There is a lengthy list of political stories in contention to be the top political story of 2014. Start the year with #darnknl, the failure of Newfoundland and Labrador’s Hydro generation to supply the capital city and surrounding communities with electricity last January. It led to Kathy Dunderdale’s resignation as
Continue readingTag: Frank Coleman
The Sir Robert Bond Papers: Questions and Answers #nlpoli
Unelected cabinet minister Judy Manning was “surprised” that her personal relationship with Paul Davis’ political bagman came up in a recent CBC interview. Surprised? That’s an interesting choice of words. Just like it is interesting for Manning to say that: “Quite frankly, in terms of my predecessors, I don’t recall
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Premier Mulligan #nlpoli
The news on Monday was not Frank Coleman’s announcement. The news was in the reaction of provincial Conservatives to word that Coleman wouldn’t be Premier after all. They skipped past the obligatory expressions of concern over Coleman’s unspecified family problem and quickly went on to talk up the chances the
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: And then things went horribly wronger… #nlpoli
John Crosbie, the elder statesmen of Conservatives in the province took a shot at Danny Williams for his continued interference in the internal affairs of the provincial Conservatives. Danny blew a gasket and willingly gave interviews to every media outlet in town, thereby guaranteeing that the story that can only
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: No sense of irony at all #nlpoli
The smart guy they could have had – but frigged over twice - told Canadian Press: “The understanding of the [provincial political] climate isn’t as sophisticated as it should be for those who are working with Mr. Coleman on the strategic side.” Without knowing what the smart guy said, one
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Grimes on Frank, Tom, and the Kami project #nlpoli
Roger Grimes’ is through his heart surgery and nice vacation and that has left him with a new vigour. He called VOCM’s BackTalk on Tuesday to talk about the Kami project, the Friday Night Massacre, and Humber Valley Paving. 15 minutes. Worth the time. Hat tip to Dave Adey for
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Coleman, Marshall, and the Broken Chain of Accountability #nlpoli
The Telegram’s James McLeod started a story that appeared on 26 May with the following sentence: Premier-designate Frank Coleman says he wants to run a premier’s office with fewer people, and he’s starting that already — six weeks before he becomes premier. What neither McLeod, nor his editors, nor anyone
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Contrasting Speeches #nlpoli
Liberal leader Dwight Ball and Conservative leader-designate Frank Coleman delivered speeches in St. John’s last week and you couldn’t have scripted more startling contrasts. Ball delivered a speech at an event that reflected his party’s standing in the polls: more than 500 people who paid $500 a head to attend.
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: McGrath comments “preposterous”: surety association #nlpoli
From the industry association representing companies that provide sureties and other bonds, released May 26, 2014: News Release For Immediate Release: May 26, 2014 Recent remarks by Nick McGrath, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure for Newfoundland and Labrador about the use of surety bonds on public projects are completely preposterous.
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: The Friday Night Massacre #nlpoli
Frank Coleman recorded CBC’s On Point with Peter Cowan on Thursday or Friday afternoon. During the show, Coleman acknowledged that he had a personal financial interest in a decision by transport minister Nick McGrath to let Humber Valley Paving out of a contract without calling the performances bonds associated with
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Tom Marshall’s puppet government #nlpoli
Whatever is going on in the Premier’s Office these days, it isn’t an orderly and organized transition from one premier to another. That’s certain. Every transition from one premier to another since 1949 – whether it involved a change of party or not – has happened in a matter of
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Promises, promises… 2003 contracts and tendering edition #nlpoli
In light of the controversy about Humber Valley Paving, here are some of the Conservative promises made in 2003 about contracts and public tendering, controls on political donations, special committees of the legislature, and disclosure of lobbying activities. Each of them bears on the HVP tendering controversy in one way
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Power and Influence #nlpoli
If nothing else, the controversy over the sweet heart deal the provincial Conservatives cut with Frank Coleman’s son at Humber Valley Paving should dispel the fairy tale that Coleman and his family are political outsiders. They are very much the quintessential political insiders. Transportation minister Nick McGrath admitted to reporters
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: HVP controversy deepens #nlpoli
[In a hole with a jack-hammer update at bottom] The controversy around Humber Valley Paving got worse for the provincial Conservatives on Monday as transportation minister Nick McGrath confirmed that he actually released $19 million in performance and goods bond’s supplied by the paving company despite the fact they failed
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Decisive Leadership in Action #nlpoli
How hard can it be for someone to figure out when they want to start a job? Seriously. A job you want, mind you, not one you have been forced to take a gunpoint. Apparently, Frank Coleman has finally figured out when he wants to start being Premier. He has
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Prepared Statements and Unprepared Politicians #nlpoli
CBC Radio’s St. John’s Morning Show is so off-put by politicians who issue prepared statements that they’ve found a former journalist turned journalism professor to discuss the growing trend not only in this province, but elsewhere. Interviews are important, said professor, because then journalists can ask questions and get more
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Strategically Unwise and other political own-goals #nlpoli
Depending on which interview you listened to on Tuesday, Tom Marshall would be hanging around as Premier until the end of the summer. At least. That’s the VOCM story. Marshall will run the place for two full months after the Conservative convention in early July while Coleman runs around the
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Four days late and a few dollars short #nlpoli
Premier-in-waiting Frank Coleman did speak to the Telegram on Monday evening about the controversy that has been raging all weekend over his views on abortion and what that might mean for public policy in the province. Coleman chose to issue a statement on Friday that didn’t address the central issues.
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Crazy Train Wreck #nlpoli
Premier-in-waiting Frank Coleman was off in Toronto on Monday – reputedly undergoing intensive media training - and so he wasn’t willing to talk to reporters about anything, least of all the controversy about his views on abortion. When Bill Barry dropped out of the Conservative leadership on Thursday, Coleman became
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Legitimacy and Credibility #nlpoli
In the crude, modern way of putting things, shit got real for Premier-in-waiting Frank Coleman on Friday. The Telegram’s James McLeod tweeted Coleman’s response to a question about whether Coleman planned to do this year what he normally does on Good Friday and participate in the anti-abortion march in Corner
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