OTTAWA –
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may not have started thinking about whether mermaids spawn like fish or like humans, but it’s something one person is asking him to consider.
In a tweet, Trudeau invited people to ask him any question they wanted, and Twitter users immediately responded to that request with questions about everything from affordable housing to poker. shoeshine.
He said that anyone with a question should post it in a reply to his tweet and “stay tuned.”
More than an hour later there were more than 6,000 responses, including one challenging the prime minister to a mixed martial arts match and another simply: “Why are you like that?”
There were many serious policy questions on issues like electoral reform, climate change, health care and electric cars, and plenty of angry responses calling for Trudeau to step down.
But Trudeau also gave himself an opportunity to answer the question of whether dogs will wear pants that cover only their hind legs or all four, and whether grated cheese is part of the curry — “yes or not.”
The call came a day after the House of Commons adjourned for a holiday.
Trudeau’s post includes a close-up video that, while shot in a naturalistic style, includes a row of Canadian flags only visible in the background.
“Hi everyone. As the end of the year approaches, I’ve been doing a lot of interviews with TV stations, newspapers, radio stations,” he said in the video.
“And they’ve got a lot of good questions. But I know you too. So listen to them.”
Some questions, such as that from former CBC meteorologist Claire Martin, who wants to know about the prime minister’s morning routine, are perhaps predictable.
So the sarcastic comments recalling the black-faced photos of Trudeau that popped up in 2019 or the questions about how the head of government spends his time after canceling his Disney Plus subscription – referring to comments his deputy, Chrystia Freeland, made earlier this fall.
And query about the World Economic Forum. And about whether he can “become president of the United States.”
In the more unpredictable category: “Could Jesus put a burrito in the microwave so hot he couldn’t eat it himself?”
Or: “Do you remember skiing in Whistler in 1988 and going to the Delta Mountain Inn? Your dad (sic) only tipped me $5 for a lot of bags, but I suppose I was just happy to brag? that I met him.”
Many of the responses simply summed up as follows: “Since when do you answer questions?”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on December 15, 2022.
