UPPITYDATIER: The Globe and Mail checks in with its predictions: David Emerson stays put at Foreign Affairs; Christian Paradis gets a bigger-than-expected boost to Public Works, and Senator Michael Fortier heads off to International Trade with more than $400,000 worth of lovely parting gifts from donors who are now wondering whether they have to fork out cash to the new guy now as well.
UPPITYDATIER: The Globe and Mail checks in with its predictions: David Emerson stays put at Foreign Affairs; Christian Paradis gets a bigger-than-expected boost to Public Works, and Senator Michael Fortier heads off to International Trade with more than $400,000 worth of lovely parting gifts from donors who are now wondering whether they have to fork out cash to the new guy now as well.
UPDATE: Oh, what scamps. Turns out that a few mischievous and mercurial government sources were having a bit of fun with CTV’s parliamentary bureau, what with the big talk of a Prentice/Flaherty switcheroo in the works. Uh, no, says the most recent update from Canadian Press. In fact, David Akin may be right after all. Well, about everything except the actual swearing-in ceremony taking place in Quebec City rather than Rideau Hall. He still gets bragging rights, though, if David Emerson stays on at Foreign Affairs, with Christian Paradis taking over International Trade.
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I will, of course, be liveblogging tomorrow’s cabinet shuffle, no matter how inconsequential it proves to be. Er, not that I’m predicting anything. I’ve given up the prediction business. Actually, I have to give my most heartfelt thanks to the Prime Minister for getting this out of the way sooner, rather than later, thereby sparing me and my journalistic ilk weeks of increasingly esoteric and random speculation. “Helena Geurgis to Public Works!” “Jason Kenney to Fisheries!” “Lewis MacKenzie to Defence!” (Note: One of the preceding was an actual prediction before the last shuffle.)
Instead, we will trudge out to Rideau Hall, take our assigned spaces in the media pen, and wait to see how many ministerial limos pull into the driveway. Last time, Monte Solberg totally messed with our heads by showing up to watch his colleagues sworn in, but we’re onto you this time, minister. Of course, now that I’ve said that, he’ll probably turn out to be in line for Foreign Affairs or something.
Anyway, I’ll see y’all tomorrow, probably 10:30ish, and will provide breathless, minute-by-minute bulletins from Rideau Hall. It’ll be like television, without the pictures! Actually, if I get my camera phone working, I’ll try to provide those, too.
UPDATE: Yay, CTV-flavoured speculation! Their picks: Jim Prentice (of course) to Finance, Jim Flaherty to Industry, Helena Geurgis back to the backest of the backbenches, and – Diane Ablonczy or Christian Paradis to International Trade? Huh. The latter would seem, on the surface at least, to be distinctly more likely if the whole point to this exercise is to rebalance the cabinet to ensure sufficient representation from Quebec. I guess you could promote Ablonczy to Trade, and then stick Paradis in — whatever it is she does now as Secretary of State for Small Business and Tourism.