The Life: The Seductive Call of Politics

David E. Smith is a professor of political Studies at the University of
Saskatchewan. He is the author of Building a Province: A History of
Saskatchewan in Documents, The Invisible Crown, and Republican Option in
Canada, Past and Present.

In this book, Steve Paikin, better known as a TV Ontario personality,
has compiled portions of interviews with scores of Canadian politicians.
Ontario worthies bulk large but do not dominate: the Johnsons of Quebec,
Sharon Carstairs of Manitoba, Peter Lougheed, Kim Campbell, and Brian
Mulroney appear along with many others. Most speak of politics in the
past tense, from “the other side.” Much in fact is made of the
public/private distinction. Indeed, “The Life” of the book’s title
is repeatedly identified with the public world where politicians
experience an exhilaration that comes with the exercise of power and
being the centre of attention.

There are many voices to be heard in this book but, disappointingly,
most of them, including the author’s, speak in a what might be called
a “low-talk” dialect. People are described as “getting sucked
in,” “taking flak,” “pulling fast ones,” “toughing it
out,” ‘shooting back” (as in repartee) and, inevitably, “pushing
envelopes.” Rather than verisimilitude, the tone (like that of the
Anglican alternative service) sounds flat, is nondescriptive, lacks
nuance, and, above all, is unmemorable.

The politicians Paikin interviewed are grouped into seven categories.
These are (with examples) crusaders (Pat Barrett), honorable gentlemen
(Bill Davis), “accidental candidates” (Deborah Grey),
“trailblazers” (Audrey McLaughlin), those for whom politics was a
“childhood dream” (Jason Kennedy), “next generation” politicos
(Jane Stewart), and “backroom boys” who did not seek electoral
office (John Laschinjer).

At a time when legislators are described as nobodies and party
discipline is viewed as oppressive, the question of why some citizens
succumb to politics deserves study. The Life offers an array of answers,
but, in the absence of any theoretical premise, the lure of the
profession eludes readers still.