Tony At 10: POLITICAL SWAY; BLOG # 2130 ;Mar 30, 2018

THE MESSAGE:

Trust seems to be easy to acquire among friends in your neighbourhood or those met in school. Whether or not this is a good thing is not as easy to accept. Unfortunately, this world contains many neighbourhoods that promise salvation through heading in the wrong direction.

Personally, I find that trusting old friends needs to be an important key to happiness. They are loyal and supportive when you are faced with tragedy, bad news or other difficulties. They generally provide reassurance, honesty and meaningful contributions to your life.

THE BLURB:

After graduating from McGill University, his first job was working as a research assistant in the Senate office of Allan MacEachen. Here Butts learned much of his trade from the genius of one of his mentors.

MacEachen entered politics in 1953 and won 10 elections, holding top cabinet posts, including health, finance and external affairs. He was the country's first deputy prime minister and served as Liberal leader of the House three times. During four decades in federal politics, MacEachen is credited with being the architect behind landmark social programs including the guaranteed income supplement for pensioners. He retired at 75 when he reached the maximum age in the Senate.

His friends and colleagues have described him as a brilliant orator who excelled at working with the opposition and members of his own party to pass difficult legislation, including reforms to immigration and employment insurance. MacEachen was described as 'a gift from Cape Breton to all of Canada.

HAS THE WASHINGTON DC SWAMP MOVED NORTH?

Here is the epitome of influence and manipulation of the Ontario political scene as well as that of the Federal Government.

In 1999, Butts became a policy director within the Government of Ontario. Eventually, he became McGuinty’s principal adviser and was intimately involved in all of the government’s significant environmental initiatives, from the Greenbelt and Boreal Conservation plan to the coal phase-out and toxic reduction strategy. With Butts' influence, the Ontario Liberal Party won the Ontario provincial elections in 2003 and in 2007.

An old school buddy,

Butts became the senior political adviser to Justin Trudeau in 2012. He is among the five people with whom Trudeau consults regularly. He assisted on the vast majority of policies on which Trudeau campaigned. During Trudeau's initial time as Liberal party leader, Butts advised him on such decisions and issues as the legalizing of marijuana, the expulsion of the entire Liberal senate caucus, and Trudeau's position on the Northern Gateway pipeline.

On September 21, 2016, it was reported by the Globe and Mail that Butts charged moving expenses to Canadian taxpayers in the amount of $126,669.56 in order to relocate his residence from Toronto to Ottawa. In the wake of the controversy, he apologized and said he would repay $41,618.62.

EXAMPLES OF THE BUTTS INFLUENCE

McGuinty won the premier’s chair after portraying himself as a “positive” alternative to the Progressive Conservatives’ Ernie Eves, who was sending out attack ads. In his victory speech, he said voters had “rejected the politics of division” – a phrase that Trudeau echoed in his campaign. Butts pointed out that Trudeau won after focusing on “being positive with his vision for the county” and “accomplished this without a single negative personal attack ad on any of his opponents."

McGuinty’s government promised to deal with “education deficits” and “health deficits” by continuing fiscal deficits, at least for the first few years of his mandate. Ontario has struggled to reduce its debt ever since, and Moody’s has downgraded the province’s outlook to “negative.”

Butts, however, continued to promote deficit spending. In a 2014 interview he called the federal Conservatives’ deficit budgets “relatively austere” and said not spending enough was a “big problem.” Trudeau later campaigned on running “modest deficits” in order to allow more spending on infrastructure and social programs.

Mr. Butts maintains a high profile for a political aide in Canada. Many ask what that role is exactly. Is he Mr. Trudeau's brain? Is he Trudeau's older sibling looking out for his more innocent friend? Does he hold more sway with Trudeau than Katie Telford, the Prime Minister's chief of staff?

Butts has been viewed as Mr. Trudeau's co-author in an attempt to write his vision of the big picture who helps to make sure the government's decisions are consistent with this concept.

THE QUESTION: