RICHMOND (NEWS1130) – After making it official last night, Justin Trudeau brings his campaign for the leadership of the federal Liberals west today; he’s visiting Calgary first, and then Richmond.

Paul Wells, Maclean’s Magazine‘s political editor, joined the News1130 Morning Show today, telling us Trudeau didn’t reveal much in his speech, but no one else even has a chance to lead the party now.

“You hate to say no… but no. I would be amazed if a Marc Garneau or a Martha Hall Findlay were able to compete against this,” says Wells, adding Trudeau’s lack of experience may not be the handicap it is being made out to be.

“A lot of guys have done quite well in politics without much more experience than he has,” he points out. “Look at Brian Mulroney, who had never run for office when he won the Conservative leadership in 1983 [and] Stephen Harper had less experience in Parliament than Trudeau has so far, but they had been political operators and professional all along.”

Wells adds his voice to other pundits who say Trudeau has gone far on his looks and name without having to prove his intellect.

“We simply will have to watch the guy and see what kind of ideas he brings to the table. He didn’t tip his hand too much last night; that speech was long on poetry and short on substance, so we haven’t had a chance yet to take the measure of his ideas.”

Trudeau’s foray west to start his campaign, into what could be considered hostile territory, does not surprise Wells.

“The people helping him on this campaign have said that he understands the Trudeau name helps him in some places and doesn’t help him in other places. They want to make a point of going out and showing Justin Trudeau is a different guy from his father, at a different time, and demonstrate that he’s not going to run away from those kinds of confrontations,” says Wells.

“Frankly, the Liberal Party is not that much less popular in BC and Alberta than anywhere else. There aren’t a lot of pockets of strength for the party anymore. He might as well start out west; the party has a lot of room to grow back right across the country,” he says.

Wells also expects the Tory knives will come out quickly, and the Conservatives have plenty to work with.
“The memory of his father… there are millions of voters now who weren’t alive when Pierre Trudeau was in politics, so with every year that goes by, that becomes less powerful a force. Then there’s the stuff they’ve used against every opposition leader, the notion he would raise taxes, he’s inexperienced compared to Harper who has now been Prime Minister for seven years,” he tells us.

Wells points out that even if Trudeau wins the Liberal leadership, he will take the helm of a party one-third the size of the NDP in Parliament.

Trudeau’s campaign will appear at the Radisson Airport Hotel in Richmond at 6 p.m. today.