Gordon O’Connor has come under some scrutiny for his lobbying work in the military industry. Harper has been quick to defend his new Minister:

“having worked in an industry in the past does constitute a conflict of interest”

…unless you’re a low level assistant to the western desk, that is. It certainly is odd that Harper would appoint a former lobbyist to Cabinet, when he’s trying to bring in new legislation banning government workers from lobbying for five years after they leave office.

Luckily, O’Connor has a better explanation:

“Years ago, I went and represented companies to find out what was involved in projects to advise them how to approach projects to advise them how to approach projects, how to bid, how to produce their documents, that sort of stuff,”

If Harper has shown Paul Martin ethics, O’Connor is showing Paul Martin hyperbole. “Years ago” translates to February 23rd, 2004.

Yes, it’s nice to have a Minister of Defence with military experience, but the optics on this one certainly aren’t ideal.