[troutman]

https://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/...tical-reality/

Harper the politician realized what Harper the egghead didn’t: French is necessary if you want to lead the country.

There is no such unwritten rule that a leadership candidate speak both official languages; rather, the ability to speak English and French is a political reality, which is a far more compelling reason for any would-be politician in this country.

A 2016 Neilsen poll suggested that 86 per cent of Canadians actually believe the prime minister should be bilingual. Apparently we’re an aspirational bunch. We aren’t all bilingual, far from it, but we believe our prime minister should be.

Like poutine and pond hockey, leaders speaking French poorly has become an enduring Canadian cliché. As Harper demonstrated, getting better at it has become part of the job.