Dear Editor:
RE: MPs divided on tariff response plan, March 13.
In last week’s Advertiser local MPs Michael Chong, Lloyd Longfellow and John Nater responded to the current tariff response plan.
There was general agreement on retaliatory tariffs but I was confused by Michael Chong’s call for Parliament to be recalled.
The Conservatives have been desperate for an election for many months and all indications are that one is imminent.
The last few months when parliament was open were dysfunctional. We don’t need more politicking in the House of Commons or to give parties a platform to score political points. We need to elect a government and get on with strengthening Canada, with a prime minister that is focused on governing.
Chong also followed the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) line in noting that the money raised by counter tariffs should largely go to broad-based tax cuts. Tax cuts that would be untargeted and disproportionately favour the wealthy. The Liberal Party’s new leader, Prime Minister Mark Carney, has said counter tariff dollars should largely be targeted to providing relief directly to Canadians affected by Trump’s tariff war.
Within our riding, Chong has been silent recently. While his website displays mostly old news, his recent posts on X (an Elon Musk Company) are almost all re-posts of statements by Pierre Poilievre, leader of the CPC.
Poilievre and the CPC have been very successful over the last few years in touting what is wrong with Canada. Their main foils, the past PM and carbon tax, are now gone and they seem to be struggling to find something to oppose.
Poilievre spends a lot of time telling us who he thinks other people are and defining himself by who and what he is currently opposing or attacking. Since he expects his MPs to follow the party line, this is how they are also being defined.In his less scripted moments or during interviews with friendly right-wing media, we get to see that some of Polievre’s MAGA-like views on social issues are disturbing.
Mr. Chong, please let your constituents know what you think even if it doesn’t mean playing follow the leader. Unlike the PC candidate in the recent Ontario election, please participate in local debates.
The stakes of the coming election are too high to stay quiet and toe the party line. We are listening.
Robert Mitchell,
Fergus