Shucking Oysters: The Joke’s On Us
By Alex Allen
We Canadians, perhaps more than anything else, are known for our comedy. Or more to the point, our comedic talents. We are masters of homegrown self-deprecation. Rob Salem wrote that our national identity, if we even have one, could be said to be low self-esteem, or at the very least chronic insecurity. Common wisdom has it that our sense of humour is “borne out of the inherent isolation of our large and under-populated country.” That and possibly, the weather. “The prevailing image is of small groups of fur-wrapped Canucks, huddled together in some remote snowed-in hunting lodge, cracking wise and laughing their bums off in an effort to keep them warm.”
Martin Short. Mike Myers. Seth Rogen. Eugene Levy. David Eby. David Eby? Someone once quipped, those Canadians who are truly funny tend to run for the United States; those who are truly unfunny tend to run for office. With British Columbia facing a record $11.6-billion deficit – which is no laughing matter – Premier Eby is now trying to defend a controversial speech-writing contract he has with friend and comedian, Charles Demers.
Conservative opposition finance critic Peter Milobar revealed that the writing contract is a $165 an hour gig, with an initial two-year agreement up to $150,000, and two yearly extension options up to $450,000. Milobar rightly questioned why Eby can’t use one of the many communications writers already employed. There are nine writers in the premier’s correspondence branch, six in his communications office and five in the writing and strategy unit – not to mention the dozens more employed by the government’s communications division. And not one has a sense of humour?
Eby defended the contract, saying he has many speeches to deliver a day and that Demers (who wrote for previous NDP leaders Mike Horgan and Adrian Dix) has not billed to his maximum entitlement. “We do use contractors, because it allows us to reduce costs sometimes. And in this case, $14,000 for a speech writer is not quite as sensational as the headline the Conservatives are using.” BC Legislature reporter Rob Shaw noted however, that Eby’s numbers are misleading, as before the contract was even renewed in February, Demers had already been paid over $95,000.
As Jordan Foisy poetically wrote about Stephen Harper, Eby has also worked diligently to be “as bland and boring as an Alberta prairie, that a joke about him can drift by in the wind like a tumbleweed.” Has Demers actually made Premier Eby funny? I searched high and low for any semblance of humour in his speeches. Far from being the other “bland, gray-washed nerd with dead eyes” Eby is just not quotable. There’s nothing sensational about him.
When politicians tell jokes, some kill at the podium and others kill at any chance of ever being elected. There are rules to political joke making. First, the obvious, be self-deprecating. Second, singe, don’t burn. Burns do occur and lines get crossed. Which brings us to the third rule: use jokes as damage control. And finally rule number four, delivery matters. The best political comedy speeches are “a mix of punchlines, extended riffs, and set pieces.”
Writing jokes for politicians is different from writing for a late-night talk show. “For a politician, it’s not just about getting laughs,” says Eric Schnure, a speechwriter who has written for both Democrats and Republicans. “It’s about being liked.” Some humour is off limits, particularly impersonations and joking about loss of life. A caveat that unfortunately, Jimmy Kimmel and others forgot to heed.
David Eby needs all the help he can get it. According to a recent Angus Reid poll, Eby’s approval rating at 41% has fallen to its lowest since he took office, leaving him tied for the second-least popular Canadian premier. Only Quebec’s François Legault fares worse. Legault’s approval dropped to 22%, while Ontario Premier Doug Ford is tied with Eby at 41% (up from 38%). Manitoba’s Wab Kinew leads all premiers with a 61% approval, followed by Saskatchewan’s Scott Moe at 50% and Alberta’s Danielle Smith at 46%.
As Reid Small explained, Eby’s decline reflects more than routine mid-term fatigue. “Economic strain, labour unrest, a decaying healthcare system, questionable spending, and unmet housing promises have left his government confronting mounting public distrust.”
Beyond the immediate labour and economic issues, several questionable policies have added to the sense of strain and need for humour. Eby very questionably committed more than $27 million to operate trade offices across Asia, fuelling concerns about the perceived value-for-money. Nine years after declaring a public health emergency over toxic drugs, the death toll is over tens of thousands and nothing has changed.
Even though every word they utter is tainted with suspicion, we want our politicians to be authentic or at least to have the appearance of authenticity. In response to Trump’s tariffs, Eby implored us to hold off on our trips to the US and to stop buying American products. When questioned about Blackstone, a hugely unethical trillion-dollar American investment company with close ties to Donald Trump, and now a partner in the Nisga’a project, Western LNG terminal, Eby replied with nuanced irony: “If you want to invest in BC, you want to build here, you want to create jobs here, we welcome you.”
Political comedy speech rule number one, David: self-deprecation. Perhaps you could start by joking about your height, but then again, the joke might go over our heads.
