COLUMN: On Parliament Hill – A strong yesterday defined for today

Last week, Pierre Poilievre delivered remarks at the Economic Club of Canada that spoke of promise, solutions and a way forward that gives hope to Canadians. Mr. Poilievre’s opening comments referred to Roman general and philosopher Marcus Aurelius as a timeless truth:

“You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”

The quote framed a speech that looked at history, China’s rise, volatility, low-cost energy, the unblocking of resources, military strength, resources as strategic leverage, digital sovereignty, CUSMA, and tariffs. But the objective was that we need to control what we can control. Mr. Poilievre explained the same is true for countries. “Canada cannot control decisions made by foreign leaders or words by foreign presidents. We cannot control what global shocks and volatility might happen, but we do control what we do in our own country.”

An economy is resilient to the extent that it relies on factors within its own control. Drawing on Canada’s historical strength of “getting things done,” Mr. Poilievre recalled Canada’s record of “building, doing and completing.” Looking ahead to the CUSMA negotiations planned for this summer, he said, “We drove a steel railway across the Rockies in four and a half years. Later, we carved the St. Lawrence Seaway, and we did that in five years. We built the CN Tower – then the tallest free-standing structure in the world – in three years in the 1970s. That is how we built an unbreakable country.”

In hindsight, Mr. Poilievre’s words seemed to foreshadow the unforeseen events we witnessed over the weekend, prompting us to ruminate on the phrase, “global shocks and volatility”.

We knew how to respond. The one thing firmly within our national control was standing unequivocally with the people of Iran. We watched people all over the world celebrating the dismantling of a regime that refused diplomatic efforts to end its oppressive regime and their nuclear development.

Likewise, Conservatives stood in support of the courageous people of Iran “in toppling this terror regime and reclaiming their destiny after 47 years of the regime’s occupation”. Leader Pierre Poilievre explained our stand: “The regime in Tehran is the principal source of terror in the Middle East and around the world. It tried to build nuclear weapons to annihilate our allies. It massacred tens of thousands of its own people. It orchestrated the attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, murdered Canadian passengers on Flight PS752, sought to kill prominent Canadian leaders, and ruthlessly targets Canadians of Jewish and Iranian descent. It has shown no good faith in negotiations to change course.”

What Prime Minister Mark Carney said of the actions in the Middle East was reminiscent of our common values with our neighbours south of the border, “Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security.”

This is why Mr. Poilievre’s words last week still ring true, “Geography has made us neighbours. History has made us friends; economics has made us partners. And necessity has made us allies. Those whom nature hath so joined together, let no man put asunder.” He adds “No country can call a realtor and relocate.”

Geography is permanent and a stable relationship with the US is not just helpful—it’s pivotal.

The way Pierre Poilievre explained it prior to the weekend’s events was about unlocking our resources to maximize their political leverage. He explained that Canada has 10 of the 12 NATO-defined defence minerals.

We have what the world wants and that should give us negotiating leverage. That’s our power and security.

As journalist Brian Lilley said, Mr. Poilievre defined us by our past to help demonstrate our potential for our future.

As we continue walking into this time of global breaking news stories, let’s remember the many times and ways Canada has been defined by principled and defining action—and let’s let that guide us into a better tomorrow for Canada and the world.