Poilievre's Oct 7 poem

Not all of it scans

Pierre Poilievre at the Oct. 7 commemoration

Here are the speeches Justin Trudeau and Pierre Poilievre gave on Monday to a ceremony commemorating the first anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attack against Israel. I was travelling on Monday and missed the coverage. On Wednesday this event was the subject of many conversations on Parliament Hill. Particularly Pierre Poilievre’s speech.

I’m going to share a few thoughts, but I simply hope everybody will watch these two speeches. I think they give useful insights into two party leaders.

Trudeau began by thanking “the Parliamentarians from all parties who are putting partisanship aside to be here today.” Then he named each of the 13 Liberal cabinet ministers and 11 Liberal MPs who were present.

I mostly want to talk about Poilievre’s speech, but it’s worth saying that Trudeau’s own remarks were quite direct. What Hamas, Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps do is “not being a ‘freedom fighter,’” Trudeau said. “It’s terrorism — vile, antisemitic terrorism — and it makes me sick to my stomach.”

Canada’s Jews are still being made to relive the events of Oct. 7, he said. “You relive it when antisemites wave the flags of Hamas and Hezbollah in the streets of our cities… You relive it when the word ‘Zionist’ is tossed around as a profanity. A label for something other than what it truly means: believing in the right of Jewish people, like all people, to determine their own future. A right this government supports and always will. No-one in Canada should ever be afraid to proudly call themselves a Zionist.”

Trudeau even suggested events have imposed a burden of responsibility on political leaders, including himself. “Somewhat ironically, you relive it when you must conceal the location of this very event for fear of violence. Let me be frank: I believe it is unacceptable for any of this behaviour to be normalized. It is incumbent on me and on every leader, from premiers to police chiefs, to give antisemitism no quarter, to stop this rising hate and to reverse its spread.”

Poilievre spoke twice as long as Trudeau. He began with a more extended and graphic depiction of the Hamas attack, and then made an extended partisan charge against Trudeau’s Liberal government.