Canada’s Political Turmoil
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Times Insider
Times reporters in Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal anticipated that Justin Trudeau would step down as prime minister. Still, covering the news required teamwork, fast thinking and confident execution.
John Otis
Times Insider explains who we are and what we do and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together.
On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada announced that he would resign as Liberal Party leader and the country’s prime minister, sending shock waves through the nation, which is on the cusp of economic upheaval: President-elect Donald J. Trump has pledged to impose tariffs on all United States imports from Canada on his first day in office.
Matina Stevis-Gridneff jumped on the news early Monday morning, before it was even announced. Ms. Stevis-Gridneff, previously the Brussels bureau chief for The New York Times, is new to Canada, and her role: She moved to Toronto in August, and quickly submerged herself in her new beat.
In an interview on Monday — for which she made time between updating The Times’s live blog and writing analysis-packed articles on what the change may mean for the country — Ms. Stevis-Gridneff explained how The Times’s Canada-based team had prepared for and reacted to the moment, and how, as someone new to Canada, she’s bringing a “global context” to coverage of the country. This interview has been edited and condensed.
What was your response to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s announcement?
It’s really strange how even the most anticipated news is shocking when it happens. We had actually long anticipated that this would happen. In the second half of December, we even wrote, what we call in the business, a “political obituary” for Justin Trudeau. We had already written a brief story that said he would resign, so we could be ready when it happened.
We knew over the holiday season that the prime minister would likely be reflecting on his future, and coming to that conclusion. He was under tremendous pressure, and it became increasingly difficult to see how his position would be tenable. Still, when it actually happens, it’s a really big moment.
We took a minute to reflect on the fact that this is a historic moment for Canada. We’re very lucky that we have a great team. When news like this breaks, it’s a tremendous moment for the newsroom.
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