Justin Trudeau stakes his claim to prove he's the true anti-Harper candidate

Liberal Leader JustinTrudeauappears once again to have takena bold step to become the onetrueanti-Harper candidate, with his announcement thatas prime minister hewould scrapthe Conservativeplan to buytheF-35fighter jets.

That Trudeau andStephen Harperwould disagree on issues such as military procurementis hardly surprising.

But Trudeau's"strong team for real change" is up againstNDP Leader Tom Mulcair's"campaign for change." And in that battle, it'sTrudeau whoseems to be going for broke in the attempt to differentiate himself from the Conservative leader.

• Liberals 'living in a dream world' on F-35 cancellation, Stephen Harper says
• Justin Trudeau leaves some deficit wiggle room
• Poll Tracker: Canadians no closer to making up their minds in tight 3-way race
• Full text of Peter Mansbridge's interview with Justin Trudeau

Trudeauannouncedon the weekendhe woulddump theF-35fighter jetprocurement plan, a move that Harper referred to as "incomprehensible" andMulcairclaimedwas"one of the most surprising things" he has heard the Liberal leader say so far in the campaign.

"The Liberal Party is living in a dream world if they think we can pull out of the development project of theF-35and not lose business," Harper said on Monday. "I don't know what planet they're living on."

It was a comment thatTrudeau, while at rally in Orleans, Ont., Monday night, seemed to relish, wearing the insultalmost as a badge of honour.

"ThatF-35might be Stephen Harper's dream, but I can tell you, for Canadian taxpayers, it'll be anightmare,"Trudeausaid.

Back in 2010, the Conservativegovernmentannouncedit was intendingto purchase anew generation of fighter jettheF-35Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter to replace theaging fleet ofCF-18s.

However, experts say theF-35purchase would cost taxpayers about $44billion over the four-decadelifespanof the Lockheed Martin jets.The project is on hold after theauditor general offered a scathing critique of the procurement.

The Harper government has since said it will extend thelifespanof the currentCF-18fleet to 2025, and it's unclearwhen it will completethe review about which aircraft to purchase.

Trudeausaid thereare other,less-expensive, proven options already flying that would meet the
requirements to replace theCF-18s.The savings, he said, would be spent on upgrades for the navy,
which he characterized as being in a state of "crisis."

Standing out

By outright rejecting the F-35 option, Trudeau has not only put himself in direct opposition to Harper, butpositionedMulcairsomewhere in the middle between the two leaders.Mulcairsaidthe Liberals wereruling out an option without having all the facts, while Harper was engaged in"decision-based fact making" by pursuing theF-35at all costs.

The NDP, in contrast, would embark on an open procurement process to get the right fighter jets in the air quickly, he said.

The same kind of political dynamics are at play with Trudeau's plan for deficit spending.Harper has committedto run balanced budgets and surpluses, a fairly safe pledge and one that fits in with his narrative that he's the only choice for a responsible steward of the economy.

But Trudeau has taken a completely different tactic.He hasrefused to shy away fromwhat was in the past considered thedreadedD-word.

Instead,he has openly embraced it, almost boastingthat he would run three consecutive deficits to spend money on infrastructure, which he believes wouldkickstart the economy.

Mulcair in the middle

And Mulcair? Well he's somewhere in the middle, again, pledging more spending, but at the same time, like Harper, committed to keeping the books in the black.

Mulcair has said he will "reasonably" raise the corporate tax rate. ButTrudeau, again appearing as some have said to "out-socializethe socialists"repeatedly talks abouthow he will make the wealthiest one per cent pay more incometaxso he can reduce the burden on middle income earners.

Trudeau would also, as he told CBC'sPeter Mansbridge,give more generous child benefits to the families who need it bynot sending government cheques to "millionaire families."

In thatsame interview, Trudeauclaimed"a large percentage of small businesses are actually just set up to allow wealthier Canadians to save on their taxes," a comment that later sparked condemnation from both Harper and Mulcair. However, Trudeau stood his ground, refusing to back down or apologize for those remarks.

It's justanothermove in whichTrudeauseems to be trying to aggressivelyoutflank the NDP'sleft to stake outhisanti-Harpercredentials.