Higgs attack on Trudeau and Holt bears hallmark of N.B. premier's new social media guru
CBC
A new partisan attack by Premier Blaine Higgs on Liberal Leader Susan Holt's stance on LGBTQ issues is strikingly similar to the tactics of a Prairie communications guru that quietly started working for the premier this spring.
Derek Robinson, a key player in western Canadian conservative groups, is advising the premier through his communications firm MASH Strategy.
In 2019 one of those groups helped defeat longtime Saskatchewan Liberal MP Ralph Goodale by running aggressive advertising highlighting his connections to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
On Saturday night, Higgs linked Trudeau's stand on LGBTQ issues to Holt — even though Holt herself is keeping her distance from the prime minister.
"Susan Holt & Justin Trudeau don't believe parents need be involved in such critical discussions as gender identity, even in children as young as 4," Higgs said in two tweets posted Saturday night at 6:53 p.m. and again at 9:18 p.m.
Higgs's spokesperson Nicolle Carlin recently confirmed that Robinson's firm is providing "communications services" to the New Brunswick government.
"Most of their work is dealing with the Premier's Office," Carlin said in an emailed statement.
The firm started advising the premier's office in April, the same month the government began reviewing Policy 713, which sets minimum standards for ensuring safe and inclusive schools for LGBTQ students.
Trudeau called out the province's changes to the policy at a Pride event in Toronto last week.
The changes announced last week remove an obligation teachers had to respect a child's choice of name and pronouns in the classroom whether parents consent or not.
"Trans kids need to feel safe, not targeted by politicians," Trudeau said.
Higgs's initial response Friday was mild.
He told reporters it was "not unusual" for Trudeau to wade into provincial issues and said it was "unfortunate the prime minister wouldn't look at the big picture" and was "playing to the audience" at the Pride event.
Saturday's tweets went further, invoking four-year-olds and linking Trudeau to Holt, Higgs's main opponent in the next election — even though Holt distanced herself from the prime minister on Friday.
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WARNING: This story contains references to missing and murdered Indigenous people. Resources can be found at the bottom of this story.
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