It premiered at Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto in 1980, toured the country and then played for five nights at the historic Royal Alexandra Theatre 1981, while Pierre Trudeau was still in office. It was revived in 2018, three years after Pierre and Maggie’s firstborn son, who is referenced by name in the play, became prime minister.
“I like to think of Maggie and Pierre as ‘epic characters,'” Griffiths once explained. “They are heroes in that they contain all the elements of humanity, magnified.”
There may never be another public coupling quite like Maggie and Pierre. Their eldest son doesn’t have the cool mystique of his father. And the dissolution of Justin and Sophie’s marriage has not, perhaps thankfully, been nearly as dramatic and tumultuous as that of Maggie and Pierre.
But news of the prime minister’s separation from his wife was not only the most-read story at the CBC yesterday (by far), it was also the most-read story at the BBC. Both People magazine and TMZ covered the story and featured it prominently. In the United Kingdom, both the Telegraph and the Times put pictures of the Canadian prime minister and his estranged wife on the front page. (The major papers in the United States might have had more room for the story if their former president had not just been indicted for trying to overthrow the country’s democratic order.)
In a remarkable memo written shortly before the official separation of Pierre Trudeau and Margaret Sinclair, one of the prime minister’s top advisors told Trudeau that his marriage was “the topic at every dinner table in the country and will be for a while.”
As Griffiths said, “Their story has already been shared by the whole country, and actually, by a lot of the world as well.”
Something like that is true now of Justin Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire Trudeau. In their own way, they are “humanity, magnified.”
The thin line between the political and personal
If there is some tacit agreement that a politician’s personal life is, to a great degree, off limits from public scrutiny — that a public official is entitled to some privacy —� it is also understood that a politician must display some humanity, often by disclosing or displaying some parts of what might otherwise be considered their personal lives. Their spouses and children appear alongside them. They sit for interviews about their home life. They post pictures of their weekend activities. They write books about their upbringing.
A story that is inspiring or “relatable” is retold as much as possible. A spouse who is a charismatic or enthusiastic presence on the campaign trail is commonly considered an “asset.”
But these displays of humanity are not entirely cynical. Politics is a human enterprise. And it is neither surprising nor wrong if voters want to know not just what a politician would do, but who they are — even if it is necessary to question how much voters ever really know about who their leaders are.
For Justin Trudeau, as always, there are additional layers.
Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and his wife Margaret, carrying their son Justin, are checked at the polling station before casting their federal election ballots in Ottawa Oct. 30, 1972. (Peter Bregg/The Canadian Press)
He and Sophie Grégoire Trudeau always seemed like enthusiastic participants in the mixing of personal and political. As prime minister, Justin Trudeau has also been exceedingly public, both professionally and personally. His fallibility and contradictions have been laid bare. His emotions too — he is a hugger and a crier.
But for Trudeau, the personal — or, at least, great pieces of it — has always been political. His birth was national news. His parent’s separation, five-and-a-half years later, was international news. In the years that followed there were more shared events: his youngest brother’s death, his father’s death, his own marriage, his mother’s disclosure of mental illness, the birth of his own children.
To that list is now added his separation, the first for a prime minister since his mother and father agreed to go their separate ways — his personal life is its own precedent.
Will there be political consequences?
It is almost impossible to know what, if anything, this will mean for him politically. It can seem crass to even speculate — this is, after all, a deeply human situation, with real impacts for real people.
But it’s also not hard to imagine that it could have political consequences — if only because of the apparent public appetite for the story. Readership for the report of their separation on Wednesday was exponentially higher — by leaps and bounds — than readership for the other major political news of the day: that the federal government is ahead of schedule on its plan to plant two billion trees over the next decade.
Strictly speaking, the trees will probably end up having a greater impact on the future of the planet. But it’s easy to see why the other story might generate more immediate interest.
If the spouses of other party leaders seem particularly prominent during the next election, it will be tempting to wonder whether an implicit message is being sent. But the simplistic ideal of the nuclear family has been stretched and expanded over the last 50 years. There are likely few Canadians who haven’t either experienced a separation themselves or know someone who has.
Trudeau separation brings private matter into the public eye
Catherine Cullen, host of CBC Radio’s The House, looks at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire Trudeau’s separation announcement and the political and procedural issues that may follow the deeply personal decision.
There may yet be questions too about whether the stress in his personal life has somehow negatively impacted his performance of his official duties. Though the asking of that question would suggest we should more regularly ask political leaders about the potential stressors in their lives, including how well they’re sleeping and eating. (In case you were wondering, Trudeau is said to be very disciplined about both his sleep and his diet.)
This week’s announcement will undoubtedly change something, however great or small, about the story of Trudeau’s political life.
Public interest may wane. But the fact of the separation will linger as context. Reporters will feel obligated to ask something whenever he next appears before cameras (CBC News initially reported that Trudeau was expected to speak to the media on Thursday or Friday, but it now appears he won’t take questions before his vacation). He will be watched closely for a while now to see how he carries himself and whether he betrays any sign of strain.
In that memo from 1977, Pierre Trudeau’s advisor — Jim Coutts — commended him on the “superb posture” he adopted and stressed the importance of maintaining it. It is perhaps not the sort of note one would typically send to a boss who was going through a difficult time. But a reader can feel Coutts’s sense of the stakes.
In such moments, humanity is magnified and voters get to see how well the politician withstands the glare.
HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.
Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.
A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”
Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.
“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.
In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”
“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”
Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.
Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.
Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.
“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.
“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.
“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”
Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.
“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”
NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”
“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.
Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.
She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.
Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.
Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.
The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.
Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.
“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.
Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.
“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”
The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.
In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.
“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”
In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.
“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”
Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.
Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.
“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”
In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.
In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.
“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”
Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.
“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”
The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.
“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.
Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.
“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
