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One year later, what do you think of Justin Trudeau?

Some Sault residents love him, others are not that impressed
2016-04-08 Justin Trudeau DMH-10
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Sault Ste. Marie for a transit funding announcement on Friday, April 8, 2016. Donna Hopper/SooToday

Nearly a year after the federal Liberals came to power, replacing Stephen Harper’s Conservative government, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s personal popularity seems as high as ever.

But will cracks soon appear in his armour?

Political observers at the national level are openly questioning how much longer the country’s honeymoon with Trudeau will last as his government heads into its second year in office.

Locally, SooToday took to the streets this weekend to listen to reactions from Sault residents and visiting tourists regarding Trudeau’s performance as Prime Minister.

We received a variety of responses, ranging from unequivocal, enthusiastic support for Trudeau, to cautious optimism, to some blunt criticism and less-than-flattering remarks.

“I think he’s doing good, he’s a good guy!” exclaimed Aldo Diotallevi.

“He’s got a good image and he’s made Canada a more accepted country around the world…the local steel industry, I don’t think we have much control over, it’s controlled at a different level but our MP (Terry Sheehan) is trying his best.”

“I’m not a Trudeau fan, I didn’t support him or his father (Pierre Trudeau)…and our MP is a lightweight,” said Danny Smith succinctly.

“I am pleased with what he’s done and I’m very impressed with his policies regarding aboriginals and women…he’s not afraid at all to show his support for groups who have been marginalized in the past,” said Judy McMillan of Espanola.  

“He seems to be spending a lot of time travelling around the world, it keeps him out of trouble at home,” said Mark Buskiewicz.

“I haven’t seen much of a difference and I don’t expect much of a difference…I’m not a big believer in (the federal) government.  Local government is more important.” 

“I think he’s doing well…I have family members who are aboriginal and the federal government is helping them out,” said Jim Johnston, a visitor from Thunder Bay.

“They made a lot of promises and it’ll take a while for them to deliver on them…but it seems the old stuff is cropping up, like one staffer (Katie Telford, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff) spending $80,000 for moving expenses, which is outrageous.  There seems to be some sense of entitlement that is not untypical of governments,” said Phil Nazar, a visitor from Toronto.

“He’s travelling all over the world and spending Canadian money like there’s no end to it, he’s got to start thinking about the common man and the taxes we’re paying, but he’s taking all these wonderful trips all over the world with his wife and his entourage,” said Sonnie Armstrong.

“I don’t think they’re doing enough for our steel industry…the Chinese keep dumping steel and we’ve got to stop them because they’re unfair traders.”

“The oil industry is in trouble, the East Coast is basically broke too…people need to eat, and jobs are scarce,” Armstrong said.

 

“I like him as a person, his persona, he’s good-looking and a thinker, but there are issues here…I’d like to see the federal government invest in revitalizing the downtown area and help the small business operator,” said a woman who identified herself as Lynne.

“I’d like to see more job stability and equal opportunity for employment…men should not be making more than women, it should be equalized,” Lynne said.

“I think he’s pretty good because he seems to get along with the people he has to work with from other countries…he seems like the type of man that will keep trying to accomplish what he’s set out to do,” said Shirley Stortini. 

“Everybody expects politicians to do miracles, Trudeau won’t be able to do all the things he wants to do as fast as he would like to do them, he set out some pretty lofty goals and a lot of them were very good and very solid, but getting them implemented takes time,” said Harold McCarthy.

McCarthy said he is pleased the Trudeau government is acting on its promises to get Syrian refugees resettled in Canada, including Sault Ste. Marie.

“I think we’re back on the world scene and respected and appreciated again…the idea of being a bigger player in the United Nations is tremendous,” McCarthy said.

“There’s a lot of opposition to pipelines but I’m a great believer in pipelines, this west to east pipeline to the Maritimes is important…we buy oil from the Middle East, why can’t we use Canadian oil, building pipelines with Canadian steel and get people working again?” said Howie Wilcox.

“I like Terry Sheehan but he has done about as much as he can do (for locally produced steel), now it’s up to the government to put up tariffs against these countries that are dumping steel.”

“I’m also disappointed with the government because I’m an executive member of the Coalition for Algoma Passenger Trains (CAPT, which is dedicated to reviving Sault to Hearst passenger rail service) and (Transport Minister) Marc Garneau turned us down for funding.”

“The previous Conservative government agreed to funding the rail service for three years, and the Liberal ruling that it’s not a remote route is bogus.”

“I’m a little concerned…Trudeau needs to start governing now, and he’s been running around all over the world,” Wilcox said.

Clearly, no shortage of responses, and a variety of opinions.

The Liberals have kept several promises, such as adjusting tax benefits for families with young children, which will put more money into the hands of low and middle income families.

Trudeau visited Sault Ste. Marie with MP Terry Sheehan in April to announce $3 million in funding for local transit infrastructure improvements as part of a national $3.4 billion transit infrastructure improvement program.

Locally, concerns remain over our economy as Essar Steel Algoma and Tenaris Algoma Tubes go through extremely tough times, due in large part to dumping of foreign steel into the Canadian market (though the government is striving to address dumping and some workers have recently been called back to the tube mill).

Voters in Sault Ste. Marie and across Canada will have the final say on Trudeau and the Liberals in the next federal election, which will be held on or before October 21, 2019.

 

 


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Darren Taylor

About the Author: Darren Taylor

Darren Taylor is a news reporter and photographer in Sault Ste Marie. He regularly covers community events, political announcements and numerous board meetings. With a background in broadcast journalism, Darren has worked in the media since 1996.
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