'He loves the embarrassment': Trudeau's 'This Hour Has 22 Minutes' interview falls flat with Canadians

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Justin Trudeau cancelled all of his previously scheduled year-end interviews, but he still agreed to a sit-down with comedian Mark Critch.

The interview, which aired on New Year’s Eve as part of CBC’s 22 Minutes New Year’s Eve special, was recorded 10 days before Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s announcement that she was resigning from her post as Finance Minister.

Critch said he landed the interview after numerous requests to the Prime Minister’s Office.

“They said one day, ‘Hey, we’re going to be in Montreal on Friday if you can make it,'” Critch told CBC. “And I think that was kind of a brush off, to be honest. (But) I was like, ‘Yep, I can get there.'”

During their short chat over a beer, Critch and Trudeau touched on the Liberal Leader’s many political troubles in 2024, including his sagging popularity, President-elect Donald Trump’s taunts about having Canada become part of the United States and the mockery he faced when he was filmed dancing at a Taylor Swift concert in November.

“ Oh, 2024, what a garbage year, hey? We’ve all had a horrible 2024, but nobody’s had a harder 2024 than you,” Critch joked. “I mean, down in the polls, inflation, tariffs. Pierre Poilievre called you a wacko. I mean, just a garbage year. And for Canadians, it’s been a great comfort that no matter how bad 2024 got, we could always say, ‘You know what? At least we’re not Justin Trudeau.’ You had a hard year.”

Trudeau gamely tried to laugh off Critch’s rough assessment, but the Son of a Critch star was unrelenting as he poked fun at the prime minister’s political fallout with NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.

“How’s your heart? Because I know he was the only one that supplied you with confidence,” Critch asked.

“You know, we got good things done together, as progressives,” Trudeau replied through nervous bouts of laughter. “We’re still going to try to bring them along on the more progressive things we’re doing.”

Critch also ridiculed Trudeau for his appearance at a Taylor Swift concert in Toronto in November.

“Then, of course, you had the low point of the year for you … You kind of embarrassed all Canadians when you were caught on tape dancing to Taylor Swift,” Critch teased.

“ I was in the mood. I was going on,” Trudeau said defending his antics and noting that he was still wearing his Swiftie bracelets.

“How old are you? You have to remember, you can’t really dance like no one is watching. You have to dance like someone is filming you on your phone,” the comedian jokingly admonished.

Critch then touched on Trudeau’s trip to visit Trump at his Florida resort in late November after the incoming president threatened to levy tariffs on Canada if the country does not address border security issues.

“When you were there, Donald Trump said Canada should become the 51st state and he’d let you stay on as the governor, which is the best offer you’ve had in awhile,” Critch said, briefly recapping their night.

Trudeau maintained that Trump’s remarks were an “offhand, jocular moment” and said he didn’t think the incoming president was being serious. But Trump has kept the rhetoric going, even floating Wayne Gretzky as his possible replacement as Canada’s commander-in-chief.

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Elsewhere, Critch confronted Trudeau about his dismal polling numbers against Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre by invoking his father’s “walk in the snow” comment before he quit politics in 1984. But the prime minister wasn’t fazed.

“When my father was my age, he still had a dozen years of prime ministering ahead of him,” Trudeau fired back.

“I think Pierre Poilievre is 99% in the polls,” Critch swiped. “Do you think you can (win)?”

“Yes,” the delusional leader replied, comparing himself to boxing legend Mike Tyson in his youth. “Right now, we’re in a moment where everything is difficult. And Pierre Poilievre is trying to convince Canadians not to believe in themselves, not to believe in the CBC, not to believe in climate change, not believe in gun control, not believe in women’s rights. I believe Canadians rise to the occasion, and I am certainly not going to stop fighting at this moment where it’s so important.”

Critch closed their conversation by presenting Trudeau with a flag that read, “Good Luck Trudeau.”

“More of these flags everywhere, please,” a grinning Trudeau said ending the segment.

On YouTube, where the interview has racked up more than 74,000 views, Canadians were left scratching their heads as to why Trudeau agreed to the one-on-one.

“This is so crazy that Trudeau agreed do this interview,” one person commented with another adding, “It’s like he loves the embarrassment.”

Others chastised Trudeau for agreeing to an interview with Critch instead of facing tougher questions from Canada’s political journalists.

“None of this is funny and it’s pathetic that our PM has said more to a comedy show than he has to Canadians,” one voter wrote.

“I still don’t get the impression he’s listening to Canadians,” another watcher mused. “Time to go.”

Critch told CBC that Trudeau’s will to stay on as prime minister may have changed since they spoke in early December. “He went through a big breakup with Jagmeet and now a big breakup with Freeland,” he said.

But he added that Trudeau “really sees Pierre Poilievre as a dragon” that needs to be slayed.

“He doesn’t want to walk away because he does not want the country to go that way. And he seemed very serious about staying then,” Critch said.

mdaniell@postmedia.com