Old sayings don’t get to be old by being wrong. It’s almost been 2,500 years since Aristotle observed, “Anybody can become angry, that is easy, but to be angry with the right person to the right degree and at the right time and in the right purpose and in the right way – that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy”. More simply put, timing is everything. It’s now time for Canada’s Conservatives to ask whether Pierre Poilievre is still the right person to lead their party. Only two years ago, the Conservatives under Poilievre were consistently leading opinion polls by more than 20 points and set to vanquish the Liberals. Poilievre was widely seen as angry at what the country had become. Angry about the economy, immigration and crime. Much of his anger was directed at Justin Trudeau, his policies and his style of leadership, some of which he once suggested should have involved jail time. After almost 10 years in power, Trudeau had become personally unpopular and Poilievre seemed an acceptable, if not an ideal alternative to those who wanted change. But change came in an unexpected way when Justin Trudeau was pushed out of the leadership of the Liberal party by his own disgruntled, if often silent, members of Parliament. He was soon replaced by Mark Carney who, beyond the common political brand of Liberal, couldn’t be much different that Justin Trudeau: older, although not much, more serious, less flashy and somehow more of a centrist on policy. In short, he seemed more conservative than Trudeau, whose politics had drifted into the moderate to far left and was often chastised as too woke. Carney went on to win the federal election, long said to be Poilievre’s to lose, which he did even while dramatically increasing his party’s popular vote and seat count. A year and a half later, Carney and the Liberals now lead the Poilievre Conservatives by close to doubt digits, including in some places where Liberals have seldom been popular. It now seems clear that Canadians wanted Trudeau out more than they wanted Poilievre in. Carney seems to have delivered on the change in policy, style and tone that many voters wanted. Which brings us back to the central question for thoughtful Conservatives: is Pierre Poilievre really the right person with the right message at the right time? In considering who is best to take on Carney, they should consider those long-ago words of Aristotle: it’s not within everyone’s power and it won’t be easy.
