Full Circle - by Bob Plamondon

By Bob Plamondon
Foreword by Lawrence Martin
$36.95 hardcover – 472 pages
ISBN 1-55263-885-3 - Publication date: 21 September 2006

Reviews

National Post – December 23, 2006 “… behind-the-scenes exposé of how the Right united and the Conservatives climbed back to power. It is chock full of insider information that will be devoured by political junkies of all stripes …. revealing is the examination of Peter MacKay's victory in the 2003 PC leadership race and the events leading to the creation of the new party … titillating details about the backroom decision-making process… helpful contribution to the history of one of the most fascinating periods in Canadian politics in a long time.” By Adam Daifallah: co-author of Rescuing Canada's Right (John Wiley & Sons).

Full Circle was one of three recommended political books on Sounds Like Canada (CBC Radio One) with Shelagh Rogers and regular book contributor, Peter Kavanagh: “... Bob Plamondon is a really great public affairs analyst … (his book) is an examination of the last 15 years in the life of conservative politics through all of its manifestations… he dissects the story in a detailed and fascinating fashion primarily because he is a really great writer … (he tells us) how we got to the stage where Stephen Harper is Prime Minister.”

Sun Media columnist Greg Weston puts Full Circle on his Christmas list of “… favourite authors” and “terrific new books.” “Full Circle: Death and Resurrection in Canadian Conservative Politics was this season's big surprise, far exceeding expectations with a revealing dissection of the machinations and backroom wars that forged the Conservative party. Author Bob Plamondon has spent most of his adult life in politics, giving him a perspective well worth the read.” (Greg Weston is the author of Reign of Terror).

Policy Options December 2006-January 2007 : In the most comprehensive review to date, Conservative icon Geoff Norquay extols Full Circle as “groundbreaking.” Norquay is well-positioned to know: he has been a communications and policy adviser to Conservative leaders Joe Clark, Brian Mulroney, Jean Charest and Stephen Harper over the last 25 years.
“(Plamondon) describes in detail for the first time the backroom negotiations that led to the deal between Peter MacKay and David Orchard to deliver MacKay the leadership at the 2003 PC Convention. He also takes the reader deep inside the Alliance-PC negotiations later that year which led to the creation of the new Conservative Party: the choice of the emissaries from both sides, the ups and downs of the merger talks, and the caucus management challenges the leaders faced along the way. And all of it is backed by colourful quotes from many of the key participants ... The Conservatives’ 13 years in the wilderness are perhaps best understood through the relationships among the key protagonists, and here Plamondon really shines ...Plamondon closes the book with the lesson that every conservative should take from the past 13 years.”
L. Ian MacDonald, editor of Policy Options, says this about Full Circle: "It's one of the most important, and surprising, political books of the season."

Paul Jackson from the Calgary Sun calls Full Circle, “masterful” and “enthralling.” Jackson says, “Plamondon offers so many insights into recent Canadian politics, this book reads like a thriller … This should be read by every Canadian. Or, at least, every Canadian who votes.”

Independent Booksellers Selection . Full Circle is in the essential catalogue of quality titles -- Fall 2006 gift guide.

Susan Delacourt of the Toronto Star writes … "(Full Circle) is a solid, detailed chronicle of the players and the events surrounding some stormy years for the Tories. Describing it as 'meticulous,' however, doesn't do it justice — it's thorough and highly readable to boot ... Plamondon's account of Belinda Stronach's defection to the Liberals, and its effect on her then partner, now Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay … is the most complete tale we've seen to date. … in-depth about what was going on in the backrooms through the merger of Canada's right and the emergence of this Conservative government.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Don Mazankowski says, "Full Circle is a must read for everyone who has a fascination for the intricacies of party politics in Canada.

Montréal Gazette columnist L. Ian MacDonald calls Full Circle one of the best political books of the year. The author of four political books and a long-time Tory insider, MacDonald praised Full Circle as both “rewarding (and) informative ... a lot of important information comes to light for the first time… . the Plamondon book is a revelation, quite the most pleasant surprise of the season.”

