Notebook: Expect Jean Chrétien on the campaign trail – sans water-skis

Political reporter Jane Taber takes an inside look at the week in politics.

The day Stephen Harper dropped the writ to call the election, Jean Chrétien, the former Liberal prime minister, was videotaped waterskiing at his Quebec cottage (it’s on YouTube). Mischievous still, the 81-year-old veteran politician, who won three majority mandates, gave his photographer a thumbs-up as he skied by on just one ski. It was vintage Chrétien – stealing some of the national limelight as the federal election was called, even though he retired from politics in 2003.

Canadians can expect to see even more Chrétien on the campaign trail. He will appear with Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau in the latter part of the race, according to sources. Mr. Chrétien is on very good terms with Mr. Trudeau. The two have spoken and he’s promised to do at least one event.

It’s not clear how effective appearances are by former politicians as they can serve as reminders of certain events – the sponsorship scandal comes to mind. But, they do energize the troops.

Paul Martin, who took over as prime minister after Mr. Chrétien, appeared at a Liberal rally this week. His job was to highlight Mr. Trudeau’s economic team, emphasizing that Liberals are good economic stewards given that it was under his watch as finance minister the deficit was wiped out.

Mr. Chrétien, meanwhile, has come out of retirement for the previous two elections, for his successors, Stéphane Dion and Michael Ignatieff. In the 2011 election, for example, he tried to inject some life into Mr. Ignatieff’s flagging campaign, appearing at a rally in Toronto just before voting day. But he was too late. Liberals were practically wiped out in Ontario; Mr. Ignatieff lost his own seat in Toronto.

As Ontario Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne helps out Mr. Trudeau on the federal campaign trail, she’s dispatched her senior ministers to help defeat Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown, who is vying to win a seat in a by-election in Simcoe North.

It’s getting nasty as her surrogates try to paint Mr. Brown as a right-wing zealot.

Ms. Wynne called the by-election earlier this month for Sept. 3 after Mr. Brown, the former Conservative Barrie MP, won the leadership in the spring. He did not have a seat in the legislature, but long-time PC MPP Garfield Dunlop offered his.

Now, with just a week before the vote, the Liberals are trying to up their game. On Thursday, Economic Development Minister Brad Duguid held a news conference, accusing Mr. Brown of trying to distance himself from his record and calling on him to “come clean to Ontarians about his record and personal views.” He also campaigned in the riding.

Last week, Deputy Premier Deb Matthews sent a letter to residents, suggesting Mr. Brown has a hidden agenda after voting as an MP to take away the “right of same-sex couples to marry” and to “examine changes to the Criminal Code to both eliminate a woman’s right to choose and recriminalize fundamental reproductive rights that Canadian women depend on.”

She says voters should ask Mr. Brown what he will do if he is elected.

Mr. Brown has said he would oppose any change to abortion access or to funding. His staff note, too, that he was the first PC leader to lead a delegation in the Toronto Pride Parade.

The PCs, meanwhile, charge the Liberals are desperate, fearing campaigning on their own record. At the doors in Simcoe North, a spokeswoman for Mr. Brown, Tamara Macgregor, says the PCs are hearing criticism of Ms. Wynne’s controversial plan to partially sell Hydro One. She says residents fear hydro rates will steeply increase after the privatization.

The Liberals have an uphill battle to upset Mr. Brown. In the 2014 provincial election, Mr. Dunlop won with nearly 44 per cent of the vote compared to nearly 33 per cent for Liberal candidate Fred Larsen, who is running again for the Grits. But Mr. Duguid observed that it’s happened before – former PC leader John Tory lost his 2009 by-election bid in what was considered a safe Tory riding.

One of the stories of the federal campaign so far has been the timidity of the Tory candidates and an apparent reluctance to give interviews. Here’s what happened this week in Ottawa.

Mayor Jim Watson invited federal candidates from all parties, offering a briefing on municipal issues. Ottawa, he notes, as the capital city is dependent on the federal government. So, he was miffed when not one of the nine Tory candidates showed up for their meeting this week. Liberal and Green Party candidates had no problem; the NDP are coming next week.

Mr. Watson sent out a tweet noting the candidates did not attend.

“That just set off a firestorm on social media,” said Mr. Watson. “People were saying, ‘Why are they snubbing the city?’”

Twenty minutes later, Pierre Poilievre, the senior Tory MP and candidate in Ottawa, called to apologize and suggested there must have been a miscommunication, said the Mayor.

“I think they realized it wasn’t looking very good on their part to have every other party send a full contingent of nine candidates,” said Mr. Watson. The meeting has been rescheduled for Monday – and the Mayor is hoping this time they’ll show up.