Excerpt from 'The Secret Mulroney Tapes' Former Canadian prime minister, Brian Mulroney, greets guests during the launch of his book entitled; Memoirs,at a Montreal hotel, September 10th, 2007. Photo by Robert J. Galbraith.
Wednesday Jun 11, 2008 25 years ago today
Twenty-five years ago today, the Progressive Conservative Party elected Brian Mulroney as its leader at the Civic Centre in Ottawa.
Thursday Mar 6, 2008 Schreiber inquiry a go
Canadian-German businessman Karlheinz Schreiber has been granted permission to stay in Canada and testify...
Friday 30 November 2007 OTTAWA: MULRONEY GAVE GREEN LIGHT TO NS PROJECT
In related news, the Canadian Press reports that Mr. Mulroney's top political aid of the time, Norman Spector, was ordered in 1990 to proceed with the Bear Head project in Nova Scotia in which Thyssen Industries of Germany wanted to open a plant and be awarded a contract to make light armoured vehicles. Mr. Spector told CP that Mr. Schreiber, an arms lobbyist, was involved in the project, which was opposed by the then top civil servant, Paul Tellier, and top military civil servants and officers. According to Mr. Spector, the project was abandoned when the cost to the government was found to be $100 million.
Saturday Nov 17, 2007 A feud in the Tory family
Brian Mulroney huddled with his wife, Mila, and a few faithful in a Montreal hotel suite on Thursday evening. When the dinner bell rang, the former prime minister shook hands with his "true friends" before heading for his first Quebec appearance as a Conservative outcast. As featured recipient of the Rx&D Health Research Foundation's medal of honour for his former government's 1987 legislation to extend drug-patent protection, the Mulroney drawing card had sold out the 500-seat gala weeks ago.
But dozens of empty chairs for the speech reflected his startling reversal of fortunes, now that his business affairs with arms dealer Karlheinz Schreiber are heading for a public inquiry.
Friday 16 November 2007 Embattled Mulroney honoured for drug research support ...Mulroney, who was greeted by a prolonged ovation from the 500 guests, wasted no time in tackling his current predicament over corruption allegations in connection with shady businessman Karlheinz Schreiber that will be the focus of a public inquiry announced this week. He noted that more than once in the past he has had to defend his good name. "I'm not pleased by this," he said. "It's not easy for my wife and my children. But so be it.We shall fight and we shall win again."
Nov. 9 - Stephen Harper orders an official review - later upgraded to a public inquiry - of allegations against predecessor Brian Mulroney in connection with cash payments from corporate fixer Karlheinz Schreiber.
September 20, 2007
Friday Oct 5, 2007 Free trade has stood test of time: Mulroney
Twenty-year-old deal paying dividends, he says
HUBERT BAUCH,
The Gazette
Published: 7 hours ago
Two decades later, it's hard to remember what all the fuss was about, former prime minister Brian Mulroney said yesterday on the 20th anniversary of the Canada-U.S. free-trade accord.
The agreement was wildly controversial when it was struck in 1987 and led to the most hotly contested federal election in modern Canadian history the following year.
But last night the fuss was over Mulroney as he was honoured at a gala dinner in Montreal to commemorate the landmark deal, which has since become a pillar of Canada's economy.
Free trade has stood test of time: Mulroney
Two decades later, it's hard to remember what all the fuss was about, former prime minister Brian Mulroney..
October 3, 2007 (Gazette)
Twenty years ago today, the clock clicked down on free trade As Brian Mulroney recounts in his memoirs, it was a "near-run thing." Other actors - notably Derek Burney, Allan Gotlieb and Michael Hart - have written of the dramatic events of Oct. 3, 1987 in their own books. As Mulroney's speechwriter, I was just a bystander but I had a privileged view from "inside the ropes," as they say in golf.
Saturday 15 September View Larger Image Brian Mulroney stands in front of his official portrait on Parliament Hill at its introduction in 2002.
A vivid account of an important time
He bugs us still. Brian Mulroney left the prime minister's office 14 years ago, but now many Canadians are feeling strongly about him all over again.
Wednesday 12 September 2007 Mulroney exaggerates
Mulroney claimed credit, not just... Launching his memoirs in Montreal on Monday, Brian ("If there's one thing I miss about public life it's the adulation") Mulroney claimed credit, not just for free trade and the modernization of the federal sales tax system, but also -- improbably -- for eliminating a federal deficit that in the year he left office was running at $39-billion. By introducing the GST, the Montreal Gazette quoted Mr. Mulroney as saying, his finance ministers, Michael Wilson and Don Mazankowski, "planted the garden. And then Paul Martin got to pick the flowers."
The
memoirs, which he dedicates "to Mila," exceed 1,100 pages and offer
Mulroney's take on his life in law, business and politics since being
born 68 years ago.
The major focus is on his nine years as prime
minister and controversies stirred over such policies as free trade and
the much-hated GST, as well as his failed efforts at constitutional
reform during his back-to-back majority Conservative governments.
In
one passage, quoting from a personal journal, he writes that he feared
for the future of the country in the aftermath of the failed Meech Lake
constitutional accord.
Saturday 08 September 2007 Two cheers for Brian Mulroney
Pierre Trudeau and Brian Mulroney had one thing in common,
which was to demonstrate that there is still a great deal to be said
for retaining the queen as the head of state. Both of them moved
Canada farther toward a "presidential" system of government, and as
the Americans have long demonstrated, a chief executive who is also
a head of state always becomes a sort of monarch, a symbolic, moral
and mythic incarnation of the nation, at least as much as a
political chief executive.
Maggie Thatcher and Me
On Monday, Douglas Gibson Books/McClelland & Stewart will
release Memoirs: 1939-1993 by Brian Mulroney. The following is an
excerpt from that book:
Concise comments on some current topics
Brian Mulroney wasted no time in stirring up publicity for his
memoirs, which go on sale Monday, by releasing a first excerpt
sharply critical, not to say contemptuous, of his old foe Pierre
Trudeau.
Concise comments on some current topics People Can Change
Brian Mulroney wasted no time in stirring up publicity for his memoirs, which go on sale Monday, by releasing a first excerpt sharply critical, not to say contemptuous, of his old foe Pierre Trudeau.
For Mulroney, that was a better marketing move than it was a proof of good sense.
Trudeau started it
In a more perfect world, former Canadian prime ministers
would get along and even do things together, as former presidents do
in the United States.
Friday 07 September 2007 Mulroney lashes Trudeau, calls him a coward OTTAWA (Reuters) -
Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney,
who left office with his popularity at record lows, now accuses
late rival Pierre Trudeau of being a bungling coward who failed to oppose the Nazis.
MULRONEY REBUKED FOR 'CHEAP SHOTS'
TORONTO - Liberal leader Stephane Dion yesterday called Brian
Mulroney's new criticism of Pierre Trudeau...
Opinions Strong on trade, weak on the West
EDMONTON -On Sept. 10, Douglas Gibson Books/ McClelland & Stewart will release Memoirs: 1939-1993, by Brian Mulroney. In advance of this literary event, the National Post is publishing a five-part essay series examining the former prime minister's legacy. In today's fourth instalment, Lorne Gunter describes how Mulroney is remembered in Western Canada.
