The possibility of senior federal cabinet minister Vic Toews being considered for a judicial appointment to the Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench has been described as an unprecedented "bombshell".
Political futures spur debate
Several justice sources say Toews, the Tory MP for Provencher and a key member of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's cabinet as Treasury Board president, is a strong candidate to fill vacancies on the federal court in either Brandon or Dauphin.
A federal selection committee has been laying the groundwork for the plum appointment by calling provincial justice officials with questions about Toews, sources say.
"I'm surprised the announcement hasn't been made yet,'' a highly placed legal source said this week.
A spokesman for Toews' office in Ottawa said he had heard nothing about such a move.
"I've spoken with Vic. He says he is the nominated candidate, and accordingly he will be running in the next election, notwithstanding whatever rumours might be circulating,'' said Mike Storeshaw, Toews' director of communications.
It is likely the appointment is being postponed until after Parliament breaks for the summer in hopes of keeping the issue out of the House of Commons and the scrutiny of opposition parties during question period.
"It will be seen as parachuting him into this position,'' one source said.
Both Liberal MP Anita Neville and NDP MP Pat Martin said that on paper, Toews is perfectly qualified to be a judge. Prior to entering politics, Toews was a Crown prosecutor in Brandon, and a lawyer and constitutional expert with the Manitoba government.
But politically, Toews' appointment to the bench could potentially create a firestorm in Ottawa.
"What a bombshell,'' said Martin (Winnipeg Centre), adding it is an unprecedented career path for a man who was justice minister less than 18 months ago to be appointed to the bench by his own government.
"The timing and circumstances are extremely unusual," Martin said.
Neville (Winnipeg South Centre) said rumours of Toews' judicial appointment have circulated for the last few weeks.
The potential career change comes at a time when Toews' personal life is tied up in ongoing court proceedings.
His wife, Lorraine Kathleen Fehr, filed for divorce on March 31. In her affidavit, Fehr said the couple's relationship ended last fall. They were married in July 1975.
No specific reasons for the separation are cited, although Fehr indicates she is seeking an uneven distribution of assets.
Toews has not yet filed his own affidavit in response.
The personal problems of the MP, whose riding is in the heart of Manitoba's Bible Belt, have led some Liberals to label Toews the "minister of family values'' during debates in the House of Commons.
Toews' visibility in Ottawa has diminished significantly since his glory days as justice minister, a position he held for 11 months after the Tories were elected. As justice minister, he was one of the point people in Harper's cabinet and was responsible for implementing the party's law-and-order platform -- one of the Tories' Top 5 priorities.
But in January 2007, Toews was suddenly moved to Treasury Board, an influential but much less visible posting. Some believe it was a sign he had fallen out of favour with the prime minister.
Martin and Neville both note Toews has been very quiet in the House of Commons recently, even slowing his usual rate of heckling.
Pierre Poilievre, the young parliamentary secretary for Treasury Board, has been called on by Harper to field most of the questions in the House of Commons about the "in-and-out'' scandal that has seen Elections Canada seize documents from Tory headquarters.
"As Treasury Board president, Vic has been completely invisible," Martin said. "He lets a 28-year-old apprentice take all the questions.''
Toews was convicted under the Manitoba Elections Finances Act for overspending by $7,500 during the 1999 provincial election. A judge handed him a $500 fine in 2005 for the campaign offence.
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