Kathleen Wynne Pitch Speech

Kathleen Wynne's presentation started ominously, with break dancing old people.  Her bio basically cast her as...technocrat is too harsh a term...but someone who has spent time solving problems within "the system".  Tough but caring, maybe like your old high-school principle.

As for the speech itself, there was an acknowledgement that we are on FN territory (though Jeff Jedras thinks we swiped it from them fair and square through a treaty).  She made a FN ref  last night as well, and  has been the only OLDLDR potential to do that.  And a bit later there was an explicit reference to forging better relations with Metis, FN, and some other group I can't remember.  Her way of appealing to Northern Ontario?

A particularly good bit came about the halfway point, when she noted that the Liberals must acknowledge their mistakes "and promise not to make them again", which played to her strong suit--competence.  Her terms as minister of whatever were pretty much scandal free.

And then she dropped the bomb: can a gay woman win in Ontario?  "Not surprisingly, I have an answer to that."  Quite well done. But how will it play in Lanark?

I should say that I remember Kathleen speaking back in the 1990s.  She could be very effective at times, but would often get caught up in bureaucratese or reference some obscure Romanian existentialist.  This performance was far, far above that.  No notes.  No nothing.

Though Charles Sousa had by far the best guest suite last night, I am going to skip his presentation and do a little book shopping.  Will be back for Pupatello, though.

PS. Rumour is he goes to Pupatello after dropping out.