Liberal MP is calling on Freeland to run for party leadership

Article content

OTTAWA — There might not be a Liberal leadership race just yet, but voices are starting to emerge calling on Chrystia Freeland to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Article content

Article content

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Prince Edward Island MP Sean Casey reiterated his call for Trudeau to step down as Liberal leader and expressed praise and admiration for Freeland who was his deputy prime minister and finance minister until she quit this week.

Article content

“She is an intellectual heavyweight at the table,” he said. “She really is a very, very impressive person that I have no doubt had significant influence at the table.”

Casey said, as far as he is concerned, “there’s no way” the quality of the Liberal cabinet’s decisions “can stay at the level that it was without her there.”

Asked if he wants Freeland to launch a leadership bid, he replied “yes.”

Eddie Goldenberg, former aide to former prime minister Jean Chrétien, echoed that suggestion in an opinion piece on Tuesday in which he argued that Freeland should replace Trudeau, effective Jan. 6, 2025, in order to face President-elect Donald Trump and the Canadian electorate afterwards.

“Drafting Chrystia Freeland in the next two weeks is the bold and innovative choice that could turn today’s crisis into opportunity,” he wrote.

Freeland was Trudeau’s point person for years. She renegotiated NAFTA during the first Trump presidency as foreign affairs minister. As finance minister, she brought in a national childcare program and led the charge in the government to join the fight against Russia after it invaded Ukraine.

Article content

Article content

Freeland unexpectedly resigned from cabinet Monday, just hours before she was set to deliver her government’s fall economic statement. In her resignation letter, she described the clashes that were happening between her and Trudeau’s office on the state of public finances.

Freeland wrote that Trudeau offered her a different cabinet position on Friday but that she decided “the only honest and viable path for me is to resign from cabinet.”

“To be effective, a Minister must speak on behalf of the Prime Minister and with his full confidence. In making your decision, you made clear that I no longer credibly enjoy that confidence and possess the authority that comes with it,” she wrote.

There’s going to be a heck of a lot more (MPs) interested in speaking out once they find out that they’re that they’re not going to cabinet

Freeland, however, intends to stick around, as she confirmed in her letter she would be staying in the Liberal caucus and seek re-election.

Former minister Randy Boissonnault posted a picture of him and Freeland on Instagram, calling her a “friend” and said he could not wait to fight the next election with her.

Casey has so far not committed to officially throwing his support behind Freeland should the position of Liberal leader become available and should she decide to run.

Article content

Casey said he would have considered supporting Housing Minister Sean Fraser, his Atlantic caucus colleague, for a potential leadership run, but that will not happen as Fraser announced Monday he would not be seeking re-election for family reasons.

“There’s no shortage of talent and people that could absolutely do the job without the baggage,” said Casey.

He said he did not believe Freeland’s sudden resignation was a way for her to “soft launch” a future leadership campaign, adding he does not “think there’s a hidden agenda there.”

Trudeau met with his caucus hours after Freeland resigned to hear their grievances.

Liberal MP Wayne Long said about a third of 153 sitting Liberal MPs support Trudeau, another third of MPs want him gone and the last third are asking Trudeau to “reflect” on his political future over the holidays. Casey said those numbers seemed accurate.

But the number of dissenters might be underestimated with the perspective of an imminent cabinet shuffle, he noted.

“There’s nobody being muzzled, but if there’s eight or nine cabinet positions available, there’s 30 people that think they’re in the running. And in my view, the cabinet shuffle is being delayed to keep them off the list (of dissidents),” said Casey.

Article content

“There’s going to be a heck of a lot more interested in speaking out once they find out that they’re that they’re not going to cabinet.”

Until now, Trudeau has given no indication that his position as leader may become vacant.

He told Liberal donors on Monday evening that it is the “absolute privilege” of his life to serve as prime minister and described the day’s events as “eventful” and “not easy.”

Casey said that while there is more “momentum” within caucus to get Trudeau to leave, Trudeau’s actions are consistent with someone who is intending to stay on as leader.

“He seems to be absolutely committed. And he has throughout the piece, he’s been remarkably consistent. What he says, what he does, how he does it, how he says it, the energy he puts into it, I don’t believe for one second it’s an act.”

Casey said that the last time Trudeau said he was reflecting on his political future, he made up his mind in less than 24 hours.

National Post
calevesque@postmedia.com

Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here.

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our newsletters here.

Article content