“Carbon Tax Carney” is soooooo 2024

The messaging that worked for Pierre Poilievre's Conservatives last year might not fly in the Trump era.

In a few month’s time, we’ll find out if this is 1968 again for the Liberal Party of Canada, or whether it’s 1984 again.

Heading into 1968, the PC Party of Canada thought it was well positioned to retake control on the House of Commons and the federal government, under the leadership of Robert Stanfield, the highly regarded former premier of Nova Scotia.

Then Prime Minister Lester Pearson stepped down and was replaced by Pierre Trudeau - if that name sounds familiar, yep, it’s his dad - whose youthful, modern image swept the country and led the Liberals to a thumping victory in that year’s election. Stanfield got two more kicks at the can, in 1972 and 1974, but came up just short both times and is now hailed as “the best Prime Minister Canada never had.”

But he got my local airport named after him, so that’s nice.

So, that’s one possibility for Mark Carney when he almost certainly assumes the Liberal Party leadership - and therefore the Prime Ministership of Canada - next week. The ot…