Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - July 24, 2015, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A5 winnipegfreepress. com MANITOBA WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, JULY 24, 2015 A 5 Date: Saturday, July 25 Larry’s Guest: Scott Gillingham City Councillor for St James, Brooklands & Weston and Chair of Winnipeg Police Board Dealer Permit # 84271 A100112 2004 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Leather, dual- zone A/ C, power steering, Only 69,000 km A99652 2009 PONTIAC G6 GT Leather, automatic, power windows, A/ C, accident free C119012 2009 CHEVROLET IMPALA LTZ Sunroof, MP3, sport suspension, anti- skid system A100382 2010 CHEVROLET CAMARO 1LT ABS brakes, MP3, keyless entry A100362 2010 DODGE CHARGER SXT Sunroof, keyless start, multifunction leather steering wheel C118161 2012 CHEVROLET CRUZE LT Keyless entry, MP3, ABS brakes, Only 69,000 km D40541 2013 VOLKSWAGEN CC SPORTLINE Leather power heated seats, touch- screen audio, Bluetooth A99751 2014 CHEVROLET CRUZE 1LT Leather multi- function steering wheel, Bluetooth, backup camera, remote start A100311 2014 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA TSI Heated seats, climate control, sunroof, ABS, stability control A100041 2014 CHEVROLET SONIC LT Sunroof, OnStar, Bluetooth, 10 airbags A99003 2010 HYUNDAI SANTA FE GL AWD Heated seats, remote start local trade T133051 2011 CADILLAC ESCALADE Seats 7, navigation system, leather, heated seats, sunroof T133321 2013 CHEVROLET TRAX LTZ AWD Heated leather seats, MyLink touchscreen, Bluetooth, OnStar A100322 2015 FORD ESCAPE SE AWD Bluetooth, USB, stability/ traction control, MyKey, Only 8,000 km A99102 2010 FORD FUSION SEL Leather, sunroof local trade * All prices and payments are plus taxes. Representative Transaction: Advertised price, $ 20,000 ( includes all fees) + GST & PST ($ 2600)= $ 22,600. Financed at 6.99% for 72 Months = $ 179B/ W. Cost of Credit $ 5,184. Dealer # 84271. Images may not represent the actual vehicle. OVER 250 VEHICLES TO CHOOSE FROM $ 24,998 $ 12,998 OR $ 141 $ 13,171 OR $ 143 $ 20,998 OR $ 187 $ 20,998 OR $ 187 $ 10,989 OR $ 84 $ 22,122 OR $ 169 $ 14,477 OR $ 97 $ 16,342 OR $ 110 $ 13,996 OR $ 94 $ 15,998 OR $ 143 $ 42,998 OR $ 383 $ 21,898 OR $ 167 $ 27,556 OR $ 186 $ 11,236 OR $ 100 B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* B/ W* HOT SUMMER DEALS!! I T’S intriguing, but is it a game- changer? The Manitoba Liberals have hired Mike Brown, former director of communication for Progressive Conservative Leader Brian Pallister. Brown will take over communications for Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari. Political observers will know Brown left the PCs of his own volition earlier in the summer, the latest in a string of staff departures that has afflicted the Pallister- led Tories. Before Brown, the highest- profile exit was that of Lyle Bauer, who served as the party’s CEO before leaving in late 2014. However, nearly 20 people up and down the chain of command in the PC party have left. Having one of those people, a guy who worked as the right hand to the leader, jump ship to another party should be unsettling news for the Manitoba PCs. For the Liberals, it’s a hopeful sign. Particularly when you consider successful politicians typically get that way by hiring smart and capable people. In that context, Bokhari has hit a home run with Brown. Throughout his career, which has seen him work as a TV journalist before switching to politics, Brown has been known in media circles as a fair and articulate communications professional. He toiled for former federal Tory cabinet minister Vic Toews before moving over to the provincial PCs. He also ran for the Tories in the 2011 provincial election. There will be some observers who will bristle at the image of a longtime Tory staffer moving over to the Liberals. For his part, Brown said his decisions to work in politics have always been based more on the person and less on the party. “ When I ran for ( former leader) Hugh McFadyen, it was because as much as anything I really liked Hugh and what he was trying to do. It was not a party thing.” As for his decision to leave Pallister, Brown said he would not tell tales out of school. “ When I worked for the Tories, I really appreciated the opportunity. In the end, I just didn’t see eye to eye with Brian. We just didn’t share a vision.” Despite his Tory pedigree, or perhaps because of it, Brown’s hire is a bit of a coup for Bokhari, who is in desperate need of a more robust communication strategy. As a non- elected party leader, she has had trouble getting media coverage. The result is now, 21 months into her leadership, she remains as mysterious to voters as she did at the outset. The hiring should be good news for rank- and- file Liberals, who have sincere and mounting concerns Bokhari is going to waste a golden opportunity to make gains in the 2016 election. The NDP government of Premier Greg Selinger continues to lag in the polls and struggle under the weight of internal squabbling over his leadership. And despite a solid lead in provincewide polls, Pallister has not been able to create a clear lead in Winnipeg, the most important electoral battleground in Manitoba. Pallister has made an effort to up his own game by adding David McLaughlin, chief of staff to former prime minister Brian Mulroney, to head up the Manitoba PC election campaign next spring. McLaughlin is an identifiable brand in conservative political circles but has been out of the political ground game for some years now. With the right leader and a capable team of political advisers, this would be a perfect time for the Liberals to position themselves as a legitimate option to a tired governing party and a quirky official Opposition. There is a pretty solid theory making the rounds in Manitoba political circles that if the Liberals did more to make themselves look viable, they could capture huge tracts of votes, particularly in Winnipeg, where citizens are tired of the NDP and a flummoxed by the PCs. That’s a pretty big if, particularly since Bokhari has not performed very well since taking over the party. Can Brown, on his own, tip the scales in Bokhari’s favour? No, but it’s a tremendously good start and a clear sign that the Liberal leader understands that one of the first signs of good leadership is hiring good people to serve you. It also creates a contrast between Manitoba’s political parties. The Liberals are gaining a top operative at a time when both the NDP and Tories have lost many of their best people. That’s the kind of contrast that sparks chatter among politicos that bleeds into media coverage that gets noticed by voters and ultimately ends up changing the course of elections. dan. lett@ freepress. mb. ca Liberals must cash in on their big gain Former Tory director defects to Bokhari DAN LETT BRUCE BUMSTEAD / BRANDON SUN FILES BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari scooped a staffer from Tory Leader Brian Pallister. A_ 07_ Jul- 24- 15_ FP_ 01. indd A5 7/ 23/ 15 7: 47: 19 PM ;