Kim Campbell: Difference between revisions
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==Prime Ministership== |
==Prime Ministership== |
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Campbell had served in four cabinet portfolios prior to running for the party leadership , including three years as Minister of Justice, and garnered support of more than half the PC caucus when she declared for the leadership. After becoming party leader and Prime Minister, Campbell extensively campaigned during the summer, touring the nation and attending barbecues and other events. By the end of the summer, her personal popularity had increased greatly, far surpassing that of [[Liberal Party of Canada|Liberal Party]] leader [[Jean Chrétien]].<ref>Woolstencroft 15.</ref> Support for the Progressive Conservative Party had also increased to only a few points behind the Liberals, while the [[Reform Party of Canada|Reform Party]] had been reduced to single digits. |
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Campbell was the only Canadian prime minister not to have resided at [[24 Sussex Drive]] since that address became the official home of the Prime Minister of Canada in 1951. Initially, Campell's predecessor Mulroney remained at 24 Sussex while renovations on his new home in [[Montreal]] were being completed. Campbell instead took up residence at [[Harrington Lake]], and did not move into 24 Sussex after Mulroney left. Like [[Charles Tupper]] and [[John Turner]] Campbell never sat in Parliament as Prime Minister, as her term was filled by the summer break and the election. |
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==The 1993 election== |
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When an [[Canadian federal election, 1993|election]] was called in the fall of 1993, the party had high hopes that it would be able to remain in power and, if not, would at least be a strong [[parliamentary opposition|opposition]] to a Liberal [[minority government]]. |
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However, Campbell's initial popularity soon declined due to public-relations mistakes committed after the writ was dropped. When she was running for the party leadership, Campbell's frank honesty was seen as an important asset and a sharp contrast from Mulroney's highly-polished style. However, that backfired when she told reporters at a [[Rideau Hall]] event that it was unlikely that the deficit or unemployment would be much reduced before the "end of the century." During the election campaign, she further stated that discussing a complete overhaul of Canada's social policies in all their complexities could not be done in just 47 days — however, media coverage misrepresented her comment, paraphrasing it to something she never said: "an election is no time to discuss serious issues".{{Citation needed|date=June 2009}} |
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Some have attempted to point to her gender as a major contributing factor to her historic loss, but there is scant evidence to support that assertion. Analysis of the press coverage of the campaign reveals that a constant theme of the coverage itself was its unfairness. Journalists wrote openly about the double standard applied to Campbell, but there was little or no attempt to analyze why this was the case. Scholarly analysis by experts such as Richard Johnston of the University of British Columbia asserts that Campbell's "47 days" comment (a response to a journalist's attempt to charge her with a hidden agenda) was not the key factor in the vote decline, but was made after the trend had shifted. Rather, the attempt to attribute a hidden agenda on social programs to her in and of itself reminded voters of what they believed about Mulroney – that he would say one thing but do another. Without time to establish a new record for her government, Campbell remained vulnerable to the negative perceptions people had of her predecessor. |
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The Conservatives' support tailed off rapidly as the campaign progressed. By October, it was obvious that Campbell and the Tories would not be re-elected. All polls showed the Liberals were on their way to at least a minority government, and would probably win a majority without dramatic measures. However, Campbell was still personally more popular than Chrétien. Knowing this, the Conservative campaign team put together a [[1993 Chrétien attack ad|series of ads attacking the Liberal leader]]. The second ad appeared to mock Chrétien's [[Bell's Palsy]] facial paralysis, and generated a severe backlash from all sides. Even some Tory candidates called for the ad to be pulled from the air. Campbell claims to have not been directly responsible for the ad, and to have ordered it off the air<ref>Donaldson, p. 367.</ref> over her staff's objections. However, she did not apologize and thus lost a chance to contain the fallout from the ad. |
