articles my EDITOR hesitateS to publish

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PRINCE GEORGE, BC, November 14, 2024 - Donald Trump is the new American president. It is time to stop listening to corporate Democrat spin and critically analyze what happened. The political climate in Canada is similar to that in the United States, so there are valuable lessons for our politicians as well.

First, we need to look at the numbers. Kamala Harris got significantly fewer votes in 2024 than Joe Biden in 2020, though Donald Trump’s vote count did not change significantly. This tells us two things. One is that millions more people chose not to vote. It also tells us that Donald Trump has not become more popular. In other words, Donald Trump didn’t win this election as much as the Democrats lost.

Those who support New Deal-like policies have long warned the corporate Democrat elite that they are losing the support of ordinary Americans. One only needs to listen to the discourse of people like Hillary and Bill Clinton or Barack Obama to realize that they were completely out of touch with voters.

Ralph Nader, who, as Green Party presidential candidate, was scapegoated by the corporate media for Al Gore’s loss to Republican George Bush in 2000, has been trying to encourage Democrats to change course. He believes voters have now told the Democrats, “We’re sick of throwaway lines. We’re sick of not having the government return the benefits of massive taxation to us…All we hear about is empire abroad. All we hear about is more military budgets by the Democrats and the Republicans in Congress, giving the generals more than they ask for, eating the public budgets that should be providing public services and public infrastructure in communities all over the country, creating key jobs.”

And what was the impact of the American-funded Israeli assault on West Asia? A March 2024 Gallup poll concluded that only 36% of Americans approve of what Israel is doing, and 55% oppose it. With both major candidates pledging to continue military support to Israel, neither offered a voice to the ordinary American. Now many are asking, “Would Harris have won if she had pledged to end the slaughter?”

What message does the American election send to Canadian politicians? First, it tells the Conservatives that they have a good chance of winning the next federal election. Their agenda and approach are very similar to those of the Republicans, appealing to most right-wing Canadians. 

The weakness of Pierre Poilievre’s party is that its members do not listen to people who do not already agree with them. As I do now, I have lived in several Conservative constituencies. I have always been politically active and have never been shut out from discourse with my Members of Parliament. Under Poilievre I am essentially told, “We don’t agree with you, we’re not going to change our views, and we’re not interested in listening.” This has been especially true concerning the crisis in West Asia. It’s an attitude that permeates to Ottawa, and it is not good for our democracy.

If the leaders of the other parties have any sense, they will heed Ralph Nader’s warning to listen to voters. While there are few recent surveys, a 2020 EKOS pollfound that, “Sanctions against Israel are popular among supporters of the NDP (68%), Green Party (59%), Bloc Quebecois (54%), and Liberal Party (42%).” One can therefore safely assume that today, except for Conservatives, Canadians will vote overwhelmingly for candidates who oppose Israeli aggression. In addition, if politicians can demonstrate that they are honest and respectful people who truly care about people and our collective future, they may even earn the support of young voters. 

The decisions of left and centre-leaning party elites will determine the course of Canadian politics. Will we have a collaborative democracy? Or will Pierre Poilievre become Donald Trump’s angry little puppet? 

 One point I gather from listening to experienced diplomats like Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, who served in the American State Department with Colin Powell, or academics like international relations specialist John Mearsheimer from the University of Chicago and economist Jeffrey Sachs from Columbia University, is that they view those currently serving in Joe Biden’s State Department as incompetent amateurs. 

This can be seen by their failure to effectively negotiate peace settlements for any current conflicts or even come to mutually beneficial financial agreements. We are seeing other countries negotiating their own agreements, leaving America and its allies, including Canada, in the dust. One decision that was largely unreported yet will have a significant impact on our future, was Saudi Arabia’s choice not to renew the Petrodollar agreement with the United States.

If they ignore experienced diplomats and academics, who are American policymakers listening to? 

John Hagee is one of several very influential Christian Zionist preachers and the founder of Christians United for Israel (CUFI). He is a frequent speaker at events in Washington, DC and he is an advisor to many high-ranking politicians. 

Hagee’s sermons are posted on YouTube.  I watched several, and I was amazed by how clearly his views are reflected in current American foreign policy - and the foreign affairs platform of the Conservative Party of Canada. It’s not a pleasant experience to watch Hagee, but it is enlightening.  I would encourage those who question the parallels I’ve drawn in this column to do the same. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c3aKtzGhWk&t=1014s )

What I noticed most is that there is no message of love or compassion in Hagee’s sermons. He speaks emphatically and draws bizarre conclusions. Generally, he will quote the Bible and then express a nonsensical interpretation of the scripture verse. For example, he draws parallels between the United Nations and Hitler’s Nazi regime. He insists that Iran and Russia are Gog and Magog, the enemies of God mentioned in the Bible.  He says that huge opposing armies will march on Israel/Palestine and that those supported by Iran and Russia will be swallowed up by a timely earthquake. Hagee’s son Matt chimes in saying, “While the State of Israel has many enemies, there is a God up in heaven who diligently watches over the nation. We must unite in our support until the day of victory comes.”

Hagee has an extremely colonial mindset, completely ignoring the genocide of Indigenous peoples in the United States, and apparently supporting genocide in the Middle East and elsewhere. His devotion to the Israeli government is unwavering, stating, “The day America stops defending Israel will be the day God stops defending the United States of America.” Yet, Hagee expresses little concern for all the Semitic people, including Jews, who will die as a result of his warmongering. 

While many seem convinced of the legitimacy of John Hagee’s prophecy, one needs to question whether this is solid ground upon which to build the foreign policy of the country with the most powerful military in the world. One also needs to look at the record of congregations and even political leaders who have placed unquestioning trust in the message of a charismatic preacher. While he was not uniquely responsible for the downfall of Tsarist Russia, spiritual advisor Grigori Rasputin certainly contributed to the collapse of the Romanov Empire.

Even though the United Nations is not a perfect institution, it has thus far kept us out of World War III. According to John Hagee, World War III has already begun, and his unwavering support of arms shipments to Israel would imply that he sees the deaths of tens of thousands of innocents in Gaza as somehow being the will of God. 

I am a Middle Eastern Christian. My family members were among the earliest followers to embrace the teachings of Jesus recognizing the sacredness of every human life. To me, any other message, including the Christian Zionist prophecy, is absolute heresy.