It is the nature of our electoral system that when governments, and by extension their leaders, are voted out of office, it takes some time for their true legacy and impact to be understood. That is because when governments change, its likely the public is dissatisfied with some aspect of the government or, as the political saying goes, its time for a change. Also, any new incoming government spends some time, usually too long, disparaging and denigrating the government they have just defeated.

This week there has been a great deal of reflection happening on the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper which marked 20 years since it originally took office. Many people gathered in Ottawa to see the unveiling of Mr. Harper’s prime minister portrait and to reminisce about their tenure in government. And there was much to be proud about. As is usually the case, history reflects better on many of the decisions made by governments than is the case in the moment.

Many Canadians will look back on the years of Harper and remember that he was known as a serious person who was knowledgeable about policy and world affairs. His government not only reduced taxes (notably the Goods and Services Tax), but also oversaw a time of stable inflation and steady growth. Home prices increased which added to the wealth of many Canadians but they still remained within reach of new home buyers. On the world stage, Prime Minister Harper maintained strong relations with U.S. presidents of different political backgrounds while taking strong and principled stands against the human rights violations of China and the aggression of Russia against Ukraine. Famously, at one global meeting he reluctantly shook the hand of the Russian president and told him frankly to get out of Ukraine. Harper was also an unwavering friend of Israel, recognizing that it was one of the few countries in the middle east at that time that shared Canadians values and democracy.

Critics at the time often viewed Harper as a rigid Conservative. Yet, he demonstrated pragmatism whenever it was in the best interest of the country. Recall it was Conservative Prime Minister Harper who appointed then NDP Premier Gary Doer to be Canada’s ambassador to the United States. He specifically tapped someone of a different political ideology because he knew that Mr. Doer was adept at making political allies across party lines. It proved to be a wise choice and benefited Canada.

By now most people have probably become numb to the various ways that people in elected office attack and belittle each other seemingly on a daily basis. While politics has never been for the faint of heart, the overall slide into toxicity that it has taken over the past few years has been well documented. So perhaps it was just another example of petty politics that will slip quickly out of the public memory, but I do think it is worth drawing further attention to in the hope that some course correction may occur in the future.

Last week, Swan River Progressive Conservative MLA Rick Wowchuk was preparing to speak at a community celebration. The celebration was to mark the opening of the $16.6 million expansion of the Swan Valley Regional Secondary School, a school Wowchuk himself had taught at during an earlier part of his life. The expansion of the school had been approved and planned for when Wowchuk was part of the previous Progressive Conservative government. But this celebration, which was organized by the local school division, wasn’t about politics, it was about everyone getting together and expressing gratefulness for the new additions to the school.

This sense of community spirit and celebration was interrupted by a phone call from the office of Premier Wab Kinew. Staff in his office advised the school division that they were to call the local MLA, Mr. Wowchuk, and disinvite him from speaking at the community celebration. Premier Kinew was also scheduled to speak, making it a truly unifying event, or so it was thought. But the instructions from the premier’s office were clear, local organizers were to cancel the invitation to the local MLA.

At this point, those who are reading this must believe that there was something else going on here. After all, this wasn’t a government planned or organized event. This was a community event. Yet the pressure of the Premier’s office was used to make organizers cancel the local MLAs speech. If it all seems a little petty, keep reading, it gets worse.

It was an exciting day for the Town of Swan River. People from across the region gathered to celebrate the grand opening of their new cultural arts centre.

This $16.6 million addition to the Swan Valley Regional Secondary School included a 4,200 square foot cultural arts centre, a 2,100 square foot multi-purpose room, and an outdoor teaching area. Originally approved by the previous Progressive Conservative government and brought to completion by the current NDP government, both parties can rightfully take some credit for this magnificent project.

As typically happens with projects of this nature, a grand opening celebration was held. Along with local dignitaries such as Swan River’s mayor and the school board chair, Premier Wab Kinew attended to bring greetings on behalf of the province. The premier’s attendance was more than appropriate, and Kinew had every right to take credit for his government’s role in this project.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough for Kinew. Not satisfied with already getting featured billing at the grand opening, Kinew arranged for Swan River PC MLA Rick Wowchuk to be disinvited from the podium. While Wowchuk attended the event, he wasn’t allowed to speak.

Much has been made over Prime Minister Mark Carney’s speech from last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Many have praised it as a strong debut on the world stage and a welcome tone of supranational awareness.

But not everyone was pleased with the PM, including our closest ally and most important trading partner. President Donald Trump, at his turn in front of the podium, said that Mark Carney said some things that weren’t very nice. The president then withdrew his invitation for Canada to participate on the Board of Peace that will work to resolve global conflict and then he threatened a 100 percent tariff on Canadian goods if the deal with China proceeds. Late Monday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated PM Carney withdrew what he said in his Davos speech. Bessent speaks about the call between Carney and Trump on Monday, “I was in the Oval (Office) with the president today. He spoke to Prime Minister Carney, who was very aggressively walking back some of the unfortunate remarks he made at Davos,” Mr. Carney denies Bessent’s claims, and the story continues to develop.

But truth be told, after a decade of Liberal government, we know that grand speeches whether reversed or not, cannot compensate for years of bad policy. We were promised a better deal. Mr. Carney portrayed himself as the “master negotiator”. He was the one who could “handle” and negotiate a “win”. Still, we wait.

While the prime minister’s remarks in Davos were well delivered and persuasive, they were also deeply paradoxical. Mr. Carney invoked Czech dissident Václav Havel’s well-known essay The Power of the Powerless to illustrate how communist systems sustained themselves. In Havel’s example, a greengrocer displays a sign in his shop window reading, “Workers of the world, unite!” No one believes the slogan—not even the shopkeeper—but it remains posted to avoid trouble and to signal compliance. The system’s strength, Havel argued, did not rest on belief, but on the routine participation of ordinary people in rituals they knew to be false.