Wealth As A Wedge

 

Susan Delacourt writes that wealth is becoming a wedge issue in Canadian politics. It hasn't yet taken over the conversation, as it has in the United States. But make no mistake. It's alive and well:

In the Commons on Tuesday, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer was still hammering away at Trudeau’s “rich, well-connected friends,” saying that people with a “jet-set life” were far removed from those with a “road-trip life.” (Rock bands?) 

The Conservative finance critic, Pierre Poilievre, said that Trudeau’s problems were “generational” and somehow managed to use his questions to remind people of former Prime Minister Paul Martin and his shipping business.

The good news is that, so far, Canadians are still focused on issues. But the conversation is beginning to shift to character:

I asked Abacus’s pollsters — David Coletto and Bruce Anderson — whether they had any recent numbers on what looks like the rising unpopularity of ‘wealth’ as a personal attribute in politics. They didn’t have any results from the past few months of this class warfare, but they could point to some findings over the past year. 

In April, Abacus asked people whether they would agree with this statement: “The power of a few special interests prevents our country from making progress.” A whopping 74 per cent agreed, though the loose wording of the statement would seem to encompass a wide variety of ‘special interests’, not just the wealthy. (Conservatives, one assumes, would see ‘special interests’ differently than New Democrats would.)

Abacus also asked people about a year ago what they were seeking in a political leader. Wealth and pedigree were way, way down on the list. In fact, it was the last thing on the list, with only 6 per cent of respondents saying a political leader should come from “an accomplished family.” 

Then again, only 8 per cent said they wanted political leaders to come from a less affluent background, which may mean (happily) that Canadians are less concerned with how or where political leaders grew up. 

“It’s about character, values and priorities,” Anderson and Coletto said.

It's clear that a sizable number of Americans have gone off the deep end when they make political decisions. They judge their leaders -- rightly or wrongly -- on who they are, not what they say and do.

Let's hope we can stop that disease at the border.

Image: salon.com