Ralph Klein Guest Hosts on CBC's 'The House'

Quote of the Week:

"The media generally does not give credit to the oil companies"

- Ralph Klein, Saturday August 2nd, CBC's The House

Regarding Environmental efforts to clean up the Alberta Tar Sands

Oh, boy - the winds of change are sweeping through the CBC's national HQ in Ottawa if they would be so desperate as to bring on former Alberta Premier Ralph Klein to guest host instead of regular The House host Kathleen Petty, no doubt away on summer holidays. Didn't anyone tell them that Trudeau's ghost was available? Or what about Brain Mulroney? Where's that douchebag at these days?

Speaking of old politicians - August 2nd's Dinosaur edition of The House would not have been complete without special guest appearance by not only former Ontario Premier Mike Harris - who encouraged Klein to play hookey from the CBC and acquiesced to his blaming it on Harris since "everyone blames everything on me, anyway" - but also by former Liberal Prime Minister Jean Chretien.

In between Klein's railing against everything from health care in Canada to the environment, the economy to modern journalism, and managing to mention his success despite "everyone being against him," Klein and Chretien's interview comes across as a lively encounter between two interesting, through ideologically opposed old men. They laugh, they spar: they tell embarrassing old stories of fighting over Kyoto in Moscow in the mid-1990's. Hearing Klein talk about the skewed logic behind climate change is topped only by Chretien's continuing subtle digs against Paul Martin - this time for doing nothing to help fulfill Chretien's promise in signing onto Kyoto once he became Prime Minister.

What this interview lacked most was a discussion about both of their tendencies to become physically violent with those around them when frustrated. Think way back to Chretien's irate throttling of a pushy journalist on the Hill; and think back only a few years to Klein's pushing a young, female Page in Parliament across the floor towards the opposition, tripping her up and nearly knocking her over. Both were later forced to apologize. Both were caught on camera.

The most interesting item to emerge from their banter? The confession from Klein that had Jean Chretien been nominated Liberal Party Leader after Trudeau's second - and final - resignation from politics in 1984 instead of John Turner, that Klein would have run for Chretien - as a Liberal! - in Calgary in the 1984 federal election. Instead he goes on to rank in the top 5 most Conservative politicians this country has ever produced.

He would make Stephen Harper proud...