How bad is American politics? This bad:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's recent trip to the U.S. appears to have made quite an impression on our American friends — perhaps too good an impression, judging by these videos of two New York men literally begging him to run for president.
Trudeau was approached with the request on Thursday during his trip to New York City, according to journalist Marie-Joëlle Parent, who shared a video of the encounter.
As the article goes onto explain the two men were likely pranksters. Failing that mental illness would also be a reasonable explanation for such undignified behaviour. The grovelling duo weren't the only ones paying their respects to Canada's newly anointed leader:
Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sought to reassure Wall Street investors he’ll remain cautious on spending as he prepares to push the nation deeper into deficit, distancing himself from another deficit-spending leader: his father Pierre.
Trudeau says his new Liberal government isn’t looking to flood the economy with money now beyond what was promised in last year’s election campaign, saying he needs to be responsible and keep the budget gap under control.[...]
The prime minister was careful Thursday to distance himself from his father’s record of soaring debts and deficits during the oil and inflation crisis of the 1970s. The senior Trudeau ran up C$187 billion in total deficits, averaging 3.7 percent of gross domestic product between 1968 and 1984, unprecedented levels at that time in a non-war era. That’s more than twice as high as Canada’s projected deficit for this fiscal year.
How bad a reputation does the Trudeau name have on Wall Street? His father left office more than thirty years ago and he still felt the need to explain to foreigners that he isn't a spendthrift socialist like Papa. When Brian Mulroney was touring the canyons of lower Manhattan after assuming office - attempting to shore up the country's credit rating - he never felt the need to distance himself from any of John Diefenbaker's fiscal or monetary foibles. That is how epically bad Pierre Trudeau was at managing Canada's finances, even Americans remember how bad he was.
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