To the editor:
You can hardly blame Canadians if we continue to have lingering doubts about just how serious Justin Trudeau is about terrorism.
His delayed response in even commenting on the alleged plot that led to the death of Aaron Driver in Strathroy, Ontario is hardly reassuring.
Immediately after this serious near miss with Driver, we read headlines like "PM Justin Trudeau marches in Montreal Pride parade" and "Justin Trudeau to apologize for historic persecution of gay Canadians" and frivolous stories about a "shirtless" Prime Minister in Tofino were grabbing the attention of the mainstream media.
Days after the incident, the best Trudeau could come up with was some anemic politically correct rhetoric about “balancing” individual rights with keeping Canadians safe from terrorism.
Interestingly, the anti-terrorism bill brought in by the Stephen Harper Conservative government that Trudeau campaigned against and, which the Liberals continue to threaten to water down, may have at least been partially responsible for thwarting the Driver’s attack.
Just maybe Erin O'Toole, the public safety critic for the Conservative Party, is correct that his party's Bill C-51 already provides the right "balance" in giving police needed powers in cases of suspected terrorism.
Contrastingly, Trudeau rammed through his controversial, radical and politically motivated Bill C-6, which gives a convicted Islamist terrorist Canadian citizenship, most certainly making Canada more vulnerable to a terrorist attack.
Have we so quickly forgotten the Toronto 18 who plotted to murder many Canadians, Harper or the shootings at Parliament Hill in October 2014?
Trudeau pulled our fighter jets out of the fight against ISIS, gave Canadian citizenship back to a convicted terrorist and voted against a motion to condemn ISIS actions as genocide.
Terrorism is a serious issue requiring serious leadership.
Trudeau has yet to prove he understands his first responsibility as Prime Minister and that he really has the safety of all Canadians at heart.
Gerald Hall
Nanoose Bay