Memories of Margaret
Before leaving for Paris, I met at the Ritz in Montreal with
British press baron and Labour MP Robert Maxwell, who was
accompanied by his Canadian advisor Andre Bisson. As he left,
Maxwell said, "Prime Minister, I regret to tell you that your friend
[Margaret] Thatcher will soon be overthrown by her own party." When
I expressed my disbelief, Maxwell showed me a Times editorial
appearing the next morning that described such a challenge and said,
"This is only the beginning. She is through" -- a comment he
repeated to me for effect, and clearly with some pleasure.
A stronger nation than Mulroney imagined
There are many reasons why Brian Mulroney left office as the
most reviled prime minister in Canadian history. In part, it was a
matter of his personality...
Attacking the Trudeau legacy
Brian Mulroney doth protest too much. All his whining and
moaning won't change the way history will reflect his record. He
will be remembered as leader of expediency, not vision. He was swept
along by something bigger than himself, globalization, and who knows
how that will end.
National Post, Thursday, September 6, 2007
The Mulroney I know Brian Mulroney was talking about his legacy one night, so I asked what he regarded as his most important achievement. I was thinking along the lines of the Free Trade Agreement, or the acid rain accord, something like that.
Anglo rights cash squeeze
Already facing unsympathetic majority opinion and effectively
disenfranchised in the political arena, Quebec's English-speaking
minority might have lost its last remaining means to defend its
rights and interests: recourse to the courts.
Saturday 25 August 2007 Schreiber, lawyer must pay Mulroney's legal bill
German-born businessman Karlheinz Schreiber and his lawyer
Richard Anka were ordered yesterday to pay former prime minister
Brian Mulroney's substantial...
Saturday 04 August 2007 TORONTO: MULRONEY WINS IN APPEAL
A court has ordered that a ruling last week by Ontario Superior Court of Justice concerning former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney be set aside. The latter court found that Mr. Mulroney had to pay former associate Karlheinz Schreiber $300,000 plus $170,000 in interest for services unrendered. Mr. Mulroney's lawyers successfully argued that Superior Court should not have rendered a decision in the case because the events involved in it happened not in Ontario but in Quebec and that therefore a court in that province has jurisdiction. Mr. Schreiber has sued the former prime minister on the grounds that he paid him $300,000 to promote a pasta business and to start an arms factory in Quebec but did neither. A spokesman for Mr. Mulroney said the money was to promote the pasta business and to present Mr. Schreiber to international business people. Mr. Schreiber became notorious in Canada for unproven allegations of illegal payments in connection with the purchase in 1988 of 34 Airbus airliners by then state-owned Air Canada. Germany is trying to extradite him for tax evasion and fraud.
Canada judge stays Mulroney payment to arms dealer
Cameron French,
Reuters
Published: Friday, August 03, 2007
TORONTO (Reuters) - Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian
Mulroney was granted a reprieve on Friday, when an Ontario
judge ruled he did not have to immediately pay German-Canadian
arms dealer Karlheinz Schreiber C$470,000.
In Nicholas Hoareh, Schreiber sued Mulroney, charging that the prime
minister received $300,000 from Schreiber after he left office
in 1993. In return, Mulroney was supposed to help Schreiber
establish a light-armored vehicle factory in Canada for German
Firm Thyssen AG -- now ThyssenKrupp AG -- and to help promote a
pasta business.
Schreiber, who is also a lobbyist, claims Mulroney never
provided the help he promised, so Schreiber is seeking
C$300,000 plus interest. Mulroney denies Schreiber's claims.
Justice Frank Newbould set aside a default judgment issued
last week by a court registrar. That judgment was issued at the
request of Schreiber's lawyers after Mulroney missed a filing
deadline.
Mulroney's lawyers argued the judgment was sought despite a
written promise not to do so while defense attorneys tried to
move the case to the province of Quebec, where Mulroney lives.
Mulroney's attorneys said the default judgment was issued
to embarrass the former prime minister. Schreiber's lawyers
said they sought the judgment because Mulroney's team
deliberately delayed the case.
In his decision, Newbould said the actions of Schreiber's
lawyers were "egregious and wrong."
"No litigant deserves to be treated in the way that Mr.
Mulroney was treated," Newbould wrote.
The lawsuit and disclosure of the payments rekindled
memories of the so-called Airbus affair, a 1990s probe into
suspected kickbacks connected to Air Canada's purchase of
Airbus airliners in 1988, while Mulroney was prime minister.
At the time, Airbus was a client of Schreiber, who made
millions of dollars in commissions on the deal. In 1995,
Canadian police sent an official letter to Swiss authorities,
implicating Mulroney in a scheme to accept kickbacks. Mulroney
sued them for libel.
The Airbus investigation was dropped four years ago, as the
then-Liberal government said allegations of wrongdoing could
not be substantiated.
Schreiber is fighting an extradition order to Germany on
charges of tax evasion, bribery, and fraud.
Friday 03 August 2007 The rules of conduct The case between Brian Mulroney, the former prime minister, and German-born deal-maker Karlheinz Schreiber returns to court today where a judge will try to broker a truce in what has escalated into an acrimonious game of legal brinkmanship, much of it reflected in the bickering and sniping between the lawyers representing the men.
Sunday 29 July 2007 TORONTO: RULING ON MULRONEY JUDGMENT POSTPONED
Lawyers representing former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney filed a motion in court Friday seeking to invalidate a ruling by Ontario Superior Court that he has to pay $470,000, including interest, to a former business associate, Karlheinz Schreiber. The lawyers claimed the motion was inappropriate because a separate one is pending which challenges that court's jurisdiction in his case. The judge adjourned until Aug. 3, at which point he will decide whether Mr. Mulroney must pay. Mr. Schreiber had contended that he paid $300,000 to Mr. Mulroney after he left politics to enlist his help in establishing an arms factory in Quebec and a pasta business, but that he never did anything in return. A spokesman for the former prime minister said the $300,000 was paid for helping Mr. Schreiber start a pasta business and for arranging meetings with international business executives. Mr. Schreiber has for years been fighting extradition to his native Germany, where's he wanted for fraud and bribery.
Fri 27/07/2007
THE STRAIGHT GOODS:
An Ontario court orders former prime minister Brian Mulroney to pay
$470,000 to Karlheinz Schreiber, a former business associate who is
fighting extradition to Germany. NASA takes a public-relations hit as
revelations emerge that pilots launched into space while intoxicated, and
that a sub-contractor attempted to sabotage an onboard computer. Opponents
of a Canadian-owned mine in Ecuador are being threatened and even beaten,
an Amnesty International report says.
$470,000: COST OF IGNORING A LAWSUIT CTV
News and the
Globe lead, while The
National, the
Post, the
Star, the
Citizen and La Presse (not available online) go inside with a legal
lesson learned by former prime minister Brian Mulroney yesterday: No
matter how frivolous or inappropriate you believe a lawsuit against you
may be, file a statement of defence. That is precisely what
Mulroney’s lawyers failed to do in a lawsuit launched against the
former Progressive Conservative leader. As a result of the oversight, a
court clerk has issued a default judgment in favour of Karlheinz
Schreiber, who asked an Ontario court for the return of $300,000, plus
interest, that he allegedly paid to Mulroney in the 1990s, shortly after
Mulroney left the prime minister’s office. Mulroney is now under a
court order to pay Schreiber in excess of $470,000, a ruling his lawyers
say they will seek to have set aside.
