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E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/02/02 
TAGS: PGOV PREL CA
SUBJECT: Ignatieff's COS Donolo on Elections, U.S., IPR 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Kevin Johnson, Consul General, State, Toronto Exec; 
REASON: 1.4(B), (D) 
 
¶1.  (C/NF)  Summary:  Liberal Party leader Michael Ignatieff's 
Chief of Staff Peter Donolo told CG January 22 that PM Harper would 
likely push for Fall elections now that his "heavy-handed" prorogue 
of Parliament had backfired with the public and made Spring 
elections less attractive.  He said time was on the Liberals' side 
and said the March "thinkers summit" would reinvigorate his party 
as similar gatherings had in the past.  He stressed that differing 
with the U.S. was a "defining element" of being Canadian.  Asked 
about IPR, he said it was not a partisan issue, but that Ignatieff 
was asked about copyright issues at every campus stop by those 
wanting content "free forever"; Ignatieff always answered that, as 
a former author, he insists that creators be protected, and that 
Liberals would have no objection to thoughtful and fair IPR reform. 
End summary. 
 
 
 
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PM Wanted Spring elections, but Miscalculated 
 
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¶2.  (SBU)  On January 22 Liberal party leader Ignatieff's new Chief 
of Staff Peter Donolo was optimistic and animated on many topics in 
his first meeting with CG.  Calling recent Conservative Party (PC) 
declines in polls the direct result of Prime Minister Stephen 
Harper's proroguing of Parliament, Donolo said Harper badly 
overplayed his hand and would now likely abandon his hopes for a 
Spring election.   Acknowledging that the Liberals "needed the 
time," he said a Fall election was now more likely.  He said the 
Liberals' March "thinkers conference" would reinvigorate a party 
not accustomed to being in opposition, but that it would not 
produce a specific party agenda, something which would come later 
and be held closely until the election campaign.  He called PM 
Harper clever, but a right-wing ideologue out of touch with 
Canadian values.  He said Harper ended any semblance of Canadian 
leadership in international affairs, although he acknowledged that 
Harper's response to the Haiti earthquake was robust. 
 
 
 
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Differing with the U.S. Defines Us 
 
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¶3.  (C/NF)  Donolo went on at length about how important it is to 
Canadians to be seen as different from Americans.  He said this 
difference "defines us" along with French-English tension and 
accommodation and East-West competition.  He noted PM Mulroney had 
been a U.S. "lap dog" in a way even Harper was wary of.  He 
recalled once calling White House press secretary Michael McCurry 
after President Clinton had been "over the top" in praising PM 
Chretien, asking that the President be "less generous lest he hurt 
the PM politically."  McCurry laughingly said that was the first 
time a foreign leader had ever asked for "LESS" love from the 
President rather than more.  Things are easier with a Democrat in 
the White House, he added, but we should always remember this "need 
for difference."  He speculated that Canada staying out of the Iraq 
war might have saved free trade by convincing Canadians that they 
need not fear political integration with the U.S., so economic 
integration was less threatening. 
 
 
 
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IPR Reform OK with Liberals in Principle 
 
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¶4.  (U)  Asked about support for IPR reform, Donolo said Ignatieff 
was asked at every campus visit about supporting a system that 
 
would keep internet content "free forever."  While supporting 
democratic access to information and sympathetic to protests 
against monopolies, Ignatieff always reminded the audience that, as 
an author, he supported rules to protect content.  Donolo said 
Liberals had no objection to fair and thoughtful IPR reform, 
acknowledging that Canada should comply with international 
standards.  He was aware that the EU was also pushing this issue. 
 
 
 
¶5.  (C/NF)  Comment:  While not surprising in substance, the 
vehemence and length of Donolo's exposition on differing with the 
U.S. stood out.  Working for a candidate criticized for having used 
"we" when talking about Americans, Donolo may find this an 
especially important talking point in general.  He may also have 
been signaling to a U.S. official that we should expect and 
understand some aggressive use of "not the U.S." in Liberal 
campaigns. 
JOHNSON