Ignatieff the gossipy girl

So, for the first time in history that we know of, the Prime Minister asked the Queen's secretary in Canada to consult with the Leader of the Opposition about the appointment of the next Governor General.

Of course, Stephen Harper didn't have to do that; it was a courtesy, and a novel one at that.

Choosing a Governor General is a very sober decision in our democracy, one of the last political acts that remains above partisanship.

So what did Ignatieff do?

Within hours of being asked, confidentially, for his advice, there he is on Parliament Hill, scrumming about it -- and announcing to the world that Michaelle Jean ought to be reappointed, because of her race and sex.

Let's ignore the obvious objections to Ignatieff's continued use of the Graves Strategy of culture war, in which he tries to pit Canadian against each other based on race, sex, geography, class, etc.

Let's ignore how his partisanship is corroding that office and, as Andrew Coyne points out, puts whomever her successor will be in a difficult position.

But what does it say about Ignatieff's ability to keep a secret? A state secret?

Michael Ignatieff is demanding access to every scrap of information about the Afghan war -- every military secret, every diplomatic secret, every national security secret. All of it. Not only is he demanding it for himself, but for his entire caucus -- a caucus that includes, for example, Borys Wrzesnewskyj, the Hezbollah sympathizer.

Ignatieff is given a confidential call by the Queen's secretary, and he can't wait to rush down to Parliament to tell all of his gossipy friends in the media about it.

He's so damned excited about being in on something, about knowing something that others don't, that he is just bursting to tell people -- to hell with the consequences to the country