Rumour mill beginning to heat up

With the Conservative National Caucus meeting in Charlottetown just a week away, rumours are beginning to swirl over a possible cabinet shuffle come the fall. One of the names that has consistently come up in shuffle discussions is that of Finance Minister Jim Flaherty. And even though I'm a fan of the Finance Minister, I can't deny that he has demonstrated poor leadership skills when it comes to managing the nation's finances. Which is why he was one of my picks for demotion a month ago. (Well, they were actually Gerry's suggestions, but I agreed with all of them)

Moreover, it's probably not a bad political move for the PM in Atlantic Canada to move him out of finance, especially after his [Falherty's] infamous signed letter in the Chronicle Herald defending his government's budget [O'Brien report] as well as saying there would be no side deals. Let's just say if they don't, as CTF National Director John Williamson explains, "Jim Flaherty could single-handedly defeat more Conservative MPs from Atlantic Canada than the combined efforts of all Liberal organizers in the region." In other words, as the Newfs say, he's nutin' more than an Angishore.

It will be interesting to see how things round out.