Epic levels of propaganda, spin at Volkswagen presser
The April 21st press conference announcing that Canada and Ontario are funneling billions of dollars to Volkswagen for a new battery plant in St. Thomas was an epic event.
It wasn’t just epic for the number of times politicians got to use the word “epic,” which they used an epic number of times.
It wasn’t even epic considering the truly impressive ease with which politicians can prattle on for minutes while saying exactly nothing, or the skill with which politicians can shamelessly make statements that have no basis in reality (whoops, at least 10 U.S. jurisdictions have a higher growth rate than Ontario. Someone alert Doug Ford.)
If fact, whether it be the number of times Justin Trudeau can use the new linking phrase “whether it be” in order to list random items that fill air time while avoiding actually answering the question asked, or whether it be the media’s unprecedented reluctance to press for a clear answer to a straight question, the Volkswagen press conference has ushered epic new levels of spin to Canadian politics.
Question, Adrian Ghobrial CTV News: “We’re curious about the contract that and what it specifies with Volkswagen, when it comes to the use of union labor employees. We know in the States, that’s a big part of the negotiations with the labor unions.”
Answer, Justin Trudeau: “One of the things that makes Volkswagen a good fit for Canada is that both of us have commitments to ensure that the middle class is strong that workers get paid good wages, and that you grow bright futures, not just for the corporate bottom line, but for the communities linked to it.
And for the customers that want to be part of the way things are done positively.
So on that basis, we actually moved forward in our most recent budget with a number of tax credits and investments that are drawing in investments for the future, whether it be on hydrogen, whether it be on clean energy, whether it be on carbon capture and storage, whether it be on critical minerals, that build in labor, expectations that people have to hit certain marks in terms of good paying jobs, in order to move forward.
Now, questions about labor, we will always be there to support organized labour, but the most important thing is that Canadians across this country get good, well-paying jobs with which they can support their families and build the future.
That’s exactly one of the reasons why we’re so excited about partnering with Volkswagen here in St. Thomas.”
Epic.
