During my three decades in journalism, I’ve had the privilege of seeing seven premiers “hanged,” so to speak.
It’s that moment, usually a few years after they’ve stepped down, when they come to Queen’s Park to see their portrait unveiled somewhere on the walls of the legislature.
All of which is to say I’ve heard almost every attempt at humour related to some pun around the retired premier’s “hanging.”
But kudos to Dalton McGuinty, whose portrait joined 23 others at Queen’s Park last night. Whoever wrote McGuinty’s speech deserves a pat on the back for originality, and to his credit, the province’s 24th premier delivered the line like a pro.
“First they paint you in warm and glowing tones,” he started, when describing his political journey. He paused, then worked up to the inevitable punchline: “Then they frame you, and then they hang you.”
Come to think of it, it does sound a lot like politics.
Hundreds descended on Queen’s Park last night as a kind of class reunion of the McGuinty years. And as controversial and unhappy as the former premier’s exit from politics was – amid allegations of gas plant cancellations for political reasons – it was quite something to see how many disciples McGuinty can claim.
The current premier, Kathleen Wynne, served in his cabinet. So did many of the current members of the Wynne ministry. His former finance minister Dwight Duncan was there. So were Gerald Butts and Katie Telford, who now have the two most important jobs in Justin Trudeau’s Prime Minister’s Office. The two Jamiesons were there: Shelly Jamieson, McGuinty’s secretary to the cabinet, and advisor Jamison Steeve, now with the Martin Prosperity Institute. And Matt Maychak was there, having written so many of the words that came out of McGuinty’s mouth over the years. Maychak’s now with the CFL.
There are 10 McGuinty siblings and I think I saw at least half of them there. They have had to pay a high price for their brother’s success, since McGuinty “fatigue” meant brothers Dylan, David and Brendan never went as far in politics as they might have. The former premier knows that is a debt that can never be repaid.
Ontario’s 20th premier, David Peterson, was there, which reminded me that McGuinty’s political career really started at a moment of personal tragedy and political catastrophe. McGuinty was the only new Liberal MPP elected in the 1990 election, which saw the party otherwise lose a whopping 59 seats. He had stepped in to run after his father, the sitting MPP for Ottawa South, died unexpectedly.
But the McGuinty trajectory after that was something not achieved by any Liberal leader since Oliver Mowat almost 130 years earlier. After losing the 1999 election to Mike Harris, McGuinty won three straight elections in 2004, 2007, and 2011, the first two with majorities and the third just one seat short, creating not only a provincial red juggernaut, but one which was also the basis for Justin Trudeau’s success last October.
McGuinty knows history will render a mixed verdict on his years in office. That hardly makes him unique. In fact, that’s the case for every politician. He tried last night to remind his audience that important things were accomplished during his time in office: the elimination of coal-fired generation stations reduced the number of smog days from 52 per year to zero, the protection of the Greater Golden Horseshoe Greenbelt, an education system that produced better results and the creation of full day kindergarten.
Yes, the gas plant cancellations in Oakville and Mississauga will always hang over his legacy as well. But with his recent memoir, and now this portrait so elegantly painted by Istvan Nyikos, Dalton James Patrick McGuinty Jr. is evidently hoping Ontarians will look at the span of his entire time in public life, rather than just his unfortunate departure, and paint it with a more understanding brush.