While the US political headlines are dominated by an intense debate over morality, ethics and the potential destruction of our country, Canadians are embracing their shirtless prime minister, Justin Trudeau, who is making surprise appearances everywhere.
On Saturday (August 6), an off-duty Trudeau photobombed a beach wedding in British Columbia, with a peeled-down wetsuit and surf board in hand:
A few days earlier, a shirtless Trudeau emerged out a cave in Quebec’s Gatineau Park:
And that’s not the first time we’ve encountered a shirtless Trudeau. He once flexed his muscles in a charity boxing max:
Quartz dubbed Trudeau the most optimistic man on earth earlier this year for the way he tackled topics like diversity, the threat of global terrorism and climate change at Davos. His rhetoric is in sharp contrast to the fear-mongering espoused by the US republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump. (And despite the cult of personality that Trump has engendered, it’s safe to say that even his most ardent followers could do without a shirtless Trump.)
Trudeau’s gallivanting is a reminder that political appeal is built on charisma as much as policy. Trudeau, now 44, is slightly younger than Barack Obama was when he took office (then 47), and is enjoying the same sort of public opinion honeymoon as Obama did in early in his term.
Shirtless Obama captured the world’s attention while vacationing in Hawaii soon after he took office. Not long after that, the White House forbid the media from photographing the shirtless the leader of the free world. Of course, that wouldn’t stop a lucky onlooker from snapping a shirtless Obama during his last two-week vacation in Martha’s Vineyard while in office, which began this weekend.