Pity the poor opposition politicians across Canada nursing a severe case of pandemic politics. Their collective challenge: how do they do what opposition parties are supposed to do — oppose and criticize the government — at the same time frightened Canadians look to those in power to protect them?
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, governments across Canada have been forced on to a war footing. Suddenly, the country’s public health officials have gone from bureaucratic obscurity to superhero status.
And the leaders of governments — from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to provincial premiers and territorial leaders — are now front and centre at daily news conferences with the latest dispatches from the front.