1204...Don Martin Reads My Blog

Or great minds think alike.

Either/or here is the columnist for a number of newspapers such as the Calgary Herald and the Edmonton Journal. He is also on CBC Radio One, Ottawa's version of Radio One, every Friday between five and six pm. This is Mr. Martin's read on Senator Mike "Will There Be An Open Bar?" Duffy's latest TV appearance.

Le cut, le paste, le right on.

Senator's bitter, partisan rant a Parliament-wide embarrassment; Mike Duffy a poster boy for everything wrong with Senate

Edmonton Journal
Sun Nov 8 2009Page: A14Section: Opinion Byline: Don Martin Column: Don Martin Source: Edmonton Journal

It takes considerable effort to become a complete embarrassment. Congratulations, Senator Mike Duffy, you've done it. With his wild rant on a CBC national politics show this week, the television icon has accomplished the difficult feat of offending all those in his parliamentary orbit -- his former journalistic occupation, the Conservative party, senators, MPs and even the prime minister who appointed him.

A New Democrat MP's revelation that the 27 senators given their seats by "I'll-never-appoint-senators" Prime Minister Stephen *Harper*would eventually cost$177 million plus expenses is fair political game. And, eyebrow-raised MP Peter Stoffer noted in passing, Duffy racked up $44,000 in travel costs during just three months of unelected service in the red chamber.

Poor Mike Duffy. While he relishes his star profile on Conservative fundraising tours, he gets all twisted and bitter when it attracts enemy fire. So instead of a rational discussion on the value of the new senators to reforming the process, a tuxedo-sporting Duffy appeared on Thursday's Power and Politics show to interrupt, insult and fire innuendo at Stoffer, snarling in disgust as he blasted the popularMP as a "faker."

This is the same Duffy who, as a politics show host, was supposed to be journalistically neutral and then accepted *Harper*'s $130,000 appointment 10 months ago. He now devotes his energies to shamelessly shilling for the Conservatives.

That's the definition of hypocrisy for you, particularly given he was appointed after airing the infamous CTV interview with then-Liberal leader Stephane Dion, a bumbling performance credited by some as the 2008 election campaign turnaround for *Harper*. Not content to merely take Stoffer's report personally, Duffy then blasted it as a political "diversion" for voters in a Nova Scotia byelection Monday where, he hopes, the New Democrats "are going to be trounced because they're fakers."

It's bad enough that Duffy flies around the country, sometimes aboard government Challengers, preaching the Conservative gospel at party fundraisers or at private conferences where he charges a fee for his drivel. But to unleash character assassination drags him to a new partisan performance low. "My time as a parliamentarian listening to Canadians is just as valuable as Peter Stoffer, who is a backbencher, who is a faker, who pretends to side with the military in his riding and then votes against them at every turn," Duffy charged. There are two outrageous themes in that venomous sliming.

MPs from all parties have consistently ranked Peter Stoffer as the least partisan and most personable MP in Canada today. And I'm frankly surprised the Canadian Forces haven't rushed to Stoffer's side because there is no more loyal political foot soldier on military matters than this 53-year-old member of Parliament. It says a lot about Stoffer that the first person to rush to his defence was a Liberal. "When I asked him to come to my riding in London and hold a rally for the troops, he readily agreed, even though he was from another party. That's the kind of MP he is," MP Glen Pearson wrote on a blog.

It's not easy for me to write this because Mike Duffy was a personal friend until I derided his appointment to the Senate, but Thursday's antics went too far. Many senators are decent types trying to make intelligent and constructive contributions to public policy. Duffy's only lingering value has become that of poster boy for why the Senate needs, at very least, major reform, if not to be abolished outright. Worse than merely serving as a fawning *Harper* sycophant with a skin so thin he's willing to attack a decent MP for daring to question his conduct, Mike Duffy has become a Parliament-wide embarrassment to everyone, including himself.

Edition: FinalStory Type: ColumnLength: 609 wordsIdnumber: 200911080035

Mr. Martin neglected to mention that Senator Duffy was over refreshed during the interview.

The other thing is, if Senator Duffy was such a great icon of Canadian broadcasting he would have turned down the Senator's seat because he couldn't afford the cut in pay. Mr. Duffy was only on TV becuz he did what he was told to do, follow the company line and worked cheaply. Like 45 K a year cheaply. He is in the Senate for the same reason. To be a sycophant. But at three times the rate.

He is a metaphoric lap dog.

WFDS