If a Prime Minister shuffles his cabinet, does anyone care?
I got to work yesterday morning very pleased about the story I knew I was going to cover. The political scene was all the buzz for news junkies because Stephen Harper was doing the cabinet shuffle.
I walked into the newsroom with a big smile on my face because I love politics … but not everyone was excited as I was. One of my co-workers from one of the other Rogers radio stations cringed and made a vomiting sound effect when he heard about the story. This led me to wonder, does anyone care?
I decided to ask a few other people whether they were concerned with the fact that our cabinet ministers were playing musical chairs in the House of Commons. To my surprise, not many people outside of us news junkies in the building cared about the big story out of Ottawa.
No, this is not one of those stories that everyone in Calgary simply shrugs off. My mind was settled when I started to speak to some friends outside my work environment who recognized the significance of the changing of the guard at the cabinet posts. They felt a new line up changes the face of our current government.
I don’t kid myself in thinking that everyone in this country has a deep interest in politics like I do, but when big things happen in the political world it does have an effect on our lives, and these are things we should probably pay attention to.
Political scientists and the leaders of the opposition say the moves made yesterday could change relations between the government and aboriginals after Calgary’s Jim Prentice was moved out of the Indian Affairs portfolio. Many experts argue Prentice has done a brilliant job in Indian Affairs and taking him out may that relationship on the rocks.
With Gordon O’Connor moving out and Peter McKay moving into the Defense portfolio, we also may see a shift in our mission in Afghanistan. The Prime Minister has made it clear he wants to stay in the country until it’s believed the Afghan people can police and defend themselves … but then again, mission accomplished or not, our troops may be home as planned in 2009.
These are just two examples of how the moves on Parliament Hill may have a direct impact on us. I’m sure there may be a different face on other portfolios that made a switch, like Industry, Agriculture and Foreign Affairs.
This is why I feel passionately about politics. Whether you like it or not, those politicians and the decisions they make have an effect on everyone in our country. So for me, unlike others, it’s simply hard to ignore.