The Globe and Mail says Full Circle is: "a meticulous, blow-by-blow account of the road to the merger that captures both the tension and tedium of back-room politics ...Plamondon is at his best when he is debunking popular myths and spin ...He draws an engrossing portrait of the main protagionists, as well as the bit players, which emerges from his factual account of their behaviour than from occasional stabs at creative writing. Plamondon's forte is reporting, not coloratura…”

Ken Rockburn, host of CPAC's Talk Politics said Full Circle is "jam-packed with details... fascinating reading for anybody who is a political junkie ... I really enjoyed it."

Ottawa Magazine makes Full Circle its "Editor's Top Pick ... Best of Fall ... one of the books everybody will be talking about this season."

In Embassy, Canada's foreign policy newsweekly, Christoper Guly says, "Plamondon provides some fascinating information and revelations."

Bruce's Book Depository (1460 CJOY) notes that, "Plamondon … a real Tory insider … conducted tons of interviews with many of the major players from the mid-80’s through to present day… Full Circle is a comprehensive history ... Plamondon brings the story of the Reform/Alliance/P.C./C.P. into focus with the benefit of having access to (most) of the major players.

Acclaim for Full Circle

Rt. Hon Don Mazankowski -- "Full Circle is a must read for everyone who has a fascination for the intracacies of party politics in Canada."

Senator David Angus -- "This talented author has brilliantly portrayed the fascinating transition of Canada's political landscape from the past to the present."

Mike Duffy (CTV NewsNet) -- "There is a lot of great stuff in this book. If (revelations of Stronach's defection) doesn't get you to go out and buy the book, I don't know what will."

Senator Gerry St. Germain -- "A literary work of excellence."

Senator John Lynch-Staunton (retired) --"Having witnessed first hand many of the events described in Full Circle, as well as having been an active participant in a number of them, I found the book to be most informative and generally well-documented."

Don Butler (Ottawa Citizen) -- Full Circle "... reveals a host of previously unreported details."

Jospeh Plante (Editor of The Commentary.ca) -- "Full Circle is endlessly fascinating"

Joe Cannon (New 940 Montreal) -- " A terific book with wonderful stories."

A Best Seller

• Debuts on the Montreal Gazette best-seller list at number four.
• "Top 50" on Amazon.ca.
• Over 6,500 copies ordered within 30 days of publication -- well above bestseller status in Canada
  
• Second largest number of books ever sold by Chapters Ottawa at an event.

Foreword by Lawrence Martin

Extracts from the foreword by Lawrence Martin
(Globe and Mail columnist and author of ten books)

... The astonishing story of the crash of conservatism and its rebirth is the subject of Bob Plamondon’s Full Circle. The author comes at it with a unique perspective. Party insiders sometimes do such books. Academics sometimes do them and often it is journalists who take up the challenge. Plamondon provides the advantage of bringing all three perspectives to the table. He has taught at several universities, he was a party insider, having run once for the Tories and worked for the party in elections and leadership conventions. In researching the book he has done the journalists’ labour, interviewing more than 30 key figures in the drama.

... His voyage through the last two decades brings new twists and astute analysis to the narrative. Because the post-Mulroney conservative factions could never manage to pose a legitimate threat at winning power, they were hardly the subject of a profusion of books and studies. Plamondon’s is the first to chart the fall and rise with such thoroughness.

... Having created the Reform Party, Preston Manning was soon to learn that as a right-leaning Alberta-based rump, he could not win on the national level. He was a historian of sorts. History, as Plamondon amply records, demonstrated that the Conservatives only won when they built coalitions to broaden their tent. Manning had narrowed it.

...The Orchard affair for the first time gets a full hearing in this book. As Plamondon points out, leadership conventions have often been marked by secret plots and secret deals. The pact between MacKay and the left-wing Tory David Orchard took on a more sinister life than the others. For the future of conservatism, it was good that it did.

... Full Circle details the story of how the surprisingly quick merger was conceived and executed. What effective authors of history do is get underneath the running accounts of journalism to provide new information, insights and meaningful context. Plamondon’s account reveals how an obscure event, the Perth-Middlesex by-election in May of 2003, changed Stephen Harper: it reveals special moments, such as the fateful one when MacKay came across Harper in the Commons corridor and uttered the words, “You and I have to talk:” It shows how Belinda Stronach, credited in the media as a significant player in the merger, was in fact of little significance: How Brian Mulroney was pulling the strings telling everyone how Jean Chretien had been going to bed every night saying “Merci beaucoup Preston Manning:”

About the Author

Bob Plamondon, FCA, is one of Canada’s leading public policy specialists, and has taught at three Canadian universities. A veteran political observer and conservative insider, he ran for Parliament in 1988, did a stint in the Tory war room in 1993, was an advisor to Conservative Leaders and a key backroom figure in the 2003 Tory leadership contest.

He is the author of the national bestseller, Hay West: A Story of Canadians Helping Canadians and the Public Policy Forum publication, Transforming Health Research in Canada: The Making of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

He lives in Ottawa with his wife, Marian Coke, and children Nathaniel, Charlotte, Megan, and Michael.

Readers can email Bob at full_circle@sympatico.ca

Full Circle - In the news

CBC - The National
Bob Plamondon interviewd by Keith Boag on the ideology of the new Conservative government (aired October 17, 2006)

Interviewed for a story on the politcal implications of changing public priorties (November 8, 2006)

Interviewed by Leslie MacKinnon discusing the Liberal leadewrship contestants; from a conservative perspective (November 30, 2006)

CPAC - Talk Politics with Ken Rockburn
Thirty minute interview with Bob Plamondon aired on October 22.

Ottawa Citizen

*Front page - above the fold - full spread (September 16, 2006) -- "How Mulroney united the Right -- Former PM's role in merger was 'crucial,' behind-the-scenes book says
* Front page - (September 18, 2006) -- "The untold story of Stronach's defection -- A Tory insider's book says Belinda Stronach jumped to the Liberals on an impulse, and came very close to cancelling the move, Don Butler reveals
* Front page - above the fold - plus all of page A-3 (September 19, 2006)-- "The apprenticeship of Belinda Stronach - She didn't get into the political game to sit on the back bench - An exclusive excerpt from Tory insider Bob Plamondon.
(Ottawa Citizen stories by Don Butler were reprinted in Southam publications across Canada)

Ottawa Magazine - Best of Fall

Editor's pick for the book everybody will be talking about this season (October 2006)

On Line Interviews

Listen to an interview on STImedia on Full Circle with Greg Staples and Bob Plamondon

www.stimedia.com/2006/10/october_27_2006_1807_bob_plamo.html

This link is to an inventory on the Commentary.ca

www.thecommentary.ca/ontheline/20061107a.html

National Post
"A feast of words: From old favourites to talented newcomers, fall's crop of new titles should keep book lovers drooling (September 23, 2006 - by Elizabeth Schaal).
"The non-fiction shelves are groaning with weighty titles this fall, not least in the realm of politics, Canadians' blood sport of choice. Political junkies are no doubt drooling (or sharpening their knives) in anticipation of Bob Plamondon's Full Circle: Death and Resurrection in Canadian Conservative Politics (Key Porter)

From the Globe and Mail

August 26, 2006 Page R12, by James Adams. Some must reads for this season's deluge of new titles (recommended readings) Full Circle ... a non-fiction highlight.

Book gives Stronach lesser role in Tory merger (August 5, 2006, Page A6, by Jane Taber)


Hill Times

Segal, Plamondon to release some juicy political books (May 22, 2006 by Kady O'Malley)

"Sen. Segal will be sharing shelf space with fellow former Progressive Conservative, Bob Plamondon, author of Full Circle: Death and Resurrection in Canadian Conservative Politics, which will be published by Key Porter in late September.