Conservatives say Carney is 'just like Justin.' Do they have a case?

During the English leadership debate, immoderate of the astir compelling exchanges included Mark Carney fending disconnected accusations from Pierre Poilievre that the Liberal person was conscionable different mentation of erstwhile premier curate Justin Trudeau.

"You spent years moving against Justin Trudeau and the c tax," Carney said to the Conservative person successful 1 memorable exchange. "They're some gone."

"You're doing a beauteous bully impersonation of him with the aforesaid policies tonight," Poilievre responded.

There were akin moments throughout both debates — Poilievre trying his champion to nexus Carney to his predecessor and the Liberal leader repeatedly stressing that helium is simply a "very antithetic idiosyncratic from Justin Trudeau."

The effort to assertion Carney and Trudeau are chopped from the aforesaid governmental cloth has been a important diagnostic of the Conservative campaign. But it besides raises questions conscionable however just such comparisons are, and have if they've been an effectual constituent of attack against the Liberal leader.

WATCH: 'I'm a precise antithetic idiosyncratic from Justin Trudeau': 

"Poilievre intelligibly wants to beryllium going against Trudeau. He wishes Trudeau was the opponent, and sometimes helium tries to unreal that helium inactive is," bittersweet Lori Turnbull, a governmental subject prof astatine Dalhousie University.

Certainly, the 2 leaders look to hold connected 1 facet of the erstwhile premier minister: he's wide seen arsenic unpopular crossed Canada, was apt headed toward decision if helium stayed connected and immoderate examination to him is politically damaging.

That's wherefore the Conservatives have spent a important portion of the run keeping Trudeau's sanction alive, and much importantly, trying to link him to his successor. While Carney has made a constituent of outlining their differences, Poilievre has repeatedly said connected the run way that Carney is "just similar Justin."

'Different person, antithetic policies'

Carney hasn't rejected each imaginable similarities to Trudeau, saying successful a recent interview with the fashionable Sunday nighttime Radio-Canada amusement Tout le monde en parle, that he shares Liberal Party values — including solidarity, equality and reconciliation — with the erstwhile premier minister.

But helium has stressed, arsenic helium did successful a February interrogation with the Toronto Star, that he's "a antithetic idiosyncratic with a antithetic beingness acquisition and a vastly antithetic nonrecreational acquisition than the premier minister.

"Different person, antithetic policies, antithetic attack to governing," helium said.

Yet immoderate Conservatives assertion that Carney is conscionable different version of Trudeau,  arguing he has surrounded himself with immoderate of the aforesaid Trudeau team, has immoderate akin Trudeau policies and that there's not overmuch political daylight betwixt the two. Meanwhile, Poilievre has been precocious claiming that the Liberal level was pre-written earlier Carney became leader, thing the Liberal Party has powerfully denied.

Carney does person a mates of erstwhile Trudeau furniture ministers — Marco Mendicino and David Lametti — as  part of his team. But 1 of the Conservatives' large knocks against Carney, and wherefore they suggest he's inextricably linked to Trudeau, is his relation arsenic an economical advisor to the erstwhile government.

During the English debate, Poilievre raised the taxable of ostentation and asked Carney to "apologize to the galore radical who suffered arsenic a effect of the inflationary policies that you advised Justin Trudeau to implement."

Carney rejected the claim, to which Poilievre asked if helium was denying that helium was Trudeau's economical adviser.

Carney served arsenic Liberal economic adviser

"I did not supply immoderate of that advice," Carney said.

In August 2020, Bloomberg News archetypal reported that conscionable 5 months aft stepping down arsenic Bank of England governor, Carney was advising Trudeau connected an economical betterment program successful the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Then successful September 2024, the Liberal Party announced that Carney would serve arsenic the "chair of a Leader's Task Force connected Economic Growth."

"Mark's unsocial ideas and perspectives volition play a captious relation successful shaping the adjacent steps successful our program to proceed to turn our system and fortify the mediate class, and to urgently prehend caller opportunities for Canadian jobs and prosperity successful a fast-changing world," Trudeau said successful a connection astatine the time.

But Daniel Beland, director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada, said it's hard to cognize what economical relation Carney played successful the erstwhile Liberal authorities because advice and decision-making tin beryllium 2 antithetic things.

"We don't cognize what proposal Mark Carney really provided due to the fact that it's down closed doors. That's what advisers do. So it's hard to show what work helium has … successful presumption of fiscal policy, for example."

However Sean Speer, who was a elder economical advisor to erstwhile premier curate Stephen Harper, precocious wrote what mightiness beryllium astir important "is that it's acold from evident however a Carney authorities would disagree from a Trudeau government."

While pointing retired that Carney had repealed the user c taxation and the past budget's superior gains taxation increase, Speer inactive questioned the presumption that Carney is much centrist than Trudeau.

"One whitethorn beryllium a banker and the different a play teacher, but their halfway assumptions astir authorities are strikingly similar," helium wrote successful a recent station connected the governmental investigation website The Hub.

Trudeau did immoderate 'silly fiscal things': Economist

In a consequent post, pursuing the merchandise of the Liberal platform, Speer wrote that the Liberals are proposing to tally larger and longer deficits than those envisioned by the Trudeau authorities and that erstwhile it comes to nationalist spending, Carney "seems poised to lucifer oregon transcend Justin Trudeau's profligacy."

WATCH:  Poilievre, Carney butt heads connected Carney's record: 

Don Drummond, who was subordinate lawman curate astatine Finance Canada and senior vice-president and main economist for TD Bank, said the "later years mentation of Trudeau did immoderate really, truly atrocious and outright silly fiscal things."

Those included the six-week GST vacation and the raising of the superior gains inclusion rate, helium said.

"I tin disagree with immoderate of the things connected the existent Liberal platform, but there's thing that I would accidental is truly atrocious and silly similar they were doing."

He did say, however, that he's concerned Carney is not taking an axe to the shortage and that there's a batch of caller spending.

"The wide fiscal stance is possibly not each that antithetic than Trudeau and company, but astatine slightest they struck retired the silliness that had cropped into it," helium said.

Beland added that portion Carney doesn't look keen connected balancing the budget, the wide level is more focused connected the economy, compared to Trudeau who emphasized societal policy expansion and progressive causes.

"I think what Mark Carney is doing is reorienting the enactment much toward the centre compared to Trudeau."

But comparisons to Trudeau whitethorn beryllium each politically moot if they person small interaction connected the voting public. A caller Angus Reid Institute survey reported that 35 per cent of Canadians spot Carney arsenic a large alteration from Trudeau, portion 24 per cent said helium was a insignificant change. Thirty-two per cent said helium was fundamentally the aforesaid and 9 per cent were not sure. 

David Coletto, founder and CEO of Ottawa-based polling and marketplace probe steadfast Abacus Data, said information shows that voters are distinguishing betwixt the 2 leaders, and presumption Carney arsenic acold much competent than the erstwhile premier curate — particularly erstwhile dealing with the economy.

"Enough radical similar Carney and are capable to look past the thought that they would beryllium electing a 4th Liberal authorities successful portion due to the fact that they don't comprehend him to beryllium similar Justin Trudeau," Coletto said. "They bash spot differences."