While Monday was a day celebrated by many in Canada and around the world, there were others who were devastated by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s announcement that he will be stepping down as Liberal leader and PM.
Rosie Barton, the CBC’s chief political correspondent, appeared to have tears in her eyes as she reported on the news and remained glassy-eyed for much of the broadcast, which continued after Trudeau told reporters that Canadians deserve “a real choice in the next election.”
Poll numbers over the last year or so have shown the Conservatives with a stranglehold on the lead going into the next federal election later this year.
Yet social media users said Barton only spoke positively of Trudeau, hailing his response to the COVID-19 pandemic and praising his nearly decade-long legacy, and made no mention of the country’s economic woes, immigration issues, and soaring crime rates.
Barton was widely mocked online, with many Canadians scoffing at the anchor’s display.
“Rosie Barton is just vile. Just vile. The coverage for this announcement is as expected,” one person wrote of the government-funded broadcaster.
“Wonder if @RosieBarton was tearfully taking down her Justin posters in her girl power bedroom last night,” a second commenter asked of the CBC host, who, like others, were denied their annual end-of-year interview after Trudeau cancelled all the sit-downs in an unprecedented, telling move — which Barton even joked about on-air.
Another added: “Rosie Barton is crying on the CBC. Gotta love it! It will be a glorious day when the CBC is finally defunded.”
Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre, who could be Canada’s prime minister after the next election if the polling numbers say anything, has long threatened to defund the CBC.
In an exclusive interview with the Toronto Sun, Poilievre told Brian Lilley that it would be one of the first orders of business as PM.
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
“I’m going to do it. Very quick. I’m going to defund the CBC. That’s my commitment,” he declared.
“My commitment has been the same since I first said it at my very first leadership rally in Regina,” Poilievre continued. “I said, ‘We will defund the CBC to save a billion dollars.’ That was my commitment then, it’s my commitment now.”
One X user noted that “Rosie Barton is looking at unemployment,” so perhaps that’s where her tears were coming from.
For now, with Parliament prorogued until March 24, Trudeau remains until his replacement is named.
Liberal Party members are expected to meet this week to begin the process of finding Trudeau’s successor as potential contenders are weighing whether or not to join the fray.