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rfmcdonaldThe surprise resignation last night of Ottawa-area MP John Baird from his post as minister, and the announcement that he would not be running in this year's federal elections, surprised a lot of people. John Ivison in the National Post was not alone in speculating that something was up.
Today, Ivison seems to confirm that there was no hidden scandal but simply a desire to transition to a lucrative job quickly.
Baird was probably one of the most popular government ministers around, receiving a certain measure of support across the board. He was also one of the most capable and connected ministers. As John Ibbitson noted in today's issue of The Globe and Mail, Baird's departure weakens Harper's relationship with Ontario.
Who will be next? Peter Mackay's name has come up frequently in this connection.
Sources close to the minister said he is not leaving for any particular job but has decided the time is right to move into the private sector, at the age of 45 and after 20 years of public service.
I suspect he may be the only Conservative who thinks the timing is right. If the move was purely of his own volition, he must have concluded he couldn’t win the new Ottawa seat he was planning to run in — in which case, why not pull the ripcord and find a good job while you still have some influence?
Could he have been shown the door? There have been stories about him misusing government hospitality in the past. CTV reported that Mr. Baird and six of his friends stayed for free at the historic Macdonald House, the official residence of the Canadian High Commissioner in London, for a week — an account for which the Foreign Affairs minister has still not forgiven the news organization.
That story is not unique. If more explosive revelations were coming, even the prospect of jettisoning a Foreign Affairs minister in the run up to an election might appear to be reasonable damage control on the part of the prime minister.
Today, Ivison seems to confirm that there was no hidden scandal but simply a desire to transition to a lucrative job quickly.
A friend close to Mr. Baird say he has been planning a second act to his career for years and decided to leave while he is at the top of his game.
“This is just a personal decision for John,” he said.
Mr. Baird probably got a fright when he saw the very modest net worth accumulated by his friend, Jim Flaherty, (less than $1-million in assets), after a lifetime in public service.
He is said to be finalizing two offers.
When news of Mr. Baird’s departure first spread, I wondered whether he was jumping or whether he’d been pushed. There have been enough stories of him living the high life, as he toured the globe that it seemed possible one may have caught up with him. But multiple sources suggest there no rift with the Prime Minister.
Happily for the foreign affairs minister, if not for the government, it seems that vaulting personal ambition is what has driven his departure.
Baird was probably one of the most popular government ministers around, receiving a certain measure of support across the board. He was also one of the most capable and connected ministers. As John Ibbitson noted in today's issue of The Globe and Mail, Baird's departure weakens Harper's relationship with Ontario.
The former foreign minister, transport minister, environment minister and Treasury Board president was not only a linchpin in the Conservative cabinet, he also represented a key element in the coalition that has kept this government in power for almost a decade: the Mike Harris conservatives.
As the bond between the Harrisites and the Harperites weakens, the Prime Minister’s electoral prospects weaken with it.
Mr. Harris and Mr. Baird were part of the hard-right Common Sense Revolution that swept to power in Ontario in 1995. Though Mr. Baird, then a rookie MPP from suburban Ottawa, was only 25 on election day, the new premier gave him a series of increasingly important assignments, before promoting him to cabinet in 1999.
“He was whip smart, and a fast learner,” Mr. Harris said Tuesday in an interview. “He got better and better every day.”
The Mike Harris team, as they liked to call themselves, wanted no truck with the federal Progressive Conservatives, whom they derided as liberals in all but name. But the Reform Party was too socially conservative for their tastes. For the most part, they kept to themselves during the years when the right struggled to unite federally.
The Harris conservatives were impressed, however, by Stephen Harper, who married a strong conservative agenda to a pragmatic appreciation for how to build and grow a winning electoral coalition. They supported and encouraged his efforts to merge the Canadian Alliance, successor to Reform, with the remaining rump of Progressive Conservative MPs.
Who will be next? Peter Mackay's name has come up frequently in this connection.
