LIBERALS TAKE LONGER BUT DO IT RIGHT: DEN TANDT
So do Liberals, in dodging political fallout
They have not, it seems, entirely lost the smarts that won them 184 seats and a whopping majority just over a month ago.
In announcing the details of its long-anticipated, feverishly speculated upon and much-criticized plan to rescue 25,000 refugees from the Syrian war by year’s end, the Liberal government deftly lopped off the last part of the promise, something they could have done three weeks ago.
Their plan is now to bring in 10,000 refugees to Canada by year’s end, with an additional 15,000 to come in the ensuing couple of months — more or less in line with what many stakeholders and critics — including refugee advocates, some mayors, provincial premiers and the Conservative party — have demanded for weeks.
“Canadians said, if it takes a little bit longer to do it right, then that’s what you should do,” said John McCallum, the minister of immigration and point man on the refugee effort, in explaining the change.
McCallum was joined at a news conference Tuesday afternoon by Health Minister Jane Philpott, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale and Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly.
Each minister gave a brief, precise rundown of their part in a plan that extends across multiple government departments — and would appear to meet most if not all of the criticisms heard on the security front, particularly since the Paris terrorist attacks.
Contrary to speculation, some refugees would be screened after arriving in Canada, Goodale said, and all are being screened at their point of origin, in refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.
That screening is to include an initial filtering of applicants to identify the most vulnerable, including families, women at risk, gays and lesbians and single men considered vulnerable due to sexual orientation.
Single young men will not, contrary to further speculation, be automatically excluded; those travelling with their parents or as part of an extended family will be considered.
Following this, every candidate will be subjected to an interview; biometric screening, checks against Canadian and American security databases; and checks of their personal identification. Medical checkups and screening will also be done overseas. Any candidate who turns up even minor irregularities or question marks at any step of this process will see their file shelved for further reconsideration down the line.
The logic of this is simple, if brutal: With millions of refugees waiting to be rescued, finding 25,000 who are truly vulnerable allows for a rigorous process.
That McCallum and his colleagues waited until late November to announce all this is either a tactical masterstroke, yet another example of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s seemingly inexhaustible supply of political luck, or a combination of both.
For at a stroke, the government has nullified its opponents’ most compelling argument against the refugee plan. The long wait, whether deliberate or not, had the effect of rallying opposition around the year-end deadline. That rallying point is now gone; and the Trudeau Liberals can say, quite accurately, that they modified their plan by applying common sense.
A senior Liberal source informs me that tactics had little to do with it: It was a matter of realizing that screening refugees on Canadian soil would be both impractical and unfair. Anyone rejected could not simply be sent back, nor could they remain. So doing this work overseas was the only option, even at the cost of missing the deadline.
Either way, after some initial grumbling and throatclearing from the opposition, the Liberals stand to emerge stronger for this concession. For one thing, they have provided yet another contrast with their predecessors, who never encountered a word of critical advice too commonsensical to ignore.
Another remarkable first, in recent memory: The prime minister was nowhere to be seen at the news conference. Trudeau had given an interview to CBC’s Matt Galloway earlier in the day, explaining the thinking behind dropping the Dec. 31 deadline; beyond that, it was the ministers’ show.
Their presentations were clear, precise and knowledgeable. The question-andanswer session with reporters afterward was lengthy. Taken together, it was another surreal moment for anyone accustomed to the one-man band approach of the Stephen Harper era.
The Tories, for their part, were wise enough to know they’d been beaten. Their response, issued in a news release, was moderate as can be. “Refugees arriving in Canada should be welcomed with open arms and the full confidence of Canadians,” said immigration critic Michelle Rempel.
Then followed a line of modest grumbling the initial campaign promise to resettle 25,000 by year-end was never workable; then, wonder of wonders, a grudging tip of the hat.
“We are pleased that Mr. Trudeau has today listened to Canadians and abandoned a timeline that was not workable. Any resettlement plan must allow for the full integration of refugees as welcomed members of Canadian society.”
Big logistical, practical, economic and social hurdles lie immediately ahead, in the transport, settling and integration of refugees. The political problem, though, has been defused.
That’s Trudeau’s first big win.
CANADIANS SAID, IF IT TAKES A LITTLE BIT LONGER TO DO IT RIGHT, THEN THAT’S WHAT YOU SHOULD DO.
— IMMIGRATION MINISTER JOHN MCCALLUM
THE DECISION IS EITHER A TACTICAL MASTERSTROKE, POLITICAL LUCK — OR BOTH