deal with things like being asked if he was going to have babies as a qualifier of his suitability to serve as prime minister or being asked Did you meet another world leader because of your age and gender?.”
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Ardern’s departure may represent a victory for the anti-vaccine movement and the misogynists within it, but make no mistake: it’s a loss for almost everyone else. We are facing a tragedy of the political commons, one that is rapidly eroding public trust in both elected officials and the offices they hold.
And the more our political commons becomes tainted with things like anger fomenting, conspiracy theories, and toxic partisanship, the less attractive it becomes for anyone of position or substance to run for public office.
This is not a new problem, and it did not start when Trudeau was elected prime minister. As Harper-era cabinet minister James Moore indicated on Twitter, “I, and many other cabinet colleagues, have received multiple death threats and raised security at work and home. It was frequent.
If people like Jacinda Ardern find the cost of public service prohibitively high, it will be the rest of us who end up paying the price in the end, writes columnist @maxfawcett for @NatObserver. #JacindaArdern
So there should be an incentive for everyone involved to turn down the heat and restore at least a modicum of civility to our politics.
If they don’t, they are painting themselves, and us, into a rather dangerous corner. Who, besides the politician for life (hello, Pierre Poileivre!) or the hereditary torchbearer (that’s you, Justin Trudeau!), would want the job of prime minister right now? If you are an accomplished doctor, lawyer, entrepreneur, social worker, or teacher, do you really want to give up your livelihood, move to Ottawa, and be abused on social media 24/7? And how are we supposed to bring more women and other underrepresented groups into public life when they tend to bear the brunt of this abuse?
The answer, if we stay on this path, is that we won’t. That probably suits some people well. But if people like Jacinda Ardern find the cost of public service prohibitively high, it will be the rest of us who will end up paying the price in the end.