COOPER: They wrote the book on Mr. Trudeau more than 500 years ago

A lot of commentary in recent weeks regarding the current state of political affairs around the world has referred to the great political thinkers of the past. The current state of American politics, for example, has been compared to the dissolution of the Roman republic initiated with the assassination of Julius Caesar. Another discussed the use of the Greek term dêmagôgos by Thucydides in his history of the war between the Spartans and the Athenians and its applicability to current political actors.One reason for looking to the great political philosophers is that they provide a perspective on current affairs that is often more insightful than the frenetic coverage found in contemporary media sources.This term I am teaching a course on Machiavelli, widely considered to be the founder of modern political philosophy, and in that context a founder of the modern political world.The insights into contemporary politics provided by his masterpiece, The Prince, were easily accessible to students last week in the recent words and deeds of Justin Trudeau.Specifically, we discussed Chapter 23, “in what mode flatterers are to be avoided.” Flatterers are difficult for a prince (or a premier or prime minister) to avoid because political leaders are easily pleased by themselves. However, their wish to defend themselves carries the risk of becoming contemptible when their audience detects self-flattery in their words. Such a one is never esteemed, which is the one thing all princes seek to gain.Machiavelli explained that a prince can guard against becoming contemptible by choosing “wise men” who speak the truth — but only when called upon by him. There is a problem when the ministers advising the prince are unwise, which is made worse when the prince is given sound, but unasked-for, counsel by non-ministers who are unchosen by him..Trudeau visited Alberta twice in the past month. In late February he sat down for a half-hour interview with Ryan Jesperson in Edmonton. When Premier Smith worked in talk-radio, she co-hosted with Jesperson, so the choice of interlocutor was not random or accidental.Neither were Trudeau’s words. First off, he refused to accept that voters didn’t like him. The polls were simply wrong. All those anti-Trudeau flags that carried a slightly disguised (but very rude) use of the F-word were just the result of conservatives and right-wingers having “instrumentalized anger and outrage” so that people “vote in ways that are not necessarily in their best interests.”His second major point was that Albertans have been “fooled into not supporting” him. The fact is, Trudeau said, he was more in tune with the real interests of Albertans than were the leaders of the oil industry or the government of Premier Smith. The oil industry doesn’t “have the back of oilsands workers” and the UCP government expresses an “ideological opposition against doing things that are good for workers and good for the planet.”Oil is soon to be unprofitable, Trudeau proclaimed, and Albertans would know what to do about it if the Alberta government did not stand in the way of innovation for a carbon-free future. “Quite frankly,” he summed up, “Albertans are getting fooled by right-wing politicians.” He did not need to add that we were being fooled because we are so irredeemably stupid.The third point was that the non-legacy media (including the Western Standard of course) were nests of conspiracy theorists who — you guessed it — are a source of misinformation and disinformation. They deliberately undermine the mainstream media “to prevent people from agreeing on a common set of facts” such as that CO2, a plant food, is a pollutant. Consequently, “there are massive changes that need to take place in our media landscape and government can create conditions and incentives for it to happen.”Last week Trudeau returned to Alberta. He condescended to meet the premier, not at the usual venue, the McDougall Centre, but away from reporters and potential protesters at the Sheraton in Eau Claire.Unbidden, Smith advised Trudeau that rescinding an increase the carbon tax — up to 17 cents a litre of gasoline and 21 cents a litre on diesel — on April Fools Day would be a “political win.” Six other premiers have given the same unsolicited advice.Trudeau moved on to SAIT for a press conference. His remarks at SAIT illustrated nearly all of Machiavelli’s points. However prudent the advice of so many premiers might in reality be, Trudeau already had a “wise counsellor” who had his ear: Steven Guilbeault.In February the environment minister said that the Liberal government would not longer build new roads.“The analysis we have done is that the network is perfectly adequate to respond to the needs we have.” Even better, he said, the federal government has spent $400 million to encourage walking, cycling, wheelchairs (!), roller blades, and snowshoes, among other pedestrian modes.Earlier in the month, Smith told the Calgary Rotary Club that Guilbeault was the author of “lunatic policies” who “clearly resents the West and our right to develop our resources.” Again unbidden, she advised Trudeau to fire him.At SAIT Trudeau again explained what his government was doing. Canada had postponed dealing with anthropogenic climate change “for decades” so that “it gets more and more expensive to make the changes that are necessary.” No more postponing will be permitted.He then elaborated his position in one of the most self-flattering remarks on record. “My job,” he said, “is not to be popular. My job is to do the right things for Canada now and to do right things for Canadians a generation from now.” He reiterated this remarkable sentiment to Global News: “I entered politics not to be popular, not for personal reasons, [but] because I wanted to serve and I know I have something to offer.” Even though we never asked him to, he seriously believes he is making a sacrifice for us all. Asked by French-language CBC if he thought of quitting, Trudeau replied: “I think of quitting every day. It’s a crazy job I’m doing, making the personal sacrifices … of course it’s super tough. It’s super boring at times.”The students quickly identified Machiavelli’s description of self-flattery as what today we call narcissism. They also agreed with the prudence of the advice on the carbon tax hikes by Smith and the other premiers and why it was rejected, as Machiavelli predicted, in favour of the “wise counsel” of Guilbeault.And they agreed with Machiavelli’s insight that self-flattery brings a richly deserved contempt. That, Justin, is why Albertans and many other sensible Canadians don’t like you. The polls are not wrong, and we know why.

COOPER: They wrote the book on Mr. Trudeau more than 500 years ago

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