Premiership of Justin Trudeau that described Castro as a "remarkable leader" and a "larger than life leader who served his people." Trudeau was criticized by political observers in Canada and the United States for the statement. United States Senator Marco Rubio called the statement "shameful and embarrassing," while Canadian MP Maxime Bernier called his remarks "repugnant." "The Washington Post" questioned many of the claims made in Trudeau's statements, saying that Trudeau "appears to accept outdated Cuban government spin as current fact." In 2016, Trudeau visited China and attended the G-20 summit in Hangzhou where he was affectionately nicknamed “xiao tudou” (小土豆) meaning little potato
Justin Trudeau André Ouellet, a senior minister under his father, had been in Liberal hands for 53 years before falling to the Bloc Québécois in 2006. Trudeau faced off against Mary Deros, a Montreal city councillor and Basilio Giordano, the publisher of a local Italian-language newspaper for the Liberal nomination. On April 29, 2007, he easily won the party's nomination, picking up 690 votes to 350 for Deros and 220 for Giordano. Prime Minister Stephen Harper called an election for 14 October 2008, by which time Trudeau had been campaigning for a year in Papineau. On election day Trudeau narrowly defeated Bloc