The issue of Schreiber’s payments to Mulroney has been public
knowledge for some time, and seems suspicious enough on the surface:
Schreiber claims to have given Mulroney the money in cash during a series
of meetings in hotel rooms, sparking speculation that it may have been a
bribe of some sort. Schreiber, whom the Post describes as a
“notorious arms dealer,” gave Mulroney the money in exchange
for helping Schreiber start a pasta-machine company, according to
Mulroney. Schreiber says Mulroney didn’t perform the work for which
he was paid; Mulroney’s lawyers say that the Ontario court that
issued the default ruling doesn’t have jurisdiction over the case,
and the matter should be settled in a Quebec court. They also say they
have it in writing from the plaintiff that the issue of jurisdiction was
to be settled between them before the lawsuit was to go forward. Since
1999, Schreiber has been fighting extradition to Germany, where he is
wanted over allegations he evaded $46 million in income tax.
Thursday 17 May 2007 rci TORONTO: MULRONEY NAMED DIRECTOR
Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney has been named one of three new independent directors of the Blackstone Group Management LLC private-equity firm. Mr. Mulroney will be paid US$100,000 a year and receive units in the enterprise. The nomination of the three independent directors precedes Blackstone's move to become a publicly traded company. Blackstone will launch an IPO that values the enterprise at US$33 billion.
Mulroney tapped for board seat at Blackstone
ANDREW WILLIS
Globe and Mail Update
June 4, 2007 at 12:47 PM EDT
Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney is stepping up as a director in Blackstone Group Management LLC, the powerhouse U.S. private equity fund that is about to go public.
New York-based Blackstone announced Monday that Mr. Mulroney, aged 68, is nominated as one of three independent directors at Blackstone, which is planning an IPO that will value the firm at $33-billion (U.S.). Blackstone announced last month that a Chinese government agency will take a $3-billion stake in the company, while public investors are expected to purchase up to $4.1-billion in stock.
While Canadians have mixed views on Mr. Mulroney, who was Prime Minister from 1984 to 1993, he commands considerable respect as a director and rain-making lawyer. A partner in Montreal law firm Ogilvy Renault, Mr. Mulroney is also on the boards of Barrick Gold Corp, Quebecor Inc. and Archer Daniels Midland Co.
The other two Blackstone outside director nominees are retired Deloitte & Touche CEO William Parrett and Lord Nathanial Charles Jacob Rothschild.
Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney is seen in this file photo attending Barrick Gold Corp.'s annual meeting in Toronto on May 2, 2007. On Tuesday, Mr. Mulroney was nominated as one of three independent directors at Blackstone Group Management LLC, a private equity firm that is preparing its IPO. (The Globe and Mail)
Mr. Mulroney will earn $100,000 a year as a Blackstone director. Directors are also entitled to equity awards, and on joining the board, Mr. Mulroney will be given 10,000 “deferred restricted common units,” according to Blackstone documents. These units vest over three years. Blackstone common shares are expected to be sold to the public at between $29 and $31 each.
Our 18th prime minister is also no stranger to private equity. Mr. Mulroney recently retired as senior adviser to Dallas-based private equity fund HM Capital, formerly known as Hicks Muse. A spokesman for the fund said the former politician was a valued member of the team and maintains closes ties to HM Capital.
Blackstone is seen as a possible suitor for Canada's major telecom companies, BCE and Telus. This could present something of a conflict for Mr. Mulroney, as in the past, he has advised rival private equity fund Cerberus Capital Management on potential investments in Air Canada and BCE.
Monday Jun 4, 2007 Mulroney's speech: Canada's 'spirit of liberty'
The full text of Brian Mulroney's speech in Mont-Tremblant, Que., on the occasion of his receipt of the Medal of the Quebec Bar Association
Friday May 25, 2007
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney, a senior partner with Ogilvy Renault LLP since 1993 (he started at the law firm upon graduation from law school in 1964) is the winner of the Medaille du Barreau du Quebec, the highest honour of the Bar awarded each year to an individual who has made a significant contribution to Quebec society in the legal field. The bar said Mulroney contributed to the "evolution of constitutional thought (following Canadian constitutional talks during his time as prime minister) and to the recognition of (the concept of the) nation of Quebec by the House of Commons in 2006," and international human rights because of anti-apartheid sanctions his government undertook against South Africa in 1985.
"obviously if you look at the size of the [U.S. and European] banks pursuant to their mergers ... you see that if we're going to compete, these great Canadian [banks] should be able to act freely.
But
the file remains an active one with all of the banks, which continue to
watch as their global peers bulk up. In one particularly salient move,
former Bank of Montreal CEO and chairman Matthew Barrett - who was
thwarted in his attempt to merge BMO with Royal Bank of Canada in 1998
- recently oversaw a bid by Barclays Bank of the U.K. to buy Dutch bank
ABN-Amro.
Should Ottawa ever move on mergers, Quebec's National
Bank is often mentioned as a potential takeover target. Another
possible combination that has been thrown around would be Canadian
Imperial Bank of Commerce and Toronto-Dominion Bank.
Mr.
Mulroney's support for bank mergers follows similar comments from
outgoing Bank of Canada governor David Dodge last December. Mr. Dodge
said Canadian banks are becoming relatively less efficient compared
with bigger banks in other countries and warned that by 2020, the
government might be sorry it hadn't acted to free the banks.
Any
move to allow mergers would likely be accompanied by broader
deregulation that would open the Canadian banking market open to
foreigners. Current rules restrict the stake foreign owners can take in
a Canadian bank.
"What you are seeing is a wave of
consolidation [in the worldwide banking sector], but the Canadian banks
don't have a fire at their feet to get involved," said Finn Poschmann,
associate director of research and senior policy with the C.D. Howe
Institute.
Added: Nicholas Hoareh 10, 2007
PaulMartin intro
Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney responds to P...the Hon. Brian Mulroney responds to Peter Newman's book "The Secret Mulroney Tapes" at the 2005 press dinner
page
Saturday 30 December 2006 rci OTTAWA: FORMER PM TO REPRESENT COUNTRY rci
Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney will represent Canada at the funeral next Tuesday for Gerald Ford. The former U.S. president died earlier this week. Mr. Mulroney will be accompanied to the Washington state funeral by Canada's ambassador to the U.S., Michael Wilson.
The government's Clean Air Act must be beefed up if the Tories hope to win over crucial middle class voters, former prime minister Brian Mulroney says.
In an interview with CBC News, Mulroney, who was recently awarded the title of the greenest prime minister in history, described the act as the beginning of a plan and said to capture the imagination of voters, it needs more work before the next election.
Friday 21 July 2006 OTTAWA: GOVT. HAS NEW 'GREEN' PLAN
The Canadian Press reports that the federal government plans the most ambitious environmental plan since the government of former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced a $3-billion Green Plan in 1991. Green Plan II will include a Clean Air Act to reduce greenhouses emissions and smog. The long-term plan will provide money for national parks, and offer a clean water framework, a clean technology plan, new rules for toxic chemicals and cleanups of contaminated sites.
Thursday Jun 15, 2006 Mulroney settles lawsuit against Newman
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney has settled his lawsuit against author Peter C. Newman. ...terms of the settlement are confidential, and both parties refused to discuss it.
