On Tuesday, Ralph Goodale, the minister of public safety, introduced Bill C-71, the Liberal government’s new gun control bill.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has insisted that this bill is nothing like the old, hated long-gun registry. But even if C-71 doesn’t turn into the sort of billion-dollar boondoggle the registry did, there’s always a political risk in riling up the Canadian gun lobby.
So why is Trudeau making this choice now? In her video essay, Edmonton Journal columnist Paula Simons argues that the answer might lie south of the border. With another school shooting just this week in Maryland, and with the March for Our Lives scheduled for Saturday, Simons suggests that the time has never been better for a Canadian prime minister to look tough on guns.
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