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The ad flap was widely regarded as the final nail in Campbell's prime ministerial coffin. Conservative support plummeted into the teens, all but assuring that the Liberals would win a majority government short of a complete meltdown in the dying days of the campaign. Canadian humorist [[Will Ferguson]] suggested that this incident meant Campbell should receive "some of the blame" for her party's losses, though "taking over the party leadership from Brian (Mulroney) was a lot like taking over the controls of a 747 just before it plunges into the Rockies."<ref>Will Ferguson, ''Bastards and Boneheads: Canada's Glorious Leaders Past and Present'' (Vancouver/Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, 1999), p. 284.</ref> |
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On election night, the Conservatives were swept from power in a Liberal [[landslide victory|landslide]]. Campbell herself was defeated in Vancouver Centre by rookie Liberal [[Hedy Fry]]. She conceded defeat with the wisecrack, "Gee, I'm glad I didn't sell my car."<ref>McLaughlin, David, ''Poisoned Chalice: The Last Campaign of the Progressive Conservative Party?'' (Toronto: Dundurn Press, 1994), p. 276</ref> |
On election night, the Conservatives were swept from power in a Liberal [[landslide victory|landslide]]. Campbell herself was defeated in Vancouver Centre by rookie Liberal [[Hedy Fry]]. She conceded defeat with the wisecrack, "Gee, I'm glad I didn't sell my car."<ref>McLaughlin, David, ''Poisoned Chalice: The Last Campaign of the Progressive Conservative Party?'' (Toronto: Dundurn Press, 1994), p. 276</ref> |
Revision as of 15:37, 13 May 2010
Kim Campbell | |
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File:Kim Campbell head shot.jpg | |
19th Prime Minister of Canada | |
In office June 25, 1993 – November 4, 1993 | |
Monarch | Elizabeth II |
Preceded by | Brian Mulroney |
Succeeded by | Jean Chrétien |
30th Minister of National Defence | |
In office January 4, 1993 – June 24, 1993 | |
Prime Minister | Brian Mulroney |
Preceded by | Marcel Masse |
42nd Minister of Justice | |
In office February 23, 1990 – January 3, 1993 | |
Prime Minister | Brian Mulroney |
Preceded by | Doug Lewis |
Succeeded by | Pierre Blais |
15th Minister of Veterans Affairs | |
In office January 4, 1993 – June 24, 1993 | |
Prime Minister | Brian Mulroney |
Preceded by | Gerald Merrithew |
Succeeded by | Peter McCreath |
Minister Responsible for Federal-Provincial Relations | |
In office 1993 | |
Prime Minister | Brian Mulroney |
Preceded by | None |
Succeeded by | Marcel Massé Minister for Intergovernmental Affairs |
Minister of State for Indian Affairs and Northern Development | |
In office 1989–1990 | |
Prime Minister | Brian Mulroney |
Preceded by | Bernard Valcourt |
Succeeded by | Shirley Martin |
Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre | |
In office 1988–1993 | |
Preceded by | Pat Carney |
Succeeded by | Hedy Fry |
MLA for Vancouver-Point Grey (Multiple Member District) | |
In office 1986–1988 Serving with Darlene Marzari | |
Preceded by | Pat McGeer and Garde Gardom |
Succeeded by | Tom Perry |
Personal details | |
Born | Port Alberni, British Columbia | March 10, 1947
Political party | Progressive Conservative |
Other political affiliations | British Columbia Social Credit |
Spouse(s) | Nathan Divinsky - Divorced, Howard Eddy - Divorced, Hershey Felder - Common Law Spouse |
Children | None |
Residence | Paris, France |
Alma mater | University of British Columbia London School of Economics |
Profession | Lawyer, Academic |
Cabinet | Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (1989-1990), Minister of Justice (1990-1993), Minister of National Defence (1993), Minister of Veterans Affairs (1993), Minister responsible for Federal-Provincial Relations (1993) |
Signature | |
Avril Phaedra Douglas "Kim" Campbell, PC, CC, QC (born March 10, 1947) is a Canadian politician who was the 19th Prime Minister of Canada, serving from June 25, 1993, to November 4, 1993 (132 days). Campbell was the first and to date the only female Prime Minister of Canada, the first baby boomer to hold that office and the first to have been born in British Columbia.
Personal background
Campbell was born in Port Alberni, British Columbia to George Thomas Campbell (1920–2002) and Phyllis "Lisa" Cook. Her mother left the family when Campbell was 12, leaving Kim and her sister Alix to be raised by their father. As a teenager, Campbell permanently nicknamed herself Kim, perhaps for actress Kim Novak,[1] as well as because "Kim" resembles the first syllable of Campbell when said in a Highlander accent.
While in her pre-teens, Campbell was a host and reporter on the CBC children's program Junior Television Clubhttp://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-73-2084-12975/politics_economy/kim_campbell/clip1 Introducing Avril Campbell - Kim Campbell, First and Foremost - CBC Archives]</ref>
Campbell returned to lecturing in political science for a few years, this time at Harvard University. It was rumored she was to be moved to Moscow as the ambassador to Russia.[2] Then, in 1996, the Liberal government that had defeated Campbell's appointed her Consul General to Los Angeles, a post in which she remained until 2000.
