In the very first paragraph of his entertaining and thoroughly researched analysis of Harper’s government, The Longer I’m Prime Minister: Stephen Harper and Canada, 2006–, Paul Wells warns the reader: “If all you look at is ‘anger’ or ‘control freak’ or ‘Alberta,’ you’re left with a mystery, because how could an angry control freak from Alberta get anywhere all by himself?” Harper may well be some of these things, but he could not have won three elections—January 23, 2006, October 14, 2008, May 2, 2011, the last one awarding him majority status—without having “a superior understanding of Canada.” Wells reminds us that not only westerners but also millions of other Canadians, including immigrants, Jews, Quebecers, Ontarians and even liberal-minded Torontonians have voted for him. In a parliamentary democracy, Wells writes in his inimitable style, “lightning does not strike three times on the same forehead.” People who do not see that “not only misunderstand...
Max Nemni is a retired professor of political philosophy and Canadian politics at Laval University and co-author, with his wife, Monique Nemni, of the first two volumes of an intellectual biography of Pierre Elliott Trudeau: Trudeau: Son of Quebec, Father of Canada (volume 1, Young Trudeau: 1919–1944, and volume 2, Trudeau Transformed: 1944–1965, published by McClelland and Stewart in 2006 and 2011 respectively). They are now working on the third. He wishes to thank Monique for her editorial support and comments.
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