The 2013 Parliamentarians of the Year

I have three small pieces in the December 2nd issue of Maclean's, profiles related to this year's Parliamentarian of the Year Awards. This was the second year in a row that I was involved with the survey that led up to the awards, which involved a lot of chasing down MPs in the Foyer of the House of Commons, but this year because of prorogation, also involved hectoring by phone and office visits. Unlike last year, I was able to do some of the write-ups of the winners, and was assigned the interviews for Rising Star, Most Knowledgeable, and Best Represents Constituents. Despite the long hours of survey duty in the Foyer, it's a great way to get to know MPs that you don't have a lot of contact with otherwise, and these awards really are one of the highlights of the parliamentary calendar.

Royal family entitled to ‘extraordinary’ membership in the Order of Canada

I have a story up on the PostMedia wire service today, that looks at the changes made to the constitutions of the Order of Canada and the Order of Military Merit in order to allow for the members of the royal family to become members of these Orders, despite not being Canadian citizens. It was a bit of a crazy day to write this story, with the royal baby fever going on and all of the usual royal commentators otherwise occupied and Rideau Hall's media office being short-staffed, but I managed to make my deadline (just barely), and got a pretty good story out of it in the end.

Day 6: This is how Question Period should work

I made my first appearance on radio this morning as a guest contributor on CBC Radio One's "Day 6" this morning. It was a two-minute essay, which was a different kind of writing than I'm used to doing, and being in the booth doing the voice work was a new experience for me as well. But it's already been really well received, so I'm quite pleased with the work.

CTV News Channel - June 1 appearance

I was on CTV News Channel first thing this morning to talk about the latest revelations around Senator Mike Duffy, and how this is playing out in the Senate as a whole. It was another Skype appearance, but this time I was better aware about some of the issues like placement and lighting, so it looked a lot better than my first time out in this format.

CTV News Channel - May 27 appearance

I had another appearance on CTV News Channel this afternoon, to talk about Stephen Harper not showing up in QP, the latest developments in the Nigel Wright/Mike Duffy affair, and questions on Senate Reform. It was an enjoyable experience, and I'm getting quite used to them now.

CTV News Channel - May 18 appearance

I had another appearance on CTV News Channel today to discuss the resignations from caucus of Senators Wallin and Duffy, this time by way of Skype, which was a new experience. While the connection - and sound quality - wasn't as great as I would have liked, it was still another great experience as I get more accustomed to doing this kind of work.

CTV News Channel - May 9 appearance

I was on CTV News Channel today to talk about the Senate audits. The clip was short and to the point, and I had been hoping to talk a bit more about the reaction to the new rules, but it was still a good clip, and I'm glad to have been asked to speak about it.