Le Dauphin

...And so, the March to the PMO for the Dauphin begins. The Dauphin was the heir apparent to the throne of France under the Valois and Bourbon dynasties. The first French prince called Le Dauphin was Charles V. The title is roughly equivalent to the English title Prince of Wales. It is also my Cicero In Pants copyrighted term for heirs apparent in the modern day. Like that guy above. No. Not the Dalai Llama. The OTHER heir apparent. Our very own Canadian Prince.

I, and many other people, get very uncomfortable whenever one of these Dauphins shows up. We worked for a long time to banish primogenitor as a justification for succession to power. I, for one, am not thrilled at seeing it slowly wander back.

Justin Trudeau has been getting his picture taken for as long as he can remember. He's also been asked to be Prime Minister for as long as he can remember. I'm not surprised. Look at the guy. Not only is he the son of Pierre Trudeau, but he's got looks and charm that his father couldn't come close to. He's clearly not as cerebral as his father, but he glows! His entire aura is such that it's damn hard to dislike the guy. Heck, I met Justin a few times in university through university debating and liked him. I was annoyed that he dropped me in a round at novice, but whatever. Still seemed like a genuinely decent guy to me.

So my beef isn't with him. Justin's cool. He's making his way in the world trying to do the best he can and achieve as much as he can using the opportunities and advantages at his disposal. Most people would.

My beef is with the rest of us.

Yes...us. We that would contemplate buying a newspaper because Justin's picture - or Belinda's picture - is on the front page. And don't dare blame the media. This ain't supply side economics time you wily little Friedmans. These folks - Belinda, Ben, Justin, Alexandre (Sasha), Catherine - definitely get more than they've earned because of the accomplishments of their parents.

But only because we want them to.

And look, to an extent I accept this. In entertainment it's fairly harmless. If Ben Mulroney gets extra fame because of Brian ...whatever. Nepotism is a part of life and like it or not it's never going away. But when it gets near my government, I get nervous. In Canada, the biggest "Hollywood" we really have is Parliament Hill. Canadian Dauphins don't just go the Paris Hilton route. Who in their right mind cares if they get a Genie award anyway? But Parliament! Why there you get all the fame along with some power. An Order of Canada and a seat on the CIBC Board beats a Genie any day.

Unfortunately, government is where real life and death decisions get made, and it is becoming increasingly clear that we should be very careful before we let such Dauphins ascend. What, you disagree? Yeah - well I have two arguments for you.





Tell the truth - Neither of those experiments were QUITE the success people might have hoped for. And it's no accident. Voters vote for the Dauphin because they believe the success of the father may run in the blood of the son. But we all know genetics doesn't play out that way consistently. And we often end up burned that way.

Performers like Harper and Chretien got into the PMO on their own pure resolve and talent - and performed well as a result. When they got into the chair they could handle being the leader. That's not the case with Dauphins. They've been elevated as symbols. Their job isn't to lead. It's to be a figurehead for the advisors hiding behind them. Advisors that swear they gravitate to the dauphin because he is something special as a leader and thinker, but who more often than not think - "this guy can win". Later, they can convince themselves of his substantive greatness, but that's not the true motivation.

A typical scenario often develops when the titular head is a symbol rather than a leader. First, his followers start going at each other with sabres to try to curry his favor and to become the most trusted advisor. Internal power struggles abound. Ultimately, the Symbol actually starts taking the decisions, as is his right. He's the actual boss after all. But he doesn't have the necessary judgement for that - the battle tested mettle - and he doesn't know it. So policy goes hurky jerky crazy and things start to go badly because NOBODY COMPETENT IS DRIVING THE DAMN BOAT!

In addition to the danger of that happening, the Dauphin has another big problem - the one that dogged Paul Martin Junior. One that causes dangerous second-guessing: "W.W.D.D" - What Would Daddy Do? Remember how Paul Martin Junior was a Business Liberal until he took the mantle of leadership. Then he felt the need to declare that he was his father's son, as he ran sprinting to the left? Just imagine the baggage that the Son of PET will carry. If he does become my Prime Minister, I hope he has the strength of character to paraphrase Aristotle and say "I love Daddy dearly but I love truth more."

The frustrating part for me is how inevitable this all feels. Justin Trudeau will run and win his MP seat. Then he will start organising to be Liberal leader - he isn't running for parliament so he can be a backbencher. He has a VERY strong team behind him that plan on running a PMO with him. And a nation in love with the father might find it impolite to turn away his beautiful, shiny son.

But Cicero, you cry, its not FAIR to criticise dauphins for this! Should they not strive? Should they live in hovels! This BACKLASH is what is truly undemocratic!!

Poppycock. Thats just the argument that gets inserted after the backlash so the Dauphin can go back to enjoying his or her inherited privileges. It's up there with "you're just jealous". The fact is, the argument stands. If you feel like backlashing something don't dismiss that intuition out of hand. There may be something to that primal instincts of yours.

So what choice do we have? It's not just a choice, it is a responsibility in a free and democratic society. We must evaluate our potential leaders and representatives as people on their own merits - not as progeny. Evaluate them as you would an employee or a house contractor or your lawyer or your doctor. Take the measure of that person. Feel it in your gut. And ask yourself how much responsibility you believe that person deserves. Because eventually that person WILL be called upon to make very tough life and death decisions. If Justin - or anyone else - proves themselves to you, then by all means - vote for them. No one should be disqualified just for being the child of a great man.

But if you look at the dauphin...and you think he might not have the mettle for the most important office in the land... offer him a hosting gig at the Genies.