Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ineffective, mediocre leadership has been an enormous drag on our country’s economy and society. So, it only makes sense that he’s going to get involved in a drag race – and not the one involving hot rods and funny cars.
It was announced on Nov. 8 that Trudeau would be making a “special guest appearance” on Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs. the World. This new show is a spinoff of Canada’s Drag Race, part of the competition series franchise started by American drag queen RuPaul.
What’s the PM going to be doing on this show? That’s unclear. It could be something similar to Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi, who made a brief appearance on RuPaul’s Drag Race in June to support the drag community and encourage Americans to vote. He could become a celebrity judge, like Democratic House Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez did on the same show in Feb. 2020.
He could be walking down the runway, for all we know. He does like to wear blackface and dress up in costumes, after all!
Hold on, some may say. Trudeau’s predecessor, Stephen Harper, made appearances on popular Canadian TV shows like CTV’s Corner Gas in 2007 and CBC’s Murdoch Mysteries (one his favorite programs) in 2011 while in office. Various Canadian politicians and party leaders made cameos on popular sketch comedy shows like This Hour Has 22 Minutes and the Rick Mercer Report. The current PM appeared in the animated version of Corner Gas in 2019 – and with Gary, a blue unicorn puppet on CBC Kids, in a short segment in 2017 to become a member of his “Hug Club.”
If these TV appearances were acceptable, what’s the difference in this case? While they all had pros and cons, each one was largely done for fun rather than personal and political gain. Trudeau’s impending appearance clearly isn’t, just like it wasn’t for either Pelosi or Ocasio-Cortez.
Is Trudeau going to win more votes in the next federal election by appearing on a spinoff of Canada’s Drag Race? Of course not. Most people who watch this show would already be inclined to vote for a left-wing PM and his left-wing government. He’s therefore appealing to an existing voter base that’s often praised his leadership, in spite of the fact that more than two-thirds of eligible voters (both left and right) rejected him in the 2019 and 2021 federal election.
It’s intriguing that his staff didn’t try to dissuade him from appearing on a TV show that would produce no net political gain. Maybe they did, and he ignored their advice. Or, maybe they thought it was a great idea, too.
Trudeau isn’t going to gain more support from Canada’s mainstream media, either. They’re largely in his back pocket on the catwalk right now. In fact, some seem almost overjoyed by his decision. “He’s the first world leader to visit the RuPaul-founded competition series,” the Canadian Press newswire service crowed on Nov. 8. Or there’s this fangirl-like note of glee from Global News reporter Rachel Gilmore, “Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hasn’t sashayed away from the opportunity of being the first world leader on Drag Race. Condragulations, Canada!”
Could Canada’s liberal media cheerleaders be any further in Trudeau’s corner to drip praise like honey? On second thought, don’t answer that.
If the PM wants to go on this program, fine. It’s a free country. The fact that he’s wasting his time on frivolous matters when there are far more important things to do is something completely different.
Canada may be heading into a recession in 2023, and some economists are forecasting it won’t be a moderate one. The Bank of Canada is poised to lose money for the first time in its 87-year history as interest expenses on deposits soar alongside the country’s benchmark interest rate. Russia and Ukraine remain at war, which has been a major topic of conversation during the G20 summit that Trudeau is currently attending. Gas prices are high, and threatening to go even higher with Ottawa’s obsessive fascination with carbon prices. Major shortages of drugs for young children has been going on for months. Remembrance Day ceremonies were held last week, although the PM disgracefully missed it when he attended the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
There’s more, but you get the idea.
The sad fact is Trudeau, an unserious leader, naturally gravitates towards softer policies and easier events that can potentially provide personal gratification. This includes historical apologies, social justice issues, supporting Native rights, LGBTQ rights and women’s rights, legalized marijuana, helping the environment, and so on. While going on Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs. the World would raise red flags for most politicians, he likely sees it as an easy opportunity to gain praise from his natural support base and acquire yet another dose of personal pleasure from the accolades he assumes he’ll receive.
On the flip side, Trudeau has already become the leading candidate for our country’s next exciting reality series, Canada’s Worst Prime Minister. Will he go down the runway in this (ahem) highly anticipated competition, or will he simply run away? Time will tell.
Michael Taube, a long-time newspaper columnist and political commentator, was a speechwriter for former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper.