7. December 2011 20:27
by Don Martin
It’s chopper controversy down for Defence Minister Peter MacKay. He’s been hoisted into the clear by the only testimony that could save him from the political turbulence caused by his vacation rescue aboard a military helicopter.
The pilot who plucked him from a Newfoundland fishing lodge stepped forward today to salvage MacKay from his communications disaster by declaring it a “win-win” for the military and the minister.
The source is more impeccable than merely being an eyewitness to the exercise. As a retired commander of the search and rescue squadron, Maj. Stephen Reid has no reason to fall on a credibility sword for his former boss. And, bonus, he has enough bureaucratic experience to explain away some of those damning emails, which suggested MacKay was retrieved under the “guise” of a rescue exercise, as a headache-avoiding short cut through the military’s legendary red tape.
The only question left unanswered is why MacKay’s staff didn’t summon Reid to MacKay’s rescue long before those enterprising folks at iPolitics broke his story this morning. As Reid noted, he waited and watched MacKay’s stammering incomplete and inconsistent explanations on the file until he couldn’t stand it any longer and stepped forward.
Now, it’s not easy for me to ride to MacKay’s rescue on any issue. The man has an irrational loathing of one former columnist who became a CTV politics show host. Yes, that would be me. Perhaps it had something to do with my biography on former girlfriend Belinda Stronach.
That aside, it’s only fair to point out that despite MacKay’s misleading spin and arrogant Commons demeanor, the notion he raised his hand to summon a search-and-rescue helicopter as his own big yellow taxi has lost its knock down punch.
If the opposition parties refuse to throttle down their hysterical demands for MacKay’s apology or resignation, MacKay has plenty of high-calibre ammunition for return fire to make them look even more hysterical than usual in Question Period today.
In two sentences, Maj. Reid removed most of the political heat from the controversy.
“The flight would have been flown regardless of whether or not the minister was included because the squadron conducts two training events per day as part of a regular routine,” he declared. “In this case, a new flight engineer required hoist training, therefore the training intentions were well matched.”
So there you have it. It was a routine flight while MacKay’s hoist helped train a newbie looking for rescue experience and never dreaming it would include the Defence Minister.
It’s been a fun controversy to cover, exacerbated by horrible spin from a minister who used to excel at media relations, but there’s nothing more to see or say on this file. MacKay’s search for a rescue is over.
- Don Martin
Don Martin hosts Power Play on CTV News Channel, highlighting the people and players that dominate the political scene in Canada.
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