Danny Williams muses on his political past and future in the weekend Telegram. All of it is very much old hat for the locals after six years, but the mainlanders might find it revealing, especially those who are looking for some perspective on NB Power.
The constant negativity the Premier displays really starts to get wearisome after a while.
Relentless negativity. There’s hardly anything positive to the guy. And then he accuses others of always harping on the bad stuff.
It’s all vintage Danny: things were so much better (for him, of course) when he was in the private sector and didn’t have to be accountable to anyone. If only things could be like that now, with no criticism or complaints from anyone, all following dutifully behind - unquestioningly - and jumping at his every bleat.
He doesn’t even seem to take heart that he still has the Fan Klub, as the comments section to the story shows. Some are so smitten with the aging leader that it seems only a matter of time before they start holding conventions, like Elvis groupies. There they’ll be, some with their hair in Mullet Danny and others in the Silver Fox Danny of later years, either version – of course - perfectly parted down the middle.
Either version always tanned, as if fresh from yet another vacation. Of all Canadian premiers, only Richard Hatfield spent more time out of the province he ran during the course of a year than Danny.
Perhaps they’ll hold shoulder twitching contests and if he should deign to make an appearance perhaps the Fan Klubbers will be like Ontario and fall on their knees, on a go forward basis. Can’t you just see it? There he is in the director’s chair, a lone spotlight glinting off his cufflinks as he takes questions from the audience about his career as a politician who loathes being a politician. What was it like in episode one, when you did battle with the evil emperor of Canada that first time? they will ask.
Then they will mouth the lines they have memorized from countless viewings of his previous scrums as he repeats his answer, complete with the quite-franklys at just the right spot. All designed, it seems, to send their Fan Klubber hearts a-twitter.
Sometimes all you can do is chuckle at it all.
Some of his fans no doubt have not heard all his past rants about what he would like do, if only he had the time.
Like no free speech in the legislature. That’s right. He once mused about stripping the legislature of the right of members to speak their minds without fear of persecution. A right hard won centuries ago by English parliamentarians and cherished by all elected to such a body ever since.
Well, all but one, so it seems.
It’s hard for Williams to get things done, apparently, when half his time is taken up with pesky things like speaking to reporters - or editorial boards too? - or blocked off with nuisances like going to cabinet and caucus meetings.
In the past, he has worried about whistleblowers and what they might get up to if they are not properly controlled. No mention this time of the headache of trying to keep his speeches from being made public. You know, speeches that were in public in the first place. These are the sorts of things that prevent from doing more.
Uneasy lies the head, he is wont to remind us all constantly.
If only people would focus on the positives instead of the negatives, he complains. Danny has been on this complaint track quite a bit this year. Much more so than usual, even for him. Ranting at Randy Simms seemed like only yesterday.
But thankfully – for the Fan Klub and Tony’s sanity - he’s going to stick around in a job he evidently despises for some totally incomprehensible, unexplained reason.
Unless, of course…
"I'm definitely going to hang around to see if I can get it [the Lower Churchill] done," said the premier.
But Williams said he's not going to stick around forever "to beat a dead horse" if a deal cannot be sealed, nor will he sign a bad deal for the sake of getting one done while in office.
Dead horse, eh?
Keep clicking those heels, Tony.
-srbp-