John Ivison: Desperate Trudeau antagonizes Mike Pence over abortion to score political points

No doubt we have observed a desperate Trudeau who opposes Mike Pence on abortion to obtain political points. That being so, the prime minister clearly made the calculation that, in spite of the sympathy, embarrassing his guest was in his best electoral interests.

It may not be of great relevance if Mike Pence is upset with Justin Trudeau for raising the issue of abortion during his courtesy visit to promote the new NAFTA agreement. After all, he is only the vice president of the USA, and even the former incumbents were not so impressed with the office.

Still, it seemed unkind to say the least that Trudeau would inconvenience a guest who had come to repair the snub by the Trump Administration.

Relevant facts

It is necessary to mention that Pence came in peace. He congratulated Trudeau for having promoted a “hard bargain” in the new NAFTA and spoke of his intention to “reaffirm a successful partnership”. Similarly, Trudeau was not mentioned as “weak and dishonest”, as the president claimed a year ago, let alone that the prime minister sent to a “special place in hell”, as suggested by Donald Trump’s commercial advisor, Peter Navarro, during the negotiations.

There is no doubt that rarely in the field of international relations, two men shake hands so often, in such a short time, as Trudeau and Pence. Even so, Trudeau clearly made the calculation that, despite his sympathy, embarrassing his guest was in his best electoral interests.

In this way, Prime Minister Trudeau took advantage of the visit to raise concerns about women’s access to abortion in certain US states. UU., A complaint that seems to have little relevance to a representative of the federal government, much less to a commercial mission.

Accordingly, the prime minister has seen Trump raise tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum.

It should be noted that relations between Canada and the United States sank into their postwar nadir and the lack of respect that the Trump Administration extended to its strongest ally will not be easily forgotten by many Canadians. Even so, Trudeau’s job is to continue with the president or, in this case, with the vice president. Telling him how to run his own country is not part of that task.

Source: John Ivison | National Post