When the going got tough due to COVID-19, Justin Trudeau showed his true authoritarian colours

National Post, 27 March 2020

Critics of Donald Trump have speculated that he might exploit the crisis to move in an authoritarian direction. Who would have thought that it would be Justin Trudeau, not Trump, who was the threat?

“Enough is enough!” thundered the prime minister, in that whispery voice he employs on solemn occasions.

Who knew he meant parliamentary oversight and the tradition of responsible government that is older than Confederation itself? Who knew that the federal cabinet, faced with a global crisis, would behave like miscreants hoarding hand sanitizer in order to sell it at inflated prices? No time like a killer pandemic to put one’s own interests ahead of the common good.

So shameful and universally condemned was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s authoritarian play that his government immediately abandoned it when caught out, and began feigning ignorance about how such a thing could have ever appeared in the proposed legislation.

Events are moving rapidly, so perhaps a little historical review is in order about abuse of power.

Continue reading at the National Post:
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/raymond-j-de-souza-when-the-going-got-tough-due-to-covid-19-justin-trudeau-showed-his-true-authoritarian-colours?video_autoplay=true