With his arm in a sling, Pallister’s staffers come out swinging

Premier still mum on details of his accident so his communications people take over throwing political punches

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A week after he suffered a broken left arm in a serious fall on a remote hiking trail in New Mexico, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister again declined all media interviews Monday.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/11/2017 (2890 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A week after he suffered a broken left arm in a serious fall on a remote hiking trail in New Mexico, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister again declined all media interviews Monday.

However, that didn’t stop the premier’s staff from lashing out at his critics, particularly frequent foe Andrew Swan of the NDP.

Pallister didn’t have his cellphone with him when he fell, said director of communications and stakeholder relations Chisholm Pothier, but the premier was in contact with staff throughout his trip and he was not ignoring preparation for Tuesday’s throne speech.

THE CANADIAN PRESS / Government of Manitoba Handout photo
Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister recovers in a hotel in New Mexico in a handout photo provided by the Manitoba government. Pallister was injured while hiking in New Mexico. A government statement says the premier was hiking in the Gila Wilderness when he had a serious fall.
THE CANADIAN PRESS / Government of Manitoba Handout photo Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister recovers in a hotel in New Mexico in a handout photo provided by the Manitoba government. Pallister was injured while hiking in New Mexico. A government statement says the premier was hiking in the Gila Wilderness when he had a serious fall.

Swan had earlier told reporters: “We’re compelled to ask whether the premier is carrying and using a government cellphone. How many weeks a year is the premier away from Manitoba and not in contact?”

The NDP MLA said with only a week off between the end of the last legislative session and Tuesday’s throne speech, Pallister should have been in Winnipeg talking to constituents. He also said Pallister posting a four-minute interview with a staffer on Facebook is not the appropriate way to tell Manitobans what happened to him during his Nov. 13 hike.

Pothier countered in a news release Monday afternoon.

“No idea how the NDP prepared its throne speeches, but ours don’t get written the week before they are delivered. The tone and substance of the throne speech was completed well before last week,” he wrote. “As such, the premier elected to take a few days away with his wife. He had his government cellphone with him and was receiving routine updates via e-mail. He was able to be in contact with staff if need be. Obviously, the need arose after his accident.

“He did not have his cellphone with him on the hike. Cellphone reception in Gila national park is spotty at best, and hikers in this area are warned against relying on a cellphone to get one out of trouble during a hike,” Pothier wrote.

“Although Mr. Swan is not a big user of social media, he should be aware that platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have been around for more than 10 years and are used by most elected officials. With the premier under doctor’s orders to rest and recover at home, a quick video update posted to social media was the most effective of providing accurate and timely information to Manitobans.”

It is still not clear why it took four days for the premier’s office to make Pallister’s serious fall and injuries known to the public, nor is it clear when his staff first learned what had happened.

“The premier has been his own worst enemy when it comes to making Manitobans wonder who’s in charge,” Swan said.

“I was surprised. We got an update on the premier’s condition, when we didn’t know anything had happened to the premier,” said Swan, who conceded Pallister has the right to go on vacation and undertake whatever activities he chooses.

After the months of NDP attacks over how, and if, Pallister was in communication with his office while he was at the family villa in Costa Rica, Swan said, a protocol came down this summer directing cabinet ministers to carry and use government cellphones.

Pallister was in his office for part of the day Monday, and is expected to attend the throne speech. However, it is not clear if he will scrum with reporters.

“This is kind of an unprecedented event,” Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said. “I was surprised he was on vacation – that’s his choice.

“He was lost for hours. It is a challenge as to how it was communicated.”

Brandon University political science Prof. Kelly Saunders said, despite his years as an MP and MLA, Pallister “seems to be very reluctant to realize he’s made the transition from a private person to a public person. There are just so many questions here.”

“We’ve seen this pattern with the premier in the past” raising issues if he is in contact with his staff, Saunders said. “I question his judgment perhaps, in how he chooses to spend his private time. A premier is never off the clock.”

Chris Adams, a political scientist based at St. Paul’s College in Winnipeg, said Manitobans accept Pallister’s right to take a vacation. Nevertheless, “People are quite right to ask why we are only hearing four days after the incident.”

And no one has answered, Adams said: “Is the premier able to perform his duties?”

Meanwhile, the Mounties and the Prime Minister’s Office were reluctant Monday to talk about security measures for Justin Trudeau’s vacation time.

RCMP spokesman Stéphanie Dumoulin said the force’s protective detail “is adaptive to the PM’s movements and activities. We therefore adjust our security posture based on needs and requirements.”

Dumoulin would not say whether that means the prime minister has to have a cellphone, or be escorted at all times, and whether that limits what activities Trudeau undertakes.

– with files from Dylan Robertson

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca

History

Updated on Monday, November 20, 2017 6:32 PM CST: fixes deck

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