Saturday Apr 22, 2006 ts PM should heed Mulroney's words
Be Worried. Be Very Worried. With those words, Time magazine set up its cover story two weeks ago on global warming. More worrisome still for Canadians is the fact that climate change does not even rank as one of the Conservative government's main priorities. That is clearly something all Canadians should be reflecting upon as they celebrate Earth Day today. Environment [22 pages]
maisonneuve.org/ MULRONEY: AS GREEN AS THEY GET by Joe Boughner April 21, 2006
The Big Seven could barely contain their shock. Brian Mulroney
named Canada’s “greenest” prime minister. The former PM
was selected by a panel of twelve distinguished Canadians including Sierra
Club executive director Elizabeth May and long-time Mulroney adversary
Sheila Copps, on behalf of Corporate Knights magazine. His record is
decent; as PM he brokered a treaty on acid rain, introduced measures to
fight ozone depletion and brought the US onside with the UN’s 1992
world climate change convention in Rio de Janeiro. In accepting the award,
Mulroney noted that one judge called him the “best of a bad
bunch” before launching into a passionate speech about the need to
bring the US into the international fight against climate change.
“There are few durable solutions on the environment, or on any other
international issue, without the engagement of the United States and the
leadership of the president,” he said.
The speech comes at a somewhat awkward time for Stephen Harper (a fact
dutifully noted by the Big Seven) as he has come under fire from
environmental groups for cutting funding for greenhouse-gas reduction
programs and backing away from Canada’s Kyoto commitments. While
Mulroney praised Harper for improving relations with the US, he stated:
“If global warming is not arrested, climate change may be
irreversible.” In the face of the subtle rebuke from one of his
political mentors, Star columnist Chantal
Hébert offers Harper some advice. Rather than focus on priorities such
as Canada–US relations and federal–provincial relations, which
“will ultimately only entrench current perceptions of your
government,” adopt the environmental cause, which is “by
comparison … probably the least divisive issue on the Canadian
agenda these days.” Given yesterday’s warm reception for the
divisive Mulroney, MediaScout is inclined to agree.
Saturday Apr 22, 2006 ts Green thumbs up for Mulroney OTTAWA—Former prime minister Brian Mulroney delivered a powerful warning about the threat of impending climate change last night, calling global warming the most compelling environmental challenge facing the world today.
Thursday Apr 20, 2006 oc Mulroney is back to put PM on the spot
Make the environment a priority, Canada's 'greenest' leader to tell Harper at gala tonight
Thursday Apr 20, 2006 Mulroney's political image gets a polish
OTTAWA—The political rehabilitation of Brian Martin Mulroney gets a splashy boost tomorrow night when Canada's 18th prime minister receives an environmental award as the greenest PM in the country's history.
Montreal — Brian Mulroney couldn't resist a little partisan dig at Liberal Leader Paul Martin yesterday as the former prime minister made his first major public appearance since being sidelined by serious illness this year.
The man who stepped up to the podium at Place des Arts in Montreal to receive an honorary degree from Concordia University walked with a slower gait and spoke with a more measured cadence than the leader Canadians knew.
But Mr. Mulroney, 66, was in vintage, self-deprecating form as he poked fun at his mortality as well as his high-profile scrap with journalist Peter C. Newman.
Saturday Nov 26, 2005 rci Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney has launched a lawsuit against his biographer and former friend Peter C. Newman. Mr. Mulroney accuses him of betraying a trust by publishing a book based upon recorded conversations between them which Mr. Mulroney describes as scandalous. Several passages of the book quote Mr. Mulroney as describing public figures in vitriolic and sometimes vulgar terms. The former prime minister claims he had an agreement with Mr. Newman that the recordings wouldn't reach the general public. He asked a court to force the author to turn over all the recordings and other materials connected with the book to the National Archives of Canada.
Tuesday Sep 27, 2005 .. about the only thing the Canada Still Has Mulroney to Kick Around IT'S Canada's Nixon moment. "The Secret Mulroney Tapes: Unguarded Confessions of a Prime Minister," the edited transcripts of hundreds of hours of interviews with the former conservative prime minister Brian Mulroney (who served from 1984 to 1993), has revealed a foul-mouthed, insecure man with an enemies list that sprawls from Vancouver to Halifax.
Tuesday Sep 20, 2005 ts Rondi Adamson says he deserves credit for being progressive, daring As someone who lived outside of Canada between 1986 and 1996, I missed much of Brian Mulroney's time in power.
National Post, Sep 19 Peter Newman replies to critics
... This book was never meant to be a full biography or a complete analysis of Brian Mulroney's political reign. It was only a decade after the original biography was aborted that I realized I could achieve some of the aims of the original project by editing the interview material to show the impact of political office on the man as it unfolded over real time. Publishing his words uncensored, with linking essays and an introduction and conclusion, offering my own analysis of the issues and controversies that dogged him, would provide an unprecedented, impressionistic journey through a prime minister's mind, heart and temper. This book brings a reader as close as a stranger can come to seeing what went on in the consciousness of the man charged with ruling the world's second-largest country while it was slipping out of control. The Secret Mulroney Tapes will neither enhance nor destroy the Mulroney mystique. A good argument can be made that he was a daring agent of change. A better argument can be made that he was its chief victim. He wished me to describe him as he wanted to be seen. Instead, I portrayed him as he saw himself. The picture may be crude. But it's real.
Friday Sep 16, 2005 ts Making out to Brian's song
While most of the buzz about Peter C. Newman's new book, The Secret Mulroney Tapes, has focused on the former prime minister's comments about other politicians and the media, Newman has collected Mulroney's thoughts on other matters, as well.
Thursday Sep 15, 2005 ts Mulroney broke the cardinal rule
OTTAWA?It's hard to measure scientifically, but public opinion ? even in Liberal Ottawa ? seems to be tilting toward Brian Mulroney in this week's flap over a book filled with raw and ribald quotes from the former prime minister.
Tuesday Sep 13, 2005 gaz
Mulroney, warts and all
Many Canadians liked Brian Mulroney better when he was openly
and frankly vulgar. When Liberal warhorse Bryce Mackasey was appointed
ambassador to Portugal in 1984, Mulroney said "There's no whore like an
old whore." For a lot of Canadians, it was a moment of breathtaking
honesty. They were grateful to have patronage appointees described that
way.
That unguarded moment felt more authentic than the bombastic
persona Mulroney seemed driven to adopt for public consumption during
his almost nine years as prime minister. The smarm factor hurt him.
When his mellifluous baritone rang out in the living rooms of the
nation, you could sometimes feel the whole country shudder.
By
the time Mulroney left office in 1993, he was so thoroughly and
heartily disliked that he was personally blamed for the Progressive
Conservative Party's near demise in the federal election that year.
Since then, Mulroney has worked to reconstruct his image, trying to
bring it into line with his own vision of himself as the prime minister
who accomplished more than any other in Canadian history, except, he
says, the country's first, Sir John A. Macdonald.
So will
Canadians react with warmth or disgust to the unvarnished Mulroney
depicted in a new book by Peter C. Newman, based on endless hours of
interviews with Mulroney and unprecedented - though not complete -
access to Mulroney's entourage and records? The Secret Mulroney Tapes:
Unguarded Confessions of a Prime Minister was launched yesterday and
promises, judging by the taste of it a Toronto newspaper ran yesterday,
to be delicious.
It is unlikely that any future prime minister
will agree to such a candid, intimate record of his time in office. But
this is the closest we may ever come to seeing how power is wielded at
the top of the slippery pole. We should be glad of the opportunity to
see it, in all its crude reality.
The old adage about policy and
sausage - you're happier not knowing how they are made - is not quite
accurate: Many readers will indeed welcome this book as a chance to
learn not only about Mulroney, but about how the game is really played
in the corridors of power. And who among us, after all, has not said
some things in private we would not want to see published in a
best-seller?