She published an autobiography, Time and Chance, (ISBN 0-770-42738-3) in 1996. The book became a national bestseller in Canada and is currently in its 3rd edition from the University of Alberta Press (ISBN 000010132x).
In 1997, Campbell collaborated with her third husband, composer, playwright and actor Hershey Felder, on the production of a musical, Noah's Ark in Los Angeles. From 2001 to 2004, she lectured at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She continues as an Honorary Fellow at the Center for Public Leadership at the Kennedy School. She also is the director of several publicly traded companies in high technology and biotechnology.
From 1999 to 2003, she chaired the Council of Women World Leaders, a network of women who hold or have held the office of president or prime minister. She was succeeded by former Irish President Mary Robinson. From 2003 until 2005 she served as President of the International Women's Forum, a global organization of women of preeminent achievement whose headquarters is in Washington, D.C.
Campbell serves on the Board of the International Crisis Group and the Forum of Federations, and is on the advisory bodies of many international organizations. In 2004, she was included in the list of 50 most important political leaders in history in the Almanac of World History compiled by the National Geographic Society. She was cited for her status as the only woman head of government of a North American country (defined variously), but controversy ensued among academics in Canada over the merit of this honor since her brief term in office was marked by very few, if any, major political accomplishments.
She was a founding member of the Club of Madrid, an independent organization whose main purpose is to strengthen democracy in the world. Its membership is by invitation only and consists of former Heads of State and Government. In 2004, Campbell assumed the role of Secretary General of the organization.
On November 30, 2004, Campbell's official portrait for the parliamentary Prime Minister's gallery was unveiled. The painting was created by Victoria, British Columbia artist David Goatley. Campbell said she was "deeply honored" to be the only woman to have her picture in the Prime Ministers' corridor, stating: "I really look forward to the day when there are many other female faces." The painting shows a pensive Campbell sitting on a chair with richly colored Haida capes and robes in the background, symbolizing her time as a cabinet minister and as an academic. The unveiling took place amidst protests against President George W. Bush's state visit to Canada.[3]
During the 2006 election campaign, Campbell endorsed the candidacy of Tony Fogarassy, the Conservative candidate in Campbell's former riding of Vancouver Centre. Campbell also clarified to reporters that she is a supporter of the new Conservative Party. Fogarassy lost the election, placing a distant third.
Campbell now lives in Paris, France and recently joined the Board of Trustees of the Ukrainian Foundation for Effective Governance, an NGO formed in September 2007 with the aid of Ukrainian businessman Rinat Akhmetov.[4]
Whilst testifying in April 2009 at the Mulroney-Schreiber Airbus inquiry, Campbell said she still follows Canadian politics "intermittently."[5]
Legacy
As Justice Minister, Campbell brought about a new rape law that clarified sexual assault and whose passage firmly entrenched that in cases involving sexual assault, "no means no." She also introduced the rape shield law, legislation that protects a person's sexual past from being explored during trial. While Campbell had little time to usher in legislation during her four months as Prime Minister, she did implement radical changes to the structure of the Canadian government. Under her tenure, the federal cabinet's size was cut from over 75 cabinet ministers and ministers of state to 23. The number of cabinet committees was reduced from 11 to five. Her successors have continued to keep the size of the federal Cabinet to approximately 30 members. She was also the first prime minister to convene a First Ministers' conference for consultation prior to representing Canada at the G7 Summit. Due to her brief time in office, Campbell holds a unique spot among Canadian prime ministers in that she made no Senate appointments.
Campbell has harshly criticized Mulroney for not allowing her to succeed him before June 1993. In her view, when she finally became prime minister, she had very little time or chance to make up ground on the Liberals once her initial popularity faded. In her memoirs, Time and Chance as well as her response to The Secret Mulroney Tapes, Campbell even suggested that Mulroney knew the Tories would be defeated in the upcoming election, and wanted a "scapegoat who would bear the burden of his unpopularity" rather than a viable successor. The cause of the 1993 debacle remains disputed, with some arguing that the election results were a vote against Mulroney rather than a rejection of Campbell, and others suggesting that the poorly run Campbell campaign was the key factor in the result.
