Jean Chrétien was arrogant. But if anyone deserved to be arrogant it was the little guy from Shawinigan. arriving in English speaking Ottawa as a unilingual francophone in the early 1960s, Chrétien worked hard and won the leadership of the Liberal Party almost 30 years later. He won three consecutive majority governments and would probably still have a majority had he chosen to stay.
By contrast, Paul Martin never had to work for the leadership. Beginning in the early 80s, others who saw Martin as the heir apparent to the aging Trudeau who was falling out of favour with some of the party elite, worked hard in the background to make Paul Martin’s dream of becoming prime minister a reality. Meanwhile Martin stayed out of the fray and played with his Liberian flag-bearing boats while waiting for the magical age of 50. Fifty was the age that daddy told him it was permissible for him to enter politics. Martin was first elected to Parliament in November 1988, three months after his 50th birthday. Paul Martin thinks that he has a right to be prime minister for no other reason than it is his birthright.
Chrétien often scoffed and made fun of people who held views that differed from his own or that had a different vision of the country than he did. This was especially true of those whose positions were on the right of the political spectrum. But there is no doubt that Jean Chrétien, despite his numerous flaws, not only loved his country but loved Canadians--all Canadians.
Paul Martin, on the other hand has exceeded simple arrogance. Unlike his predecessor, he shows a complete and utter contempt and dislike for anyone who does not share his views. This became apparent when his communications flak, Scott Reid, made his "beer and popcorn" statement.
Reid went on national television and criticized the Conservative Party’s platform on daycare. The Tories plan is to give all parents $1,200 a year for each child under the age of 6. Reid criticized the plan by saying that parents would only spend that money on beer and popcorn. This was not an off the cuff remark like the ones made by Francoise Ducros (saying of George W. Bush, "what a moron") or Carolyn Parrish ("damn americans — I hate those bastards"). It was a planned response to the Conservatives’ daycare proposal. Reid actually thought that he was criticizing Stephen Harper and his party when in fact he was insulting each and every Canadian parent. There was never any doubt that Reid, as his job dictates, was communicating Liberal Party policy when he accused Canadian parents of being too irresponsible to raise their own children. any leader who had a genuine respect for Canadians would have fired Reid or at least removed him from the campaign. Paul Martin did nothing.
Where Jean Chrétien believed that his government could raise children better than their parents could, Paul Martin believes that parents are just too dumb and too busy swilling beer to even be allowed to raise their children. Paul Martin has absolutely no use for Canadians other than as a source of Liberal voters to keep him in the power that is rightfully his.
almost as bad as the "beer and popcorn" statement was Martin’s sojourn to the Jane/Finch area of Toronto to announce his total ban on handguns. Martin thinks that these poor dumb blacks who populate the area are just too stupid to understand that handguns have always been essentially banned and that their relatives and friends that have met violent deaths did so at the hand of illegal guns. Martin doesn’t think these people are smart enough to understand that he was using the deaths of young black males for political opportunism. and the residents of Jane/Finch know that before the election was called, Paul Martin didn’t give a damn about how many young black males were being shot to death or about the residents who are forced to put up with gunshots in their neighbourhood on a daily basis.
Paul Martin loves to accuse the Conservatives of wanting to bring in american style this or american style that. But the america-bashing Prime Minister resembles those american politicians who heap scorn and disgust at anyone who doesn’t share their views.
If we’re are destined to continue to be governed by the Liberals, Jean Chrétien is starting to look pretty good.