Those who were suspicious of the new sunny ways approach should feel vindicated on the heels of last week’s announcement of two new senate appointments. Pictured: Future Senator Charles Adler. Photo Credit: Charles Adler/X.
In 2015, former Prime Minister Stephen Harper made headlines for his stated desire to reform the senate. In a bold move, Harper said his government would no longer appoint senators until there was meaningful change in the red chamber.
The Canadian Constitution outlines that the senate make up is divided among provinces and territories. To make structural changes to the makeup and powers of the senate, provincial approval representing two-thirds of the provinces representing at least 50 per cent of the population is required.
Harper knew this. It was his hope that by no longer appointing senators, provinces would start to feel the heat and come up with a plan to bring order to a body that was “unelected [and] unaccountable.”
He was never able to put this plan into motion in any serious way, as an election was right around the corner and the Conservatives would soon be unseated.
Thus, Canadians were left with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s version of reform. Shortly after the election, the government rolled out a non-partisan selection process to choose worthy candidates. It was billed as a fresh start and a shift away from political interference.
Those who were suspicious of the new sunny ways approach should feel vindicated on the heels of last week’s announcement of two new senate appointments.
The first? Charles Adler, a self-anointed conservative turned rabid critic, who has spent the last several years taking a run at just about every politician who dares to run under a blue banner.
With this appointment, Trudeau and his staff likely thought they were setting a trap for the Poilievre Conservatives, and that it would result in a barrage of commentary that would show just how nasty they are.
Instead, the biggest criticisms came from within the house. One of Trudeau’s own cabinet ministers went on the record to say that “there are many eminently qualified Manitobans who are better suited to represent our province than Charles Adler.”
The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs also called for Adler’s appointment to be rescinded, due to comments he had made that were “racist in the past.”
The second appointment made last weekend to the red chamber was Tracy Muggli, a long-time donor to the Liberal Party and former Trudeau candidate in the 2015 and 2019 election.
No further commentary needed on this one.
While stakeholders routinely voice their objections to government decisions, it is a rare feat for Trudeau’s cabinet to say anything out of step with the daily talking points. Appointing rabid partisans who have chosen to divide Canadians with their words rather than lift them up surely can’t be part of the facelift the Prime Minister’s Office has been trying to employ since the devastating by-election loss earlier this summer.
There is no easy path to senate reform, but Harper had the right idea. Unless political leaders are willing to take risks that threaten to hold up the business of the government, we are going to continue with the same old system that is the very thing politicians have condemned over and over.
Josie Sabatino is a Senior Consultant at Summa Strategies, focused on providing strategic insight and helping clients meet their objectives in an ever changing and complex political and regulatory environment. Prior to joining Summa, Josie spent nearly a decade in political communications and most recently served as the Director of Communications to the Hon. Erin O’Toole, former Leader of the Official Opposition.
