Raitt calls isotope crisis 'sexy,' criticizes Aglukkaq on audiotape

[Posteritatis]

Source: CBC News & The Chronicle-Herald

Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt called the medical isotopes crisis a "sexy" problem and wanted credit for fixing it, according to an audio recording made public by the Halifax Chronicle-Herald after a court battle to suppress its contents.

She also expressed doubts about the abilities of her colleague, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq, to handle "hot" issues, the paper reported.

Earlier, Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Gerald Moir rejected an injunction application by Raitt's former press secretary, Jasmine MacDonnell, to block the paper from publishing a story about the recording. Her lawyer argued it was a private conversation.

After listening to more than five hours of audio, Moir ruled Monday evening in Halifax it was not a private conversation because of the people involved. He also said it was wrong to deprive the media of the information, given that the medical isotope shortage is a public-interest issue and a matter of life and death for many cancer patients.


Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2009/06/08/raitt-injunction.html

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Secondary link at http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9012061.html (it's only stable for a few days to a week, I think) with the Herald's story in more detail, plus the recording of the conversation in question. Really, you should read this one first, but the CBC one's the stable link.

Okay, so here we have many things. We have:

* The Conservatives being their usual idiotic selves;
* ...Squared by actually saying cancer is a "sexy" (read: politically useful) issue;
* ...on tape;
* ...Which one of the few independent major newspapers in the country got a hold of;
* ...And faced a legal attempt to censor the story;
* ...Against a newspaper which traditionally takes that kind of thing really badly;
* ...A reaction which the provincial Supreme Court shares.

Aside from that dumbass Raitt, a whole lot of people did their jobs properly for this one. Cheers for the Herald doing what the Fourth Estate's supposed to do, cheers for the court standing up for them and people in general, and cheers for the sheer hilarity that this is going to be stirring up in the federal government tomorrow.

My favorite newspaper might've just bagged itself a cabinet minister. Wheeeeeee! :party:

[Arctic Dave]

1. Will they mount them on the wall?

[Posteritatis]

2. Few walls are big enough to support heads so swelled (nt)

[Swede]

3. Harper's hot young turk Lisa Raitt is probably due for a fall.

Sometimes there is justice.

[time_has_come]

4. Will Harper blunder on this? If he keeps her, how will that play?

I love politics when stuff like this is playing out...and it will play out all week. No weekend lull for this story.

Could this thing knock points off the Conservatives?

CTV, of course, just released a poll this morning saying voters have been unswayed by recent events. Not really relavent now, but I guess they paid for the poll so they want to run with it.