1. The perils of shyness. Stephen Harper’s office is encouraging (demanding?) cabinet ministers and MPs come forward with any information of any meetings they may have had with former Tory MP Rahim Jaffer, according to sources.
This plea to caucus is an attempt by the Prime Minister’s Office to avoid being blind-sided in the Jaffer/Helena Guergis affair. “People were encouraged to share information so no one would be surprised,” a Conservative insider told The Globe. “Being shy is not what [PMO officials] would want.”
It was embarrassing last week for the government last week when the Environment Minister stood in the Commons and said Mr. Jaffer had made representations to a senior aide on behalf of someone else’s company. Jim Prentice, who made the revelation Friday, said he learned of the discussion on Tuesday.
Mr. Jaffer, principal of Green Power Generation Corp., testified before a parliamentary committee Wednesday that he had never lobbied the government. As a result of his apparent contradictions, MPs are thinking of calling him back before another round of questioning.
And the PMO wants to ensure that all encounters have been accounted for; the idea of minister after minister popping up in the House of Commons announcing that they or their staff members had met with Mr. Jaffer or his business partner could be potentially damaging.
Meanwhile, on CTV’s Question Period yesterday, two radio talk show hosts – Charles Adler of Corus and Toronto Newstalk 1010’s John Tory – said they think Canadians are bored with the Jaffer/Guergis drama.
“For the political junkies I guess it’s got a little bit of giggle factor,” Mr. Adler said, adding that trying to sell this scandal as “important to Joe and Mary Canadian” is difficult.
2. Power in numbers. The Facebook group touting Captain Kirk, aka William Shatner, for governor-general now boasts 35,000 members; the Preston Manning campaign, in contrast, has 516 members. Such is the power of these on-line networking sites, which are inviting more participation and engagement from Canadians in the process.
Later this morning, Kevin Gaudet of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation is presenting Human Resources Minister Diane Finley with the results of his online petition calling on the government to cut off serial killer Clifford Olson’s pension benefits.
Since he turned 65 five years ago, the convicted child murderer has been collecting $14,033.64 a year in Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement benefits.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was upset and concerned about this when he first learned about it; he asked Ms. Finley to address it. Mr. Gaudet’s campaign has 46,000 signatures.
3. A smile amid dysfunction. Mocking, laughing and jeering MPs is the image most Canadians have of their politicians in the House of Commons. But Glen Pearson, a Liberal from London, Ont., tries to put forward another image on his blog, The Parallel Parliament.
Last week, he wrote a lovely tale about his colleague from across the aisle, Ted Menzies the parliamentary secretary to the Finance Minister. “It was the usual stuff; harsh questions, evasive and mocking replies, whipped clapping the occasional laugh. That’s Question Period,” Mr. Pearson explained.
A few hours later, it was time for voting. Mr. Pearson says the atmosphere in the House is much different for votes than it is for Question Period; it is lighter and MPs from all parties mix a lot more.
He said he looked over at Mr. Menzies and “saw the widest grin I think I have ever seen in my time as MP.”
“He was sitting there quietly, but something was engaging his mind in ways that exercised the limits of facial muscles,” Mr. Pearson wrote.
It turns out this smile that never waned was the result of news – and pictures – of Mr. Menzies’s new grandson, Graham. The baby had been born just hours before and Mr. Menzies had to “endure QP” before he was able to rush over to the hospital to meet the new addition to his family.
Mr. Pearson said when he walked over to talk congratulate Mr. Menzies, his “main emotion was a sense of thankfulness that humanity had entered a zone of combat through the delightful expression of a good politician.”