Whatever it was Mulroney thought he would gain by
laying bare his soul to Newman, Canadians should be grateful. A candid
look at the hypocrisy inherent in politics will help us all understand
our leaders better.
During the Mulroney years of aborted
constitutional reform, Canadian reacted angrily to the sight of a line
of men in suits telling them not to worry. This book promises to bring
us right into the molten, human centre of the reality behind the suits.
Tuesday Sep 13, 2005 globe "Why hate Mulroney so?"
When he left office in 1993, Brian Mulroney was the most despised political leader of recent times. The interviews that he gave over the years to author Peter C. Newman will confirm many Canadians in their low opinion of the former prime minister, who often comes across as bitter and boastful.
When he left office in 1993, Brian Mulroney was the most despised political
leader of recent times. The interviews that he gave over the years to
author Peter C. Newman will confirm many Canadians in their low opinion
of the former prime minister, who often comes across as bitter and
boastful.
In one interview, he insists: "You cannot name a Canadian prime
minister who has done as many significant things as I did, because
there are none." He also claims that Pierre Trudeau nearly managed to
"destroy" the country, and "I had to come in and save it." He has
choice words for both enemies and friends, from that "son of a bitch"
Clyde Wells, the Newfoundland premier, to his "incompetent" successor
as Progressive Conservative leader, Kim Campbell. It is precisely this
sort of blarney and bombast that helped make Mr. Mulroney so unpopular.
But before they congratulate themselves for being right about Mr.
Mulroney, those who dislike him should take a closer look. Behind the
bluster, there is a lot of truth in what he says. Hard as it may be for
the legion of Mulroney-haters to admit, it is true that he accomplished
a great deal for the country, from free trade with the United States to
the modernization of the tax system. It is equally true that his
accomplishments were overshadowed by meaningless controversies and
tempest-in-a-tin-can scandals like "Tunagate." His anger at the media
is out of scale, but understandable. Mr. Mulroney had a bad press.
His Conservative government was only a year old when it was shaken
by the revelation that a million cans of tainted tuna had been
approved. Nobody got sick and Mr. Mulroney had nothing to do with the
error, but when he showed up at a baseball game, the derisive crowd
chanted "tuna, tuna." The fuss over his renovations to his official
residence, 24 Sussex Dr., paid for out of PC Party funds and his own
pocket, was just as petty. Critics painted Mr. Mulroney as a
high-living plutocrat with a closet full of Gucci shoes.
On top of all this came the most serious charge of all: that Mr.
Mulroney and his government were corrupt -- the most corrupt in
Canadian history, according to one well-known journalist. In fact, no
proof was ever advanced that Mr. Mulroney was "on the take" (though he
has yet to explain adequately why he received $300,000 from
German-Canadian businessman Karlheinz Schreiber after leaving office).
When he was accused of graft in the Airbus affair, he sued the
government and won.
In this blizzard of allegation and dispute, it is easy to forget how
much Mr. Mulroney got done in his nine years in office. His decision to
pursue the free-trade agreement despite the obvious political risk was
one of the boldest any recent prime minister has taken. It has paid off
richly for Canadians, who have seen their economic future assured by
reliable access to the world's richest market. It took at least as much
political courage to revamp the tax system by introducing the GST, a
necessary, sensible reform that nevertheless produced a public backlash
from which Mr. Mulroney never fully recovered.
In the economic sphere, Mr. Mulroney streamlined government by
selling off inefficient Crown corporations to private interests. In
foreign affairs, he played an important role in fighting apartheid in
South Africa through the Commonwealth. In national affairs, he tried to
heal the constitutional breach with Quebec through the Meech Lake
accord, a noble attempt to accommodate Quebec nationalism that
foundered in the end, despite herculean efforts by Mr. Mulroney.
It is unfortunate that a former prime minister had to strut and spit
the way he sometimes did in the Newman interviews. But it can't be easy
being so unfairly and unreasonably loathed. Brian Mulroney deserves
much better.
Letters to the
Editor,
The Globe and
Mail.
Re Newman book on
Mulroney
Congratulations to The
Globe and Mail for its editorial (Why hate Mulroney so?) on September 13 that
offers a much more balanced perspective of the performance of Brian Mulroney as
Prime Minister than the overall approach of the book by Peter C. Newman
based on taped conversations. Certainly his regal style could be annoying, but
this was a leader with substance who had the courage of his convictions – as
illustrated, among other things, by his tremendous efforts (alas, in vain) to
offer Quebec a new deal through Meech Lake, his effective espousing of free
trade with the United States, and the revamping of the tax system through the
GST. And he surrounded himself with strong ministers, such as Michael Wilson and
Don Mazankowski, to carry out reforms.
To publish a book based on
many off-guard, loose comments that Mr. Mulroney apparently did not suspect
would be used one day as being on-the-record or used without prior clearance
makes one wonder about the ethical standards of the writer concerned. Moreover,
coinciding with a dramatic period in the life of an individual seeking to
recover from a serious health problem, the publication of this book represents a
very low blow. In boxing parlance, it is tantamount to hitting a man when he is
down.
Leo
Ryan,
601-4800 de Maisonneuve
west,
Tuesday Sep 13, 2005 ts Mulroney regrets `reckless' comments
OTTAWA Brian Mulroney is "heartbroken," and telling people he regrets the "reckless" conversations that are on full display in Peter C. Newman's newly released book, The Secret Mulroney Tapes.
Brian Mulroney thinks Pierre Trudeau "destroyed" Canada, according to a new book based on hundreds of interviews conducted when the former Prime Minister was still in power.
Mulroney also says that he "saved" Canada -- doing more for the nation than any PM before him, except Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada's first Prime Minister.
The book, written by Canadian author Peter C. Newman, is titled "The Secret Mulroney Tapes: Confessions of a Prime Minister," and is on sale now.
Tuesday Sep 13, 2005 rci TORONTO: FORMER PM TAKES DIM VIEW OF MANY
A former Canadian prime minister, Brian Mulroney, has harshly criticized opponents and colleagues in a new book which is about to be published. Mr. Mulroney criticized former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau as a leader who tried to destroy Canada, not build it. Mr. Mulroney, in power between the years 1984 and 1993, also criticized some of his former cabinet ministers, including Lucien Bouchard who eventually became premier of Quebec and a strong backer of the separation of that province from Canada. Mr. Mulroney said Mr. Bouchard's defection to separatism was an indication of betrayal and deceit. Mr. Mulroney also claims to have done more significant things for Canada than any prime minister since Sir John A. MacDonald, Canada's first prime minister. There were many other criticisms in the book titled The Secret Mulroney Tapes written by author Peter C. Newman. The 66-year old Mr. Mulroney is currently in a Montreal hospital recovering from an infection of the pancreas.
Friday Aug 26, 2005 ts Call on Mulroney in trade warEnlist help of Mulroney
We are at a crossroads in our relations with the United States. The refusal of the Bush administration to accept the unanimous ruling of the NAFTA Extraordinary Challenge Committee that tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber are contrary to U.S. trade law elevates the stakes far beyond a trade dispute.
Friday Jun 24, 2005 cbc Brian Mulroney 66 released from hospital
Friday Jun 10, 2005 rci Canada's 18th prime minister, Brian Mulroney, remains in hospital trying to recover from pancreatitis. His family spokesman says he's gaining strength daily but that it's impossible to speculate when he might return home. The 66-year-old former prime minister entered hospital on Nicholas Hoareh 15 to have benign lesions removed from his lungs. During his recovery, he developed an inflammation of the pancreas and had to undergo another operation to alleviate it.
