I’ve been outside the country for the past week (prepare the attack ads). While they say a week is a long time in politics, it doesn’t look like I missed much. After all…

1. The Liberals are still searching for an interim leader. Perhaps we should just name an interim interim leader, while the search goes on.

Liberals appear convinced Bob Rae would make a fantastic interim leader…they just don’t want him anywhere near the permanent job. After all, the Liberal Party must look to the future, which explains why the sons of Pierre Trudeau and Romeo LeBlanc are the front runners to replace Ignatieff.

2. On that topic, the leadership vote has been called for October. Only it hasn’t. There will be an “extraordinary” telephone convention to change the rules in June, which would mean a leadership vote in…I dunno…I guess sometime before the 2015 election. But that’s just a guess at this point.

3. Cabinet shuffle speculation is still at a feverish pitch. As usual, everyone’s speculation will be wrong.

4. Ruth Ellen Brousseau is still in the news. While she may not be known by the voters who elected her, but she is probably one of the most recognizable MPs in Canada right now. The Globe seems to run her picture on every story – even those talking about Liberal leadership, Barack Obama, and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Every REB sighting or non-sighting has become front page news. Which is a nice break for the other 20 equally unqualified MPs in Jack’s caucus.

5. Two weeks after Canadians voted, and Jack Layton is still winning seats. This man is simply unstopable.

6. What has changed in the past week is the projected date we’ll get out of deficit. That campaign promise didn’t last very long, now did it?