Although the Progressive Conservatives survived as a distinct political party for another decade after the 1993 debacle, they never recovered their previous standing. During that period they were led by Jean Charest (1993-1998), Elsie Wayne (1998) and then, for the second time, by Joe Clark (1998-2003) (who had been Opposition Leader and briefly Prime Minister 20 years earlier). By 2003, the party under new leader Peter MacKay had voted to merge with the Canadian Alliance to form the Conservative Party of Canada, thus formally ceasing to exist. Joe Clark continued to sit as a "Progressive Conservative" into 2004, and the new brand of right-leaning Conservatives gained power in the election of 2006, thus the "Tory" nickname lives on in the federal politics of Canada. A PC "rump" caucus continues to exist in the Senate of Canada, and consists of Clark, Mulroney and Paul Martin appointees.
Campbell remains one of the youngest women to have ever assumed the office of Prime Minister in any country, and thus also one of the youngest to have left the office.
Campbell was ranked #20 out of the first 20 Prime Ministers of Canada (through Jean Chrétien) by a survey of Canadian historians used by J.L. Granatstein and Norman Hillmer in their book Prime Ministers: Ranking Canada's Leaders.
She has appeared on the CBC Television program Canada's Next Great Prime Minister, a show which profiles and selects young prospective leaders.
Honours
According to Canadian protocol, as a former Prime Minister, she is styled "The Right Honourable" for life.
- Member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
- Queen's Counsel
- 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal
- Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
- Honorary Fellow of the London School of Economics
- Honorary Fellow of the Center for Public Leadership, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
- Member of the Club of Madrid[6].
- Appointed a Companion of the Order of Canada on Canada Day 2008[7]
Honorary degrees
- The Law Society of Upper Canada (LL.D) (1991)
- Brock University (LL.D) (1998)
- Northeastern University, Boston (DPS) (1999)
- University of British Columbia (LL.D) (November 23, 2000)[8]
- Mount Holyoke College (LL.D) (2004)
- Chatham College (LL.D) (2005)
- Arizona State University (D.Litt) (December 2005)[9]
Arms
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See also
References
- ^ Gordon Donaldson, The Prime Ministers of Canada, (Toronto: Doubleday Canada Limited, 1997), p. 351.
- ^ Desbarats, Peter. "Somalia cover-up: A commissioner's journal", 1997. p. 243
- ^ CBC News. "Kim Campbell's official portrait unveiled in Ottawa". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ "Shimon Peres talks, via video conference, of strong relationship between Israel and Ukraine". Reuters, February 4, 2008.
- ^ "Beatty baffled by millions in Bear Head lobby fees". Toronto Star, April 29, 2009.
- ^ "Home - Club of Madrid - Democracy that Delivers". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ Transclusion error: {{En}} is only for use in File namespace. Use {{langx|en}} or {{in lang|en}} instead. [http://www.clubmadrid.org The Club of Madrid is an independent organization dedicated to strengthening democracy around the world by drawing on the unique experience and resources of its Members – 66 democratic former heads of state and government.
- ^ "UBC Archives - Honorary Degree Citations - 2000-02". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ "ASU News > Browne, Campbell honored at commencement ceremony". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ Canadian Heraldic Authority (Volume II), Ottawa, 1995, p. 380
External links
- Official Blog of the Right Honourable Kim Campbell
- Official Website of the Right Honourable Kim Campbell
- Political Biography from the Library of Parliament
- Biography from the Kennedy School of Government
- 2004 commencement speech, Mount Holyoke College
- Grace Stewart, Heather. "Kim Campbell: the keener who broke down barriers" (2007) ISBN 978-0-9736407-0-0 Jackfruit Press, http://www.jackfruitpress.com
- Granatstein, J.L. and Hillmer, Norman. Prime Ministers: Ranking Canada's Leaders. Toronto: HarperCollinsPublihersLtd., 1999. ISBN 0-00-200027-X.
- CBC Digital Archives – Kim Campbell, First and Foremost
- Official page of the documentary film "Kim Campbell:Through the Looking Glass"
- Kim Campbell at IMDb
- 1947 births
- Living people
- Alumni of the London School of Economics
- British Columbia Social Credit MLAs
- Canadian Anglicans
- Canadian autobiographers
- Canadian diplomats
- Canadian expatriates in France
- Canadian political scientists
- Canadian Queen's Counsel
- Canadian women Members of Parliament
- Cold War leaders
- Companions of the Order of Canada
- Female Canadian political party leaders
- Female heads of government
- John F. Kennedy School of Government staff
- Lawyers in British Columbia
- Members of the Canadian House of Commons from British Columbia
- Members of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
- People from Port Alberni, British Columbia
- Prime Ministers of Canada
- Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs
- Recipients of the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal
- University of British Columbia alumni
- Women MLAs in British Columbia
- Women in 20th-century warfare