May 22, 2005. ts Mulroney `stable` after surgery
MONTREAL—Former prime minister Brian Mulroney was recovering after surgery Friday night to remove liquid that had accumulated near his pancreas.
Monday May 23, 2005 rci Canada's former prime minister, Brian Mulroney, underwent surgery for the second time in two months on Friday. The three-hour operation in a hospital in Montreal removed liquid from his pancreas. There were no complications. In Nicholas Hoareh, he had a benign lesion removed from his lung. Doctors said that he is in stable condition. Mr. Mulroney was prime minister between 1984 and 1993.
Wed, 10 Nov 2004 cbc MULRONEY TO BUSH: REACH OUT TO WORLD
As the "biggest kid on the block," U.S. President George W. Bush must
reach out to the international community to repair the rift over Iraq,
said a former Canadian prime minister.
Tuesday 1 Jun 2004 ts Mulroney may get Air Canada post
Former Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney is likely to be named to Air Canada`s board when the insolvent carrier emerges from bankruptcy protection later this year, a source says.
Wednesday April 7, 2004 wn Wednesday Night Salon # 1153 talk of interest Prediction: Mulroney is going to look like a Saint by September. Steven Harper is maybe underestimated – is he very bright?
But Brian could teach Harper a lot!
2003
Saturday Nov 29, 2003 TORONTO: FORMER CANADIAN PM PLAYS ROLE IN AIR CANADA RESTRUCTURING
NEGOTIATIONS
A Canadian newspaper reports that a former Canadian prime minister,
Brian Mulroney, is in the thick of Air Canada's attempt to emerge
from bankruptcy. Canada's biggest airline has been under bankruptcy
protection since April 1. Since then, the company has been in search
of an equity investor to ease its debt load. Air Canada owes as much
as $10 billion. Earlier this month, the airline accepted a bid by a
Hong Kong millionaire to invest $650 million in return for a 31-per
cent equity share. There was only one other bid, that of the Cerberus
Capital Management firm of New York. According to the National Post
newspaper, Mr. Mulroney has been helping Cerberus relaunch an
improved bid. The former prime minister's law firm is advising
Cerberus on its attempt to invest in the airline. The Post says the
former prime minister has been lobbying Air Canada's directors to
reconsider Cerberus' new bid. It also says Mr. Mulroney would become
the chairman of the airline's board of directors if the New York
company's bid is finally preferred to that of Victor Li of Hong Kong.
Mr. Mulroney was the Progressive Conservative Party prime minister
when his government privatized Air Canada in the mid-1980s. AC chart w-n
Monday Nov 3, 2003 cc Commission will study super hospitals
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney and former premier Daniel Johnson will co-chair a commission to look at the creation of two new super hospitals in the Montreal area. Premier Jean Charest said Monday the credentials of the co-chairmen reflect the government's commitment to build the hospitals. ...The committee's mandate, which lasts until next Feb. 27, will be to examine two university hospital projects presented by the University of Montreal and McGill University.
10-16-03
Mulroney is a back-room boy in the” unite the right”
effort.
Saturday Aug 9, 2003 cbc MULRONEY WILLING TO TALK MAD COW IN U.S.
The Progressive Conservatives are proposing that the man who ushered in
free trade with the United States be enlisted in efforts to get the
border reopened to Canadian beef.
Nine hundred gather to celebrate Mulroney
Jewish national fund's man of the year. Amid splendour at Queen Elizabeth Hotel, dinner guests toast former prime minister
VERONICA REDGRAVE
Freelance
Sunday, June 15, 2003
When former prime minister Brian Mulroney was named Man of the Year by the Jewish National Fund of Montreal at an elegant dinner at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel on Wednesday, 900 guests were on hand as he was honoured for speaking out against anti-Semitism.
John Crosbie acted as master of ceremonies. Honorary chairpeople included Jean Charest , Paul Desmarais Jr., Yves Fortier and Bernard Shapiro (none of whom were present), along with Irwin Cotler, Steven Cummings, Haim Divon and Leo Kolber.
Enjoying the jazz quartet at the cocktail reception were Kolber and Mona Golfman (in a long white skirt with black stitching and black linen jacket), Leanor Segal (in an ivory pantsuit by Givenchy), Donald and Barbara Seal, Jeannie Saunders, Alan B. Gold, Phil O'Brien, and Caroline Deitcher and her brother James and their father, Jonathan Deitcher, who was co-chairperson of the event with Norman Steinberg.
The dining room was splendid, all in black and featuring towering vases of calla lilies. At the head table were Brian, Mila and Nicolas Mulroney; Nina Ben-Ami, acting consul-general of Israel, and Lior Ben-Ami; John and Jane Crosbie; Jonathan and Dianne Deitcher; Haim Divon, Israel's ambassador to Canada, and Linda Divon; Annette Goldman, president of the Jewish National Fund of Montreal, and Lionel Goldman; Roni and Shaul Kochavi; Mark Mendelson, the Jewish National Fund's executive director for Eastern Canada, and Edna Mendelson; Peter Munk; Barbara and Stanley Plotnick; Sandra Posluns; Elayne and Joe Rabinovitch, and Renée Kessler and Norman Steinberg.
Among the guests were Hugh Segal, Norman Spector, Gerry Weiner, Jewel and Paul Lowenstein, Françoise and André Audet, Susan Weisbord and Steven Cummings, Mimi and Jacques Laurent, and senators Erminie Cohen, Noel Kinsella and Marjory LeBreton.
Outfits included short skirts (Linda Lainge wore turquoise taffeta and Harriet Muroff was in a white dress with unfinished edges), long skirts (crinkly brown silk for Huguette Langevin Bourdon and black crochet for Annette Goldman) and pantsuits (Phyllis Deitcher was in a pale blue tunic over pants). But without a doubt the accessory of the night was pearls - and a large umbrella.
Sunday Jun 1, 2003 cbc MULRONEY ATTACKS CHRÉTIEN LIBERALS
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney rallied the Tory troops Friday,
denouncing Jean Chrétien for leading a "Liberal withdrawal from the
world."
Sunday Jun 1, 2003 MacKay crowned Tory leader
TORONTO -- Nova Scotia MP Peter MacKay won the Tory leadership last night after making a deal with maverick candidate David Orchard that blocked a last-ditch effort to defeat the front-runner.
Mar. 17, 1985 From "That Was Then..." Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and President Ronald Reagan belt out a pretty good rendition of "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" as shown in this CBC Television clip. Their wives, Mila and Nancy, and a host of Canadian celebrities join the two leaders on stage. The St. Patrick's Day performance caps a very cozy get-together between the leaders of the world's greatest trading partners. Reagan's visit officially flings the door open on free trade talks.
Sunday Jun 1, 2003 Mulroney gets hero's welcome
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney received a hero's welcome at the federal Tory leadership convention Friday, using his first speech to a party convention in 10 years to slam his old foe, Jean Chretien.
