January 15, 2001
The secrets of one tough lady - THE COMMENTARY
By Joseph Planta
VANCOUVER -- Her memoirs, Trade Secrets, made minor blips on the best-seller lists here in Canada. It was excerpted in Saturday Night, and Allan Fotheringham, the doyen of columnists in Canada, did his fair share of publicity in both his Maclean’s and Globe and Mail columns. The author is Senator Pat Carney. Her c.v. is to die for and the book certainly spells her life out. She’s not a chameleon politically (once a Conservative, always a Conservative,) but it’s been an interesting ride nonetheless.
British Columbia is her home. Throughout the book she unabashedly relays her enamour of Canada’s westerly province with much passion and patriotism. One would think she’d be the separatist leader we’re all looking for. Besides championing British Columbian concerns, she has also championed the cause of women. Whether it was in political or not-so political life, she was front and centre pulling for women and making sure barriers were non-existent.
The amazing life of Pat Carney began in Shanghai. Twin Jim and her, were born there and she speaks affectionately of China and those roots. It’s no secret it has had an impact on her life. She studied at UBC and worked alongside the many notables that ran The Ubyssey. (Joe Schlessinger’s, Helen Hutchinson’s, Allan Fotheringham’s and John Turner’s names are dropped) She proceeded to a journalistic career working at The Province and she chronicles well, the battles she fought in achieving gender equality. Journalism paved a way for her to go north and in the Yukon she started up her own consulting business. In a chapter titled, Macho Men, she recounts the battles against those in the energy business that would want nothing to do with her as she was a “dame”. That chapter also has an amusing line worth quoting. She laments the lack of “macho men” in society these days: “Now, Macho Men are definitely an out-of-date concept. The new male role model in the year 2000 is the bespectacled Internet geek, or the e-commerce merchant, or the day-trader speculator.” Tough assessment.
From energy consulting she is courted by the Tories to run in the riding of Vancouver Centre. She accepts and runs opposite former Vancouver mayor Art Phillips. (Whose wife Carole Taylor is being touted as a possible Lieutenant-Governor or Senate nominee. I’m betting however that Ms. Taylor will be playing a role in Gordon Campbell’s upcoming Liberal government.) The 1979 election that sees Joe Clark’s Tory win, also sees Carney loose. When the Tory government falls in 1980, Carney wins. Fate as it were. She plays a major role in the world of the Opposition benches which readies her when Brian Mulroney wins a massive landslide in 1984. She becomes the energy minister which casts her in the dubious role of revamping Trudeau’s much-hated National Energy Program. She succeeds but some of the credit has fled her through the passing of history. Ditto with NAFTA. As International Trade minister she was there from the beginning on the negotiation front, but when John Crosbie took that portfolio over, the credit due her, became his. On Crosbie: “(He’s) an immodest man of modest achievement... the Great Pretender.”
With arthritis plaguing her, she declines to run in the 1988 election, paving the way for Kim Campbell who takes over her Vancouver Centre riding. Carney won it in 1984 by a margin of 1500 votes. In 1988 she states very matter-of-factly, Campbell won by a mere 279 votes. She takes a Senate seat in 1990 and since then has been defending women’s rights and British Columbian rights.
I picked up Trade Secrets because it was by a person who has been the object of fascination in this country for years. I grew up with her surrounding the news events that were of my formative years. I didn’t really know what she did or the kind of politics she practised, but I could tell she was special. I could tell this was not a regular politician. She goes beyond mere politcs; Carney works to affect the lives for her constituents.
The book has caused controversy. Some of the sections that are fascinating are those containing assessments of Brian Mulroney. The former Prime Minister is not immune from criticism and she’s perfectly blunt. “He is a person with a very selective memory. Never let yourself get into a situation where you need him to back you up, because he will collapse on you, cave in, vanish, just when you need him.” When those words were first heard of, one knew it would be one hell of a book. It is. It’s a fascinating journey and I’m sure a role model could be found in any section. Or not.
Senator Carney takes us into her world. She tells it like it is and the reader is treated to an interesting ride through the ins and outs of power. Flaws and all. Another notable quip. On Her Excellency, the Rt. Hon. Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General: “She looks like a dust mop sitting in her red-and-gold Throne chair.”
It’s $32.95 and published by Key Porter. Trade Secrets is chock full of secrets and it’s nothing short of fascinating.
Questions and comments may be sent to: editor@thecommentary.ca
An archive of Joseph Planta's previous columns can be found by clicking HERE .