Failure to disclose leads to failure of leadership

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/09/2019 (2183 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Surely, nobody thinks Justin Trudeau was subject to the same vetting process most potential candidates undergo when he first ran for office?

Even if he was, would Liberal party officials — who were on a desperate mission at the time for a fresh-faced, telegenic leader to rescue them from the political abyss — have deemed the racist images of Trudeau that surfaced this week (if available at the time) grounds for disqualification?

It’s doubtful.

Trudeau is under fire for failing to disclose images of himself when he darkened his skin and wore a turban in 2001 at a private school in British Columbia where he worked as a teacher. There were other blackface images of the Liberal leader from earlier years, but he says he’s unsure how often he dressed up as a visible minority.

He says he was so embarrassed about what he does recall, he decided not to disclose it to party brass when he became a candidate for MP in 2008 (only seven years after his latest known “brownface” incident) and party leader in 2013.

Political parties of all stripes regularly screen potential candidates before allowing them to run under their banners. They comb through social media posts, do interviews, and look into prospective candidates’ past as much as possible to filter out any kooks, criminals or other undesirables that may sully their brand.

It’s far from foolproof. In this federal election alone, all four major parties have had to show the door to candidates for past misdeeds, even after they were vetted.

The onus, in large part, is on applicants to proactively disclose anything in their past the party should know about, including brushes with the law, questionable behaviour, undesirable associations, or toxic social media posts (that may have been scrubbed but could have been screen-grabbed.)

Blackening one’s face and posing for pictures would be one of those.

That’s not to say parties automatically disqualify anyone who can’t demonstrate a squeaky clean history. If they did, they would significantly narrow the range of people eligible to join their ranks. But party officials want to make informed decisions before they sign off on potential candidates. That’s why they request full disclosure.

Trudeau didn’t provide that disclosure. It’s questionable whether he disclosed anything at all, or whether he was even subject to the normal vetting process.

What’s even more interesting to ponder: what Canadians would have thought had Trudeau disclosed the images publicly years ago, take responsibility for his actions and make a statement about racism in society? It may have been seen as a courageous move. But he didn’t. He concealed them. And sometimes the coverup is worse than the deed.

The Liberals were in need of a new leader after a crushing defeat in the 2011 federal election. Trudeau, already an MP for the Quebec riding of Papineau, was being groomed for the position (which he won two years later).

He wasn’t recruited for his qualifications (he didn’t have any). He was sought because of his name, his appearance, and how he could perform in front of a camera. A son of Pierre Elliott Trudeau (prime minister from 1968-79 and 1980-84), he was as close to homegrown Canadian royalty as it gets.

So what would party officials have done if Trudeau had disclosed those images to them at the time? We’ll never know, but it’s unlikely it would have prevented him from becoming party leader, and ultimately prime minister.

What’s even more interesting to ponder: what Canadians would have thought had Trudeau disclosed the images publicly years ago, take responsibility for his actions and make a statement about racism in society? It may have been seen as a courageous move.

But he didn’t. He concealed them. And sometimes the coverup is worse than the deed.

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One of the questions that’s been raised this week is how far society should go in digging into the past of elected officials, or prospective politicians. After all, many people have done things in their past they’re not proud of.

Here’s the difference: when people hold public office, they have tremendous power. They make policy that affects people’s lives and shapes society. With that power comes responsibility and accountability. People entrust elected officials to make important decisions on their behalf. They have a right to know the values, beliefs and histories of the people they install into office.

It’s a higher standard.

By his own admission, what Trudeau did was unacceptable. He should have come clean about it a long time ago. He refused to do so. And it’s a mistake that will cost him.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca

Tom Brodbeck
Columnist

Tom Brodbeck is an award-winning author and columnist with over 30 years experience in print media. He joined the Free Press in 2019. Born and raised in Montreal, Tom graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and commerce. Read more about Tom.

Tom provides commentary and analysis on political and related issues at the municipal, provincial and federal level. His columns are built on research and coverage of local events. The Free Press’s editing team reviews Tom’s columns before they are posted online or published in print – part of the Free Press’s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.