It seems to me that to make it as a politician these days, you either have to have great hair or a starring role on a reality TV program.
Is it just me, or is our current prime minister being treated more like an actor walking the red carpet at the Oscars than a head of state, make that a country?
Proof of that was shown in the media frenzy that erupted when Justin Trudeau and his family stepped off the plane in Washington, D.C. – onto a red carpet, no less – for their first official visit to the U.S. Wednesday.
It was as if Prince Wills and the Duchess of Cambridge had arrived, toting George and Charlotte in their handbags.
And you know how much our American neighbours love them royals. Just look how they received Becks and Posh. OK, bad example.
Even President Barack Obama pointed out that Trudeau is the first prime minister to be invited to a state dinner in nearly 20 years, with the cutesy line, “It’s about time, eh?”
What, did none of our former PMs from the last two decades provide enough witty banter or good table manners?
Maybe it had to do with their politics, although I don’t see why George Dubya never had Stephen Harper over for tea before he left office. Well maybe he did, but we never really heard or saw tons of photos about it on the news.
So what’s with this love affair with our new PM?
Could it be the relentless coverage of how good looking he is? Heck, forget The Atlantic, that new political mag known as Vogue even featured a spread on him.
Maybe it’s his aptitude for diplomacy and giving good sound bites, as he did when he spoke about the possibility of The Apprentice boss becoming the new U.S. president.
He took the high road, saying he would work with whomever the American people elect as president.
Does that include giving hair tips? I jest.
There’s no denying that like his father, Trudeau junior is charismatic, charming, and well spoken, as he showed during his eight-month election campaign.
I liked what he had to say then and appreciated his non-combative style – the complete opposite of what we are seeing south of the border right now with Republican nominees comparing the size of their “appendages” as a means to rule a country.
But I have to ask, what has Trudeau really done for us lately?
I’ve heard lots about Justin’s family vacation to Whistler and seen lots of selfies of young girls posing with him, but I’m still waiting to hear about the results of some of those campaign promises:
Will we get subsidized daycare?
Will a national inquiry into the missing and murdered indigenous women actually be conducted?
What kind of action will be taken towards climate change?
Will the Veteran Affairs office, closed by the Conservatives, be re-opened?
Will more refugees be accepted into Canada?
Will we continue to get door-to-door mail delivery from Canada Post?
Will marijuana be legalized?
Enquiring minds – even those cloudy from pot – want to know, after all.
I don’t completely blame the PM for some of these issues being hidden under the rug at the moment, as some don’t make interesting news in the eyes of the mainstream media. And maybe the love affair will be over when the number crunching is completed and the federal budget is finally released, and we all get back to reality.
But for now, we will have to get used to our celebrity politician. A star has been born. Blame Canada.
