MP Leadership Endorsements: Inviting the Arsonists to Rebuild the House They Burned Down

The Liberal leadership race is shaping up to be less about policy and vision and more about the familiar politics of endorsement. With over 50 MPs backing Mark Carney and 26 supporting Chrystia Freeland, the numbers paint a stark picture of where the party’s loyalties lie. But these endorsements raise a troubling question: are Canadians really supposed to trust the judgment of the same MPs who played key roles in shaping and defending the Trudeau government’s controversial policies?

By throwing their support behind Carney or Freeland, these MPs are not endorsing change—they are doubling down on the status quo. Both candidates are deeply tied to the Trudeau era, either through their actions or their alliances. Freeland, Trudeau’s former Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, is inextricably linked to the government’s handling of the economy, ethics controversies, and a growing sense of disconnection from voters. To believe she represents a fresh start is to ignore her complicit role in the decisions that alienated so many Canadians.

On the other hand, Carney, who has long flirted with entering Canadian politics, is a candidate eagerly embraced by MPs who once loyally supported Trudeau. Their endorsement of Carney isn’t a rejection of past failures—it’s a calculated pivot, an attempt to save their own political futures by hitching their wagons to a new face. These are not endorsements rooted in principle or policy; they’re survival tactics for politicians desperate to hold onto their seats.

For Canadians watching this spectacle unfold, the message is clear: the endorsements of Liberal MPs are no badge of honor. In fact, they’re a red flag. Welcoming the backing of those who helped bring the party to its current state of disrepair is less about leadership and more about consolidating power within a broken system.

True renewal in the Liberal Party cannot come from the same group of MPs who stood by as the house burned down. It cannot come from candidates who owe their momentum to the architects of the very problems they now promise to fix. Leadership built on endorsements from complicit actors isn’t leadership—it’s a continuation of failure wrapped in a new package. Canadians deserve better than to watch the arsonists pose as rebuilders.