No matter who leads them into the next election, Liberals still need to think about governing

On Monday, Justin Trudeau was still standing. 

As he stood on the floor of the Goodyear factory in Napanee, Ont., Trudeau had been prime minister for eight years and 282 days — one day more than Brian Mulroney, who recently was hailed as a giant of Canadian politics. Having also recently passed Sir Robert Borden, who saw the country through the First World War, Trudeau is now the seventh longest-serving prime minister in Canadian history.

As recently as six weeks ago — after the Liberal Party’s loss in the Toronto-St. Paul’s byelection — it wasn’t clear how much time Trudeau had left as prime minister. Perhaps it still isn’t. Just a few weeks ago, anonymous Liberals were telling the Toronto Star that there needed to be a large overhaul at the top of the government. The Star’s sources listed no fewer than nine ministers — a quarter of cabinet — Liberal MPs reportedly wanted to see moved.

But when asked on Monday whether he had given thought to changing his cabinet, Trudeau declined to play along.

“One of the things we’ve been focused on, not just over the last few weeks but over the last few years, is making sure we’re investing in Canadians,” Trudeau said, pivoting hard to the purpose of his visit to the Goodyear factory.

“The conversations I have with the members of my team leave me more optimistic and more focused than ever on fighting for Canadians every step of the way. We’re going to continue to make sure we put Canadians first in everything we do.”

He didn’t say it, but Trudeau’s answer may have implied that it doesn’t do the Liberals much good to be seen or heard worrying about themselves right now.

That’s likely true — no matter how much some voters and any number of journalists might enjoy tales of political intrigue. And even if their days seem numbered, the Liberals are also still in charge of a government with an actual agenda to implement and actual concerns to address between now and the next election, whenever that might be.

But the questions raised by Toronto-St. Paul’s might hang over these Liberals for a while yet.

The frenzy has died down — but for how long?

Those unnamed Liberals may have wanted a shakeup in the wake of that byelection, but not much seems to have changed. Trudeau is still prime minister. Except for one small alteration, the cabinet that was in place before Toronto-St. Paul’s is still the cabinet he has now.

And even if the frenzy that followed the byelection has died down, it’s not hard to see how it…