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Monday Jan. 12, 2008 BACK NEXT IGNATIEFF AND THE QUEBEC LIBERAL
WING
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"One of the key assignments of Davey and Zed is to put together the OLO, the research bureau, communications and election readiness in order to create a powerful, effective machine," one Liberal strategist, who did not want to be identified, told The Hill Times.
The reason for the change is that under previous leaders, each of those Liberal organizations had become too independent and Ignatieff wants to bring them all together. The organization is a "work-in-progress," but some have criticized Ignatieff's new team, and consider it to be too Toronto-centric, and devoid of any Quebec representation.
While I agree that there is not a strong presence of Quebec representatives so far, I disagree that this is a negative step.
I don't know why Ignatieff did it, but I believe it's good for the leader to take time to build the right team in La Belle Province.
Not many people are willing to say so, but the major problems for the Liberal Party in the last decade have been created by the Quebec wing of the Liberal organization. It is not just the sponsorship scandal, but the whole environment has been poisoned for more than a decade.
If someone believe that the federal Liberals' Quebec wing has been somehow cleaned up by refusing Alfonso Gagliano a party membership, then they're out to lunch.
Gagliano was not the source of the party's problems in Quebec, but he is a consequence of some pretty deep infighting between the many factions created within the party. The problems are much deeper and need to be rooted out before the new leader can start building the new organizations.
I don't need to name names because people know who the usual suspects are, but by putting any of them in charge of the organization it would come down to supporting one faction against another and Ignatieff would quickly be back to square one.
Before there is any appointment, the new leader needs to take a broom in Quebec and get rid of or at least put a leash on those involved in the mess created in the last 10 years. In Quebec, it's time for the Liberals to "think outside the box" by bringing new names into the organization.
For example, I have a lot more respect for Justin Trudeau today than when he first decided to join political life. I wrongly believed that he was arrogant and was trying to base his career on the assumption that he was "the son of" Pierre Trudeau. He was wrongly treated by the Stéphane Dion organization, and forced out by "hostile territory" from the riding he originally wanted to run in.
He didn't complain, but rolled up his sleeves, worked hard and won his riding. Also, he has shown to be wise and a little humble by refusing the many approaches made to him from people who are ready to use his name for a fast personal career.
"I'm not ready," has been the answer from the young Trudeau. He has a lot of potential and he needs time to grow. I'm sure that Pierre Trudeau was not the only Trudeau to reach the top of Canadian politics.
Montreal Liberal MP Massimo Pacetti is another MP who can play a major role. He's young, allergic to dirty tricks, loves to play fair, and is hard working. He has also proven to be a good organizer.
Furthermore, Ignatieff himself is well-respected in Quebec and his presence at the top of the Liberal Party should be a guarantee for more people living in the province that their interests will be properly defended. The new leader doesn't need the help of party players who brag about organizational skills they don't have and confuse good leadership skills with the ability to use dirty tricks at the expense of others.
In the meantime and while a new generation of Liberal leaders are groomed in Quebec, Ignatieff can count on the expertise of a group of people like former New Brunswick MP Paul Zed, who's very close to the leader and a seasoned politician, as well as Ian Davey, who is already involved in Ignatieff's campaign and was instrumental in bringing him back to Canada.
Don Guy, an experienced strategist and former chief of staff to Dalton McGuinty, will be appointed campaign director.
Ignatieff can also count on people like Sachin Aggarwal while Jill Fairbrother and Leslie Church will be good liaison officers with the media.
There are two other names I know very well and will contribute to the building of the team: Warren Kinsella and Rocco Rossi. Kinsella will be involved mainly with the election war room, a role he has played well in the past, federally and provincially, while Rossi, now CEO of Ontario's Heart and Stroke Foundation, will be useful as a national director and to help the party to reach more solid financial territory. It's a good team ready to be joined by new friends from Quebec.