Still waiting Mr. Mackay.......

Not much news on the MacKay for leader front.
Sounds like a lot of prominent to Conservatives are waiting to announce. We'll probably see more than Michael Chong, Kellie Leitch and Maxime Bernier in the ring by September.

Stay tuned...

Kellie Leitch and Maxime Bernier enter the race!

Looks like Kellie Leitch and Maxime Bernier are entering the race to lead the CPC!

http://globalnews.ca/news/2619444/maxime-bernier-officially-enters-conservative-leadership-race/

Peter MacKay may run for CPC leadership.

“I haven’t ruled it out,” Mr. MacKay said, sipping Earl Grey tea in a boardroom at his firm’s Bay Street office overlooking Lake Ontario.

“But am I pining away, thinking about it and organizing and getting an apparatus in place? Uh, no. I’ve done that before,” he said, referring to his run for the Progressive Conservative leadership in 2003 before it merged with Mr. Harper’s Canadian Alliance to form the modern Conservative Party of Canada.

“It’s a tremendous commitment.”

These days, Mr. MacKay refers to himself as another type of PC – a “practical Conservative.”

When asked why he doesn’t just say no to a leadership run, Mr. MacKay answered: “I’m still interested and engaged in a lot of issues that I care about, and politics is a vehicle to bring about change. It sounds trite, but it’s true.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/peter-mackay-remains-open-to-conservative-leadership-bid/article29302456/

Rona Ambrose for full-time leadeship?

Interesting article from Michael Den Tandt. He has been talking to backroom conservatives and many are starting to wonder if Rona should run for full-time leadership.

Currently the Tories are being crushed in the polls though. They are polling lower than the vote share in 2015. She stumbles in French. Not sure she's got the verve needed. Justin Trudeau is riding high right now, but as time wears on the shine will come off. We need someone strong and ready. It's hard to see Rona as strong and ready.

http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/michael-den-tandt-best-leader-for-tories-might-be-the-one-they-already-have

Another insider outlines a vision...

Here's another good piece about where the Conservative Party can go to from here. This writer is a former insider and it looks like many of the previous positions of the CPC are not in her good books.

I don't agree with some of the social policy or the focus on libertarian economics. It creates a bland and uninspiring vision. The Conservative Party can't just be yesterday's Liberals with an extra dash of greed and do-nothing attitude.

Nevertheless, it's a good perspective and worth listening too.

Link to article: http://www.macleans.ca/politics/ottawa/what-should-a-conservative-look-like-in-2016/

Controlling our economic destiny!

Peter MacKay brushes off the old pen and writes a column for National Post. It's a great read and compares building oil pipelines to John A. MacDonald's vision of a national railroad. MacKay is clearly keeping his profile aloft and earning some big cash at his new law firm in the interim. I hope he's making connections with deep pockets and getting ready to announce his run for leadership within the next 9 months.

http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/peter-mackay-controlling-our-economic-destiny

Good new article - Why Peter MacKay should run

Great article over at Poletical. Ten reasons MacKay should run...

You may have read C. Wang’s recent article listing ten reasons why Peter MacKay shouldn’t run for leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. It’s probably the worst written piece that Poletical has ever published. Not only should Peter MacKay run for leadership, he needs to. It’s his destiny. Read on as I destroy Wang’s ten points without even breaking a sweat.

#1. Family

Peter MacKay cited his desire to “spend more time with his family” as a reason to leave federal politics. He seemed genuine about this decision at the time and the fact that he left the party on good terms should put to rest any notion that would suggest otherwise.

Right now MacKay has a newborn and a toddler. Their needs are great and the parenting stress is high. Sleeplessness and household management requires more energy. Leaving politics in order to be more present in early family life makes sense, but kids grow up. A 5 year old is easier to manage than a 2 year old. Harper had a young family when he was first Prime Minister and Justin Trudeau is doing it now. With a couple of state funded nannies and a conscious decision to balance the job with family life, the MacKay clan will flourish while MacKay acts as Prime Minister.

#2. Pension

Wang suggests MacKay’s pension enticed him to leave politics. Maybe he’s right, but the pension exists no matter what MacKay chooses to do for the next 30 years of his life. Freedom 55 is a 1980’s notion of the “good life”. Wandering around beaches while in the prime of your life is a waste of time and potential. MacKay has always been an ambitious guy and that’s usually not something you can just switch off, because you have a guaranteed revenue stream.

#3. Private Sector is Calling

I’m sure MacKay will have lot’s of opportunities in the private sector. I’m sure he could make tons of cash doing so. The alternative being suggested, however, isn’t just some random public sector gig. It’s the potential to be the PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA.

It’s a big deal.

The attraction isn’t a fat bank account or executive respect...it’s power, history, legacy. Sitting around a boardroom trying to figure out how hide profits for some mining enterprise is a small substitute for building a country.

“Such a waste of talent. He chose money over power. In this town, a mistake nearly everyone makes. Money is the Mcmansion in Sarasota that starts falling apart after 10 years. Power is the old stone building that stands for centuries. I cannot respect someone who doesn't see the difference.” – Frank Underwood, House of Cards

Peter MacKay was born for politics. He thrives in it. The private sector lucre can wait.