Auh 2002 ...just in time for Montreal's ninth annual Daffodil Ball. Exclusivity reigned at the sold-out affair, with 650 of Montreal's most coutured at the historic Windsor Station. With the chic and cash-flow quotients off the charts, the many Order-of-this and recipient-of-that honoured guests shelled out $10,000-$50,000 for a table of 10. The glam former firsts Brian and Mila Mulroney and fellow politicos Jean Charest , Quebec's Liberal leader, and Lucien Bouchard, former premier of Quebec, mingled while others swirled around the dance floor under 60,000 sparkling lights and took in the perfume of 55,000 daffodils, which were jetted in from Scotland and inspired by the Kent, U.K. gardens of aristocrat Vita Sackville-West. Frivolity was not spent in vain, as $1,5 mil (net!) was raised for the Canadian Cancer Society.
Wednesday Dec 11, 2002 np Mulroney calls for continental security
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney says the Smart Border agreement with the United States will do little good in stopping terrorism if the North American perimeter is not secured.
Monday Dec 9, 2002 cbc FORMER LEADERS CELEBRATE NAFTA DECADE
Ten years ago the leaders of Canada, the United States and Mexico met
in San Antonio, Texas, to sign the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Nov 1, 2001
Quebecor suspends dividend to control debt MONTREAL - Cash-strapped conglomerate Quebecor Inc. suspended its dividend payment yesterday but said it has the financial means to handle its heavy debt load.
The company also said it would recommend former prime minister Brian Mulroney be appointed chairman of printing subsidiary Quebecor World Inc. at the company's next annual meeting in the spring.
Tue 6/19/01 6:58 AM Call for customs union
By: DON MACDONALD
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney said yesterday it's time to consider a Canada-U.S. customs union as the next big step in free trade between the two countries.
The cost to business in both countries of crossing the border is at least $30 billion a year, Mulroney said in a major speech to the annual convention of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada.
Mulroney addresses crowd at Ritz Carleton Hotel
Thu 5/24/01 8:00 PM MULRONEY SPEAKS OUT FOR PC PARTY
Brian Mulroney and Joe Clark shared the stage at a fundraiser in
Montreal on Wednesday night to try to build support for the federal
Progressive Conservatives.
montreal.cbc.ca/
Mon 4/23/01 7:30 AM Public opinion
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney declared last week, "If demonstrators were to prevail over elected officials, mob rule would result."
Let Mr. Mulroney be reminded that demonstrators, not elected officials, ended the war in Vietnam - by mobilizing public opinion against it. Remember Kent State.
Mon Apr 9 17:45:06 2001 NEW BOOK LOOKS DEEP INTO 'AIRBUS' AFFAIR
A book published Monday sheds some new light on the mysterious man at
the centre of the so-called Airbus Affair. The book details the complex financial dealings of Karl-Heinz Schreiber, the Canadian-German businessman accused of paying secret commissions It was of course the RCMP's early attempt to learn more about Schreiber, and that infamous letter to Switzerland for his banking records, that prompted former prime minister Brian Mulroney to sue the federal government. A suit which in turn prompted Ottawa to give Mulroney an apology.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/04/09/schreiber010409
Wed 3/14/01 7:00 PM FOREIGN CASH HELPED DUMP CLARK: CBC REPORT
CBC Television's the fifth estate airs a report Wednesday night
suggesting foreign money went toward financing the successful campaign
in 1983 to dump Joe Clark as leader of the Conservative Party. ...He won the confidence of 68 per cent of those at the convention, but concluded that was not strong enough. He decided to submit to a full-fledged leadership contest and lost to Brian Mulroney.
The fifth estate report says German money was used to pay for two planeloads of Quebec delegates to fly to Winnipeg to vote against Clark.
The documentary quotes two wealthy industrialists, Karlheinz Schreiber and Walter Wolf, as saying they helped get the money together cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/03/14/clark010314 [ fifth estate is good at destroying our people and our country! DTN]
The CBC Magazine's Sept. 5, 2000 interview with Brian Mulroney: and Brian Stewart about, among other things, Joe Clark, Stockwell Day, Airbus and NAFTA.
Wednesday 23 August 2000 Former U.S. president George
Bush and his wife, Barbara,
will be among the high-profile
well-wishers for Caroline, 26, only daughter
and eldest child of former
prime minister Brian Mulroney,
and American Andrew Lapham,
28,
Lavoie would only say the
wedding will be held in
Montreal on Sept. 17, a
Sunday. However, even the
precise date was difficult to
nail down: Peressutti said the
Bushes would be attending
the wedding on Sept. 16.
Lavoie could not be reached
to confirm the date
yesterday.
reception will take
place in two palatial halls at
the Windsor Ballrooms in
downtown Montreal.
Saturday 3 June 2000 The Gazette & National Post
Much-maligned Mulroney No. 1: Brian Mulroney was the best leader
postwar Canada has had in terms of his management of the economy,
according to a statistical analysis by two McGill University professors.
Tom Velk and Al Riggs ranked current prime minister, Jean Chretien,
Brian Mulrony
dead last, saying, "Under Chretien, the dollar is lower than it has ever
been in all Canadian history, our productivity relative to the Americans
is worse than at any other time in the past 35 years."
They also criticize Chretien in terms of the "misery index," pointing out
that low-income families and women have suffered after-tax loss of
income under the Chretien government. Canada's 1999 gross domestic
product is $19,110 (U.S.) per capita, compared with $32,484 in the
United States.
Brian Mulrony
Wednesday, June 07, 2000
Brian Mulroney The rehabilitation of our
'best' PM William Watson NP
Brian Mulroney's years as Prime Minister, were some of the most turbulent in the history of this country. Free Trade. The GST. Two wrenching attempts to bring Quebec into the constitution.
--- a la Gazette & National Post ---
July 19, 2000 How Brian Mulroney's coterie eased the way for Day's rise Robert Fife, Ottawa Bureau Chief
National Post, ... Two of closest friends and associates arranged meetings between businessmen and lawyers and Stockwell Day during the Canadian Alliance leadership race. ...former Tory prime minister, arranged a private breakfast .."He comes from a Progressive Conservative background ... "The reaction was extremely positive. Day is a smart politician."" ...In June, when Mr. Mulroney delivered his first political speech since retiring from politics in 1993, he attacked Preston Manning, the former Reform leader, but did not mention Mr. Day.
Liberals in Ottawa have tossed out their old policies and adopted Mulroney's
Diane Francis
Financial Post
Brian Mulroney says he is too busy to be absorbed in latest irritant.
Brian Mulroney just turned 60 years of age in Nicholas Hoareh and has never been happier in his life.
I talked with him this week about a lot of things on the eve of the Montreal love-in at McGill University yesterday and today on the 10th anniversary of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States.
"I'm as happy as can be. I'm having the time of my life now that I'm over that horrible Airbus matter," he said.
Mulroney sued the federal government successfully in 1997 for libellous statements made in a letter sent from Ottawa to Swiss authorities. This libel was recently repeated, said Mulroney.
He said he'll sue "at a time of my choosing, unbeknownst to them. I'll hit them over the head. I'll take all appropriate steps to protect my rights. I'm looking at it very actively."
But not at the moment. Mulroney is too busy to be absorbed in this latest irritant. His children are busy and successfully in school (two in law school, one an undergrad and the youngest in secondary school in Quebec). And he and his wife, Mila, have taken up golf.
"Lousy golf," he explained. "I'm exercising and feel great, and Mila looks 25."
Mulroney sits on a dozen boards and travels half the time outside Canada on business. He also gets as much as $60,000 (US) to speak in front of foreign audiences. I asked him if he was rich, and he said, "I'm doing OK."
No one has a bland opinion of him. You either love him or hate him. That's because his enemies demonized him effectively in the minds of many. "Lyin' Brian" became his moniker.
