The controversy continues over the fact that former Deputy Prime Minister, Liberal MP and Chrétien loyalist Sheila Copps, has been given a regular column in the Toronto Sun.
Copps has been a controversial figure since she first came on the political scene as a young Liberal MPP in Ontario. after she switched to federal politics in 1984, her star rose as she became a member of the infamous Rat Pack, whose mission in life was to hammer away at then-prime minister, Brian Mulroney.
as noted in this column before, many Toronto Sun readers complained about Copps’ columns before her first one ever appeared in print. Most of these objections dealt with exposing her far-left views in a newspaper that is editorially conservative. The Sun defended taking her on as a columnist on the grounds of providing a diversity of opinion. No doubt Sheila agrees with the fact that the Toronto Sun should reflect a diversity of ideas in its pages. It is just unfortunate that she didn’t embrace the doctrine of diversity when she was the Minister of Heritage in the Chrétien cabinet; the department that is responsible for the CBC. Guess it’s a matter of better late than never.
The fact that Sheila Copps was a member of the Liberal government should not be a bar to her having a regular newspaper column even though she’s in a different position from John Crosbie, the former Mulroney cabinet minister who also writes for the Toronto Sun. a fair bit of time has elapsed since Crosbie last sat in the House of Commons whereas Copps served up until last year. Crosbie can see things from a distance while Copps writes as if she’s still a part of the government. But this goes to the weight of her opinions; not whether or not she should be given a platform to express them. Columnists should be free to express their opinions as long as they get their facts right and Copps has not been accused of making serious factual errors.
In a letter to the editor of the Toronto Sun, Conservative Party MP, Peter Goldring, did raise an interesting issue regarding Sheila Copps and her columns. as Golding wrote, Copps blamed the Gomery Commission for boosting the separatist forces in Quebec without mentioning that it was activities of the Liberal Party that she was an important member of that caused the commission to be created in the first place.
although he did not expressly put it this way, Goldring’s letter raises the following point. Copps is a true Chrétien loyalist and was part of the government that gave birth to the sponsorship scandal and allowed it to flourish. although Sheila Copps was never accused of personally taking part in any wrongful or illegal acts, she is, as Goldring wrote, "up to her neck in adscam muck". Despite the fact that Copps was maneuvered out of electoral politics by Paul Martin and she is no great fan of the current PM, the fact remains that whatever Copps can do to rehabilitate the image of Jean Chrétien will benefit the Liberal Party of Canada.
When looked at from this point of view, it seems that fairness dictates that if a Liberal Party insider is given a regular platform to trump that party, columns should also be offered to staunch defenders of the other parties that make up the current Parliament.
Unfortunately, there is no law that says the media has to be fair. at least it will be fun to watch Sheila’s constant defense of the indefensible that occurred during the most corrupt time in our history.