#4. Justin Trudeau will not be easily beaten

Wang thinks Justin Trudeau is the new juggernaut of Ottawa. He’s drinking the same moonshine that the MediaParty and many other vested interests would have.....read more at the link...

http://www.poletical.com/cpcldr-peter-mackay-should-run-conservative.php

Peter MacKay joins law firm

Big news today...MacKay joins law firm.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/peter-mackay-toronto-law-firm-partner-baker-mckenzie-1.3418382

This this rules out MacKay for leader?

Think again...
(courtesy of Reddit)

Mark Your Calendars!!!!!

Looks like the big choice comes down May 27th, 2017!
http://ipolitics.ca/2016/01/19/conservative-leader-to-be-elected-may-27-2017/

MacKay leads in latest poll!

Peter MacKay lands in first place according to new poll. Check it out!
http://www.660news.com/2016/01/17/new-poll-kevin-oleary-tied-with-peter-mackay-in-leadership-race/

Kevin O'Leary? Get real.

Kevin O'Leary is great. He says stuff that needs to be said, but he is no leader and he's not a good fit for the Conservative Party. Read for yourself...but keep your thinking cap on.

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/michael-den-tandt-why-fire-breathing-kevin-oleary-is-a-good-fit-for-conservative-leader

Good article about the CPC leadership race...

Finally starting to hear some news about the leadership race.

http://www.ottawasun.com/2016/01/09/new-conservative-leader-has-big-task

BRAD WALL IS OUT!

Listen up folks...Brad Wall is NOT running for CPC leadership. He's got an election to win in Saskatchewan in April. Saskatchewan is still undergoing the cultural shift of leaving the NDP in the dust.
I've said for a long time that the Saskatchewan Party needs to win a third term in order to entrench lasting cultural change in the province. Brad Wall needs to do it. Brad Wall can do it and Saskatchewan will be better off for it forever.
Wall is a regional phenomenom and he will best achieve things by staying that way.

Huffington Post article below...
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/01/08/brad-wall-conservative-leadership-race_n_8940888.html

Jan 22 - Get your tickets.

Excellent article with new interview!

Taking a break from runs to daycare and swimming lessons for his young son, former Conservative justice minister Peter MacKay was reflecting on law, politics, and life at the crossroads. “I want to be able to have more flexibility in my career and my private life, to be able to spend time with them — especially at this young age,” confided MacKay. “These are very formative years, as everyone knows. And so my preference is not to delve immediately back into the practice of law where I would be working commensurate hours as I was as minister of justice and not see them.”Taking a break from runs to daycare and swimming lessons for his young son, former Conservative justice minister Peter MacKay was reflecting on law, politics, and life at the crossroads. “I want to be able to have more flexibility in my career and my private life, to be able to spend time with them — especially at this young age,” confided MacKay. “These are very formative years, as everyone knows. And so my preference is not to delve immediately back into the practice of law where I would be working commensurate hours as I was as minister of justice and not see them.”

MacKay took everyone by surprise last May when he announced that he would serve out his term as justice minister, but wouldn’t run again as MP for Central Nova in order to spend more time with his wife Nazanin Afshin-Jam, their son Kian, 2, and their daughter Valentia, who was born in September.

But while MacKay, 50, is only five years away from being able to collect an estimated $128,832 a year in pension after his 18 years as an MP, he says he has no intention of remaining idle.

MacKay’s experience in three ministerial portfolios — justice, foreign affairs, and defence — makes him an attractive candidate to law firms. While he was prohibited from even broaching the subject with prospective firms until after he formally finished as justice minister in October, it wasn’t long before his phone started to ring. In December, MacKay said he was in “advanced discussions” with a number of law firms with a “large national/international reach” but would not reveal any names.

However, he is a political animal and often mentioned as a possible future leader of the Conservative Party. Introducing former Conservative prime minister Brian Mulroney at Toronto’s conservative Albany Club in November and penning an op-ed in the National Post further fuelled speculation his departure from politics is a hiatus — not a retirement. When it comes to returning to politics, though, MacKay is coy. “I don’t

MacKay took everyone by surprise last May when he announced that he would serve out his term as justice minister, but wouldn’t run again as MP for Central Nova in order to spend more time with his wife Nazanin Afshin-Jam, their son Kian, 2, and their daughter Valentia, who was born in September.

But while MacKay, 50, is only five years away from being able to collect an estimated $128,832 a year in pension after his 18 years as an MP, he says he has no intention of remaining idle.

MacKay’s experience in three ministerial portfolios — justice, foreign affairs, and defence — makes him an attractive candidate to law firms. While he was prohibited from even broaching the subject with prospective firms until after he formally finished as justice minister in October, it wasn’t long before his phone started to ring. In December, MacKay said he was in “advanced discussions” with a number of law firms with a “large national/international reach” but would not reveal any names.

However, he is a political animal and often mentioned as a possible future leader of the Conservative Party. Introducing former Conservative prime minister Brian Mulroney at Toronto’s conservative Albany Club in November and penning an op-ed in the National Post further fuelled speculation his departure from politics is a hiatus — not a retirement. When it comes to returning to politics, though, MacKay is coy. “I don’t......

http://canadianlawyermag.com/5874/Law-politics-and-life-at-the-crossroads.html