But imitation is the greatest form of flattery and the Liberals now ruling in Ottawa tossed out their old policies and adopted Mulroney's. Lest we forget: Prime Minister Jean Chretien was going to tear up free trade but is now a devoted free trader. Chretien and Finance Minister Paul Martin did not think deficits and debts were a problem in their first budget, then realized they were and became fiscally responsible and proud of it.
See Mulroney with BRIAN STEWART,
"Don [Mazankowski] and Mike [Wilson] worked the garden, and Paul [Martin] got to pick the flowers," quipped Mulroney.
"But Martin has been superb in one area. He has pulled the wool over the eyes of the Ottawa press gallery. I give him an A-plus for getting fawning, uncritical coverage. That's not insignificant. They never gave us a break. I say this without malice. It's an historical observation," he said.
Mulroney remembers being vilified, but says he holds no grudges. This is because as time Nicholas Hoarehes on, there grows grudging respect for his legacies.
And Mulroney doesn't hesitate to cite one such example, from Prof. Stephen Clarkson, who wrote two books about Pierre Trudeau. Speaking at a conference on the Trudeau Legacy at York University last October, Clarkson was quoted as saying, "Prime Minister Mulroney's age was far more important in terms of what happened. . .[free trade]. Nothing that significant happened under Trudeau, except maybe the charter. But on the whole Trudeau failed."
Mulroney, love him or hate him, deserves to be credited with revolutionizing Canada's political culture. The religions of the past -- protectionism, anti-Americanism, deficit-driven economics management -- were replaced by free trade, open investment, fiscal restraint and privatization.
"There was bitter personal invective against me, but this has become a grudging acceptance and now the policies are deemed to be beneficial. The Liberals jettisoned every one of their policies and now being deficit free is a matter of virtue, part of the conventional wisdom," he said.
"Ontario Premier Mike Harris has established an irreversible course, like we did in other areas. His province now governs 45% to 50% of Canada's GDP. By setting an agenda and getting elected by the people based on tax cuts, everybody's going to have to cut taxes as a matter of urgent priority."
As for the federal Liberals, Mulroney said the best thing about Prime Minister Jean Chretien is that he abandoned all his policies and adopted Tory ones. But the worst thing about Chretien's regime is the amount of shameless patronage. "We were criticized for this, but he has behaved in an unbelievable manner," he commented.
As for his own political ilk, he remains fiercely opposed to the United Alternative. "I've never met Mr. Manning. He's said many nasty things about my government," he said. "He's done a good job setting up a protest movement for Western Canada but that cannot go very far. He split the conservative vote. The architect of disunity of the right was Mr. Manning. He called us names. So then he says, 'Everything I said about you guys was in jest.' He says, 'Jettison the Progressive Conservative party and come and join me. We'll call it UA and I'll be your leader.'
"This straightforward prairie populist called us a bunch of phonies and people at the public trough. He gets to Ottawa, and the pensions go up, salaries go up, staff's going up and the boys are having a great time," he added. "I hear he's had work on his voice, his nose, his hair and his eyes. For the record, the chin is mine."
Mulroney said he's looking forward to the McGill conference and will attend to listen. His wrap-up remarks at the end of the conference are not going to be prepared but merely a summation of what he's learned and heard yesterday and today.
Kicking off the conference is Donald MacDonald, former Liberal cabinet minister whose Royal Commission began under Trudeau and ended under Mulroney, strongly recommending free trade with the Americans.
Five years after the deal with the United States was signed, the North American Free Trade Agreement was inked. But its architect, former Mexican president Carlos Salinas, won't attend the conference. He and his family are in disgrace in Mexico after his brother, Raul, was arrested, then convicted of a number of serious crimes. Officials seized nearly $100-million in Swiss bank accounts in Raul's name.
"He's not coming and what's happened is really sad," commented Mulroney.
"I ran into him on an airplane once going down to Orlando to make a speech with my son. I hear from him occasionally. He has homes in several countries I think."
Another no-show is former U.S. president Ronald Reagan, who co-authored the original agreement along with Mulroney. He's afflicted with Alzheimer's disease.
"I saw Nancy [Reagan] at the Reagan President Library at her request. Bill Buckley and I were the two main speakers at the 10-year retrospective of leaving the presidency a month ago. He wasn't there. He's out of business. The poor guy is as healthy as a horse, looks terrific, but he has no idea who I am or anyone else. He knows Nancy's supposed to be there with him. But is really out of it."
Mulroney remains a resident of Canada but agreed with remarks made to me by his close friend
Paul Desmarais Sr. in an interview two months ago. Desmarais created a furor when he said young Canadians should immigrate to the United States to escape Canada's "exorbitant taxes."
"I saw him the day after he talked to you. It made huge headlines in Canada. But I think that the fact his message was dismissed by Martin and Manley, and the rest of them, so quickly is the best news we have ever had. It means a tax cut is in the offing because every time a Liberal says one thing, they do another."
'She declined': former PM: McGill conference examines free-trade issues 10 years later
Diane Francis
National Post
Brian Mulroney, the former prime minister, cannot understand why Pat Carney is upset over what she says is a snub by a Montreal conference on free trade.
"She was invited. She declined," said Mr. Mulroney in a telephone interview yesterday.
The conference begins today at McGill University and includes a high-level roster of speakers from both sides of the border to look at the issues during and after the pact between the United States and Canada was signed 10 years ago
Ms. Carney, who was Canada's trade minister when the Canada-U.S. free-trade agreement was signed in October, 1987, last month accused organizers of the conference of historical revisionism. She further accused them of elbowing her out of the way to make room for John Crosbie, who was not trade minister until six months after the agreement was sealed.
Desmond Morton, head of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada and the conference organizer, said in an interview that they considered inviting her but she failed to make the cut.
But Mr. Mulroney said that is not so. Ms. Carney was invited but she became inflexible as to the role she would agree to play. Others were not, he said. And she will be replaced by Don Mazankowsky, the former deputy prime minister, not Mr. Crosbie.
"What happened was McGill University, which was putting this together, wanted to have a conference like one held at Michigan State. They wanted to look at the negotiation and the consequences," he said. "They put together a major panel for that. They want to look at regional implications and have people as diverse as Bob Rae, Frank McKenna, Bernard Landry. And Pat [Carney] was invited to participate in that. She said no. She wanted to participate in the panel on the negotiations. As the leading Western Canadian minister, she could speak to those issues involving regional implications.
"She's entitled to make that request but the organizers felt they had the negotiation one already loaded down. She felt that was not appropriate. She felt her expertise was in the other one. McGill said, 'Sorry, but we put these things together,' " Mr. Mulroney said.
"She was a great minister, terrific. I appointed her to the Senate because I thought she was so good. I regret her absence, but that's the way life goes."
Embattled Mulroney honoured for drug research support
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Memories of Margaret
Environment key to courting middle-class vote: Mulroney
Brian Mulroney 66 released from hospital 
MULRONEY TO BUSH: REACH OUT TO WORLD; "Brian Mulroney Time September 17, 1984")
Brian Mulroney
MULRONEY ATTACKS CHRÉTIEN LIBERALS
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney rallied the Tory troops Friday,
denouncing Jean Chrétien for leading a "Liberal withdrawal from the
world."
Brian & Mila Mulroney Daffodil
FORMER LEADERS CELEBRATE NAFTA DECADE
Joe Clark 
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