Federal authority on the ropes in virus crisis

Global crises have a tendency to increase the power of the federal government. Having made a great contribution to the allied effort in the Second World War, Ottawa turned its newfound capacities to building the Canadian welfare state. In a much different way, the post-9/11 war on terror saw a strengthening of national security powers and institutions.

And then there is the Liberal government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, which has done little more than give the Wexiteers and Quebec separatists and regionalists everywhere else caravan-loads of ammunition in their fight against federal legitimacy.

Thanks to the #shutCanadadown campaign against national oil and gas infrastructure, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government was already looking pretty punch-drunk, but then COVID-19 came along and invited the “Canada is broken” crowd to hold its beer. And now, after weeks of lassitude on the file followed

THERE ARE NO VACUUMS IN POLITICS,

AND IF TRUDEAU WON’T LEAD SOMEONE ELSE WILL.

by a disastrous scrum by a crowd of Liberal ministers on Sunday, federal authority is completely on the ropes.

The scrum followed a rare weekend cabinet meeting, and the intention seemed to be to reassure Canadians that the Liberals had the situation under control. Normally that job would fall to the prime minister. But Justin Trudeau wasn’t present at the meeting because he’s been in isolation ever since his wife Sophie tested positive last week for coronavirus after she came back from a speaking engagement in the U.K.

If he wasn’t there in person, Trudeau was certainly there in spirit. Led by minister of economic development Mélanie Joly and Justice Minister David Lametti, the whole episode was infused with the mix of condescension and self-congratulation that has characterized this government since literally the moment it took power. Talking down to Canadians and patting themselves on the back while communicating absolutely nothing useful is the hallmark of Justin Trudeau’s brand of Wokestagram politics, and it was on full display Sunday evening.

Look, things have moved very, very rapidly. Up until even a week ago there was still a widespread feeling that maybe this virus would miss us, like that summer squall at the far end of the lake that doesn’t end up hammering your campsite. People were still making travel plans, schools were still open, the stock markets were bouncing around but there was still some bullish sentiment to be found.

And then overnight last Thursday it was like a switch was flipped, and since then the red alert klaxon hasn’t stopped. As the domestic cases of coronavirus climbed and as it became clear that there was community transmission happening across the country, provincial and local authorities acted quickly to close first universities, then public schools and daycares and then gyms and pools and skating rinks and now we find ourselves staring at a near total economic shutdown. But the one authority that did not share this growing sense of urgency was the federal government.

But there are a few things that Canadians absolutely need out of Ottawa and one of those is basic competence when it comes to the meat and mead of federal responsibility — securing the borders, maintaining public order, and guaranteeing, to the extent they are able, the health and safety of the citizenry.

Airports are at the core of this responsibility. And for days now Canadians have been returning home from their winter or March break vacations to find that there was no coronavirus screening at the border, little in the way of warnings about self-isolation, and a generally indifferent attitude toward the pandemic that has been spreading across the planet since January. The situation is so bad that at least three provinces — Quebec, Alberta, and Nova Scotia — are so frustrated with Ottawa they are sending provincial officials to the airports to do the jobs that the feds aren’t doing.

Yes, this is a hugely difficult file, we don’t see what’s going on behind the scenes, and for all we know the Liberals have been deeply engaged on it since the start. One bright spot has been Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam, who has certainly been a strong effective communicator regarding the scope of the coronavirus risk.

But there are no vacuums in politics, and if Trudeau won’t lead someone else will. The unlikeliest pair of premiers, Jason Kenney in Alberta and François Legault in Quebec, have taken charge of the national agenda, usurping federal authority at will, and there is no reason to expect they will be keen to relinquish to anyone in Ottawa.

This crisis won’t last forever, and Ottawa will come out of it with its power and legitimacy either strengthened or greatly weakened. Going by the Liberals’ work so far, you won’t find many Canadians willing to bet what remains of their life savings on the latter.

Mélanie Joly