{"id":3717,"date":"2014-03-08T08:24:03","date_gmt":"2014-03-08T16:24:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=3717"},"modified":"2025-01-08T05:08:11","modified_gmt":"2025-01-08T10:08:11","slug":"birth-of-trudeaus-son-poses-political-opportunity-risk-of-exploitation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2014\/03\/08\/birth-of-trudeaus-son-poses-political-opportunity-risk-of-exploitation\/","title":{"rendered":"Birth of Trudeau\u2019s son poses political opportunity, risk of exploitation"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Justin
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” src=”https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/3.jpg” width=”711″ height=”589″ \/><\/a> Justin Trudeau and wife Sophie Gregoire. Photo by Richard Burdett \/ Wikimedia Commons.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

OTTAWA\u2014For a compulsive social media junkie, Justin Trudeau has fallen uncharacteristically silent since his third child was born 10 days ago.<\/p>\n

The Liberal leader announced Hadrian\u2019s birth to his 330,000-plus followers on Twitter, with a discreet close-up photo of the baby\u2019s tiny hand clutching his finger.<\/p>\n

Since then, he\u2019s been home with his wife, Sophie Gregoire, and kids Xavier and Ella-Grace, privately enjoying the new addition to their family. No tweets. No Facebook posts. No photos. No public appearances.<\/p>\n

But while Trudeau seems intent on shielding his infant son from the glare of the public spotlight, the Liberal party has had no qualms about using Hadrian\u2019s birth to help build up its data base of potential supporters and donors.<\/p>\n

Newly elected party president Anna Gainey, a Trudeau confidant, sent out an email blast last week urging well-wishers to send the party their names and email addresses, along with congratulatory messages that would be passed on to Trudeau and Gregoire.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t expect to see much of Justin in the news for the next few days, right now he\u2019s where he should be\u2014with his family,\u201d Gainey said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI imagine many of you would appreciate a chance to welcome baby Hadrian and express your excitement and happiness for the family, so we wanted to give you the opportunity here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The dissonance between Trudeau\u2019s circumspect conduct and his party\u2019s willingness to exploit the birth of his son underscores the balancing act facing a political leader with young children.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of a double-edged sword,\u201d says Karen Brunger, president of the Toronto-based International Image Institute.<\/p>\n

On the one hand, voters love to see politicians with their cute kids, the younger the better. And being seen with kids is generally a plus for the politician, making him or her seem warmer, more human, more caring, she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know a politician who doesn\u2019t use their children,\u201d Brunger says, noting that municipal, provincial and federal politicians often send Christmas cards or campaign brochures plastered with photos of themselves posing with their happy families.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s a fine line between featuring one\u2019s children occasionally and being perceived to be exploiting them for political gain. And figuring out precisely where that line is can be \u201cchallenging,\u201d says Brunger.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s such a fine line. Can you think of another line of work where family plays such a role?\u201d<\/p>\n

From her perspective, Trudeau\u2019s handling of his son\u2019s birth was \u201csweet\u201d and not exploitative. The party\u2019s handling of the occasion was \u201cmuch more obvious\u201d and, therefore, more likely to prompt eye-rolling.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

Not since Brian Mulroney have Canadians had a political leader with an infant child. Mulroney\u2019s youngest son, Nicolas, was born the year after Mulroney became prime minister in 1984.<\/p>\n

Before that it was Pierre Trudeau, whose three sons\u2014including his eldest, Justin\u2014started life living at 24 Sussex Dr., the prime minister\u2019s official residence.<\/p>\n

The current occupant of 24 Sussex, Stephen Harper, has two teenaged children, Ben and Rachel, who were 10 and seven respectively when he took office.<\/p>\n

Cynical members of the parliamentary press gallery used to refer to Nicolas Mulroney, who was often carried by his mother or father at official events, as \u201cthe prop.\u201d Hadrian\u2019s eventual public debut will no doubt elicit a similar response in some quarters.<\/p>\n

But Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc contends that kind of cynicism is an unfair knock on politicians with young kids.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not fair because if you\u2019re doing those jobs as Mr. Trudeau did, as Mr. Mulroney did, as Justin is doing … here\u2019s the problem. You have so little time to do things with your family that every time you do it becomes, because of your job, a public event or a source of public interest,\u201d says LeBlanc, a childhood friend.<\/p>\n

For instance, he says, if Trudeau takes the kids to a ball game, it winds up becoming a public event, with fans lining up for autographs or posing for pictures with the leader. Even on vacation out of the country, LeBlanc says Trudeau is constantly approached by Canadian tourists.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

Having grown up in a \u201cfish bowl\u201d himself, Trudeau\u2019s capacity to mix private and public life is probably more than most people would feel comfortable with. But LeBlanc says Xavier and Ella-Grace, at six and five, are already emulating their father, readily joining him to pose for photos taken by total strangers.<\/p>\n

Being a political leader also inevitably means summers and many holidays are spent travelling the country. A leader with young children will often take his kids along just to spend time with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomebody who\u2019s trying to do a job that\u2019s often seven days a week, if they can integrate their family into their work routines, it makes a much healthier political leader,\u201d argues LeBlanc.<\/p>\n

\u201cJustin will be a much happier and positive political leader if he gets the right balance between seeing his family and spending time with them and being able to include them, where appropriate, in his work obligations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trudeau\u2019s own father used to take his three boys on official visits to foreign countries. And LeBlanc, who himself grew up with a single politician dad\u2014Romeo LeBlanc, who served as the elder Trudeau\u2019s fisheries minister and eventually went on to become governor general\u2014also recalls joining his late father as youngster on work trips.<\/p>\n

Far from being exploitative, LeBlanc says the experience was positive.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the nicest memories I have of my father was when he was minister of fisheries visiting the outports of Newfoundland or the northern coast of British Columbia and I got to go with him during summer holidays or on a school break,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I assume Justin would have had 10 times those occasions with his father and if history is allowing him to have that experience with his kids, it\u2019s terrific.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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