Mark Carney 'has what it takes' to deal with Trump, say Manitoba politicians

The choice of Mark Carney as newly-minted Liberal Party Leader is being met with applause from many in Manitoba, including a Liberal MP who didn't vote for him.

"The membership was very clear last night, resoundingly, that Mark is the person that they want to see lead the party moving forward and I am fully supportive of him," said Winnipeg South Centre MP Ben Carr, who had publicly endorsed Chrystia Freeland to replace Justin Trudeau as the next leader and prime minister.

"The minute that those results were pronounced was the moment that all of us put the leadership race immediately behind us and committed ourselves to moving forward under Mark's leadership."

Carr described Carney as an exceptionally intelligent person with a high degree of experience that has been tested as the former governor of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 financial crisis, and as the former governor of the Bank of England during Brexit.

That's important in dealing with the economic squeeze created by U.S. President Donald Trump and his tariffs.

"Mark has what it takes to guide us through this very difficult moment," Carr said. "I have a tremendous degree of confidence in him, and the party under his leadership, to rise to the occasion and to move us in the direction that this particular moment requires."

Carney, who does not hold a seat in the House of Commons and has never been elected, received 86 per cent of his party's votes in Sunday's leadership vote.

Freeland, the former finance minister, finished in a distant second, with eight per cent, while Karina Gould placed third (3.2 per cent) and Montreal business leader Frank Baylis finished fourth (3.0 per cent).

Carney is prime minister-designate until sworn in by Gov. Gen. Mary Simon — for which a date hasn't yet been set.

Right choice for tariff war: Chartrand

David Chartrand, Manitoba Métis Federation president, prefers Gould overall as a leader, but in the current climate of a tariff war, Carney is the right choice.

"You could tell she could scrap if pushed to a corner, but right now this battle is about economic war and we need to build our best at the front," he said. "If you're going to play in a hockey tournament, you don't want to put a baseball player in there.

"The same is going to go here. We need the best-skilled with the know-how to look at how interest rates and our stocks and everything can affect the economy and affect the cost of everything you buy on a daily basis."

There is already a burden on people to feed and support their families, and tariffs are going to add to those pressures, Chartrand said.

"We need to be fully aware of the economic potential damage that can be caused. [Carney] has that skill set."

Carney has said he will move to scrap the consumer carbon tax on families, farmers and small- and medium-sized business, even though he once stood in favour of them. He has also pledged to stop a planned capital gains tax hike.

"I don't think that we, as a government did a particularly good job around communicating them and helping Canadians to understand exactly what it was we were trying to accomplish. So you learn from that and you move forward," Carr said.

Shifting political landscape

Christopher Adams, political analyst and adjunct professor of political studies at the University of Manitoba, wouldn't comment on the best Liberal leader candidate — saying "I'm neutral on this" — but it's clear Carney has resonated with Canadians.

That can be seen in how the political landscape has changed in Canada, he said. 

Recent polling shows "it's pretty well close to a tie between the Conservatives and the Liberals, whereas a month ago there was a 20-point difference between the two," Adams said.

The Liberals began closing the gap since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation. That has been helped by Trump, Adams said.

"We knew Trump was elected, but we didn't realize the extent to which he would fulfil his promises from his campaign," he said.

That has become the top-of-mind issue for Canadians, whereas six months ago it was the carbon tax and affordability.

Not only is Carney's economic background seen as beneficial, he's also a more centrist  — or small-C conservative — politician than Trudeau or some of the other candidates, which may swing some of those voters, Adams said.

The next federal election must be held no later than Oct. 20, 2025, under the fixed-date provisions of the Canada Elections Act. It can be called earlier and Carr expects that to be the case.

"I think it's very likely … and I think that it makes sense. We are at a crossroads right now and the country's Parliament has been prorogued for several months now," since Trudeau announced his resignation in January, he said.

"The moment is right for Canadians to have the opportunity to choose who they think is going to be best positioned to lead the country forward in the face of these immensely challenging times."

Regardless of who forms the next government, Chartrand says the entire country needs to get behind them.

"We are in some very uncharted waters. And we got to really … paddle together all in one direction," he said. "This is our test as Canada."