Premier sold transparency, but he’s delivering truculence

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 15/05/2017 (2684 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It is a well-known fact in certain political circles that Premier Brian Pallister loves going to movies. And when possible, he likes to go alone.

A voracious consumer of the cinema, Pallister has a long tradition of attending movies by himself. Not exclusively, but certainly more than the average movie buff. It’s a fascinating bit of personal detail about a man who is otherwise a very private individual.

Here’s the thing: I have some pretty solid intel about the theatre the premier visits most regularly on his solo movie nights, but I’m not going to include it in this column because I believe that would be an invasion of his privacy. The fact Pallister attends movies on his own is a great bit of personal trivia; where he attends movies is really nobody’s business but his.

Although politicians live very public lives, there are things about them the rest of us simply don’t need to know. Over the years, I have come into possession of troves of very sensitive, very personal information about very public people: failed marriages, family illnesses, tragic deaths, substance-abuse problems and all manner of generally bad behaviour. In most instances, I have been very comfortable with a decision to leave these details out of my columns.

When does some small personal detail in a politician’s life become a legitimate matter of public interest? A couple of examples may prove instructive.

It’s not really newsworthy if a politician is seen in public drunk as a skunk. It becomes newsworthy as soon as someone sees that politician stagger out to a car, get in the driver’s seat and turn the key.

Just as it really isn’t anyone’s business where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau goes on his family vacations, unless that vacation is an all-expenses-paid junket that takes him to an exclusive private island owned by a reclusive billionaire engaged in a myriad of business dealings with the government the prime minister leads.

Which brings us back to Pallister and his ongoing war with the media and Opposition to draw a firm line between his public and private lives.

Pallister has been hammered by the NDP over the details of how he keeps in touch with his office when vacationing at his home in Costa Rica. Pallister has refused to confirm the exact method of communication, claiming it would be an invasion of his privacy and possibly compromise government security.

Concerns have also been raised about the existence of a company Pallister registered in Manitoba that was included in a public disclosure of his assets as required under conflict of interest laws. When first asked about the company, Pallister told an NDP critic it was “none of your business.” Only later, after being hounded about it, did he confirm it was a holding company that controls the retained earnings amassed during his time as a financial adviser.

Is the premier being treated unfairly? Probably. The NDP is trying to manufacture a scandal where one doesn’t necessarily exist. However, it would be wrong to lay all the blame on the Opposition. This is very much a scenario of his own making.

Every time Pallister is accused of being less than forthright, his accusers are taking advantage of two key mistakes the premier has repeatedly made since coming to office.

First, the premier has been, at times, dishonest.

He refused to admit he was in Costa Rica during the 2014 floods and at one point concocted a story about being at a family wedding in another province to cover his tracks. He was forced to admit his fibs when public records from Costa Rica confirmed he was at his vacation home.

Pallister refused to include his assets and other holdings in Costa Rica in his disclosure to the conflict of interest commissioner. He claimed it was unnecessary under Manitoba law but did eventually disclose a series of companies in Costa Rica through which he owns property.

Which brings us to the second mistake the premier has repeatedly made.

To defend his decisions to withhold certain details about his personal life, Pallister has relied on the fact that in leaving certain things out, he was still in compliance with current conflict of interest laws. This is an extraordinary claim given Pallister promised during the 2016 election to overhaul the laws to make his the most accountable and transparent government in Manitoba history. Complying with laws you pledged to change isn’t much of an accomplishment.

Pallister and his senior advisers need to overhaul their strategy when it comes to mischievous inquiries from the Opposition or media. If the truth of the matter is mundane or innocent, then fess up and be done with it. Arrogantly dismissing those inquiries only makes the premier look like he has something to hide.

As well, if Pallister wants the Opposition and the public to take him at his word when he says there is nothing to a story, then he should ensure the earlier acts of dishonesty are fuzzy, distant memories when he goes back to the polls in 2020. Pallister needs to deluge his enemies with transparency until they lack the will to dig any further into his private life.

Finally, he must stop telling people his life is none of our business. When Pallister became premier, his life became an open book. That means details about his personal finances, his family and his vacation plans are, for the most part, in the public domain. The simple fact is citizens have a right to know many of the intimate details of a premier’s life.

Except, maybe, where he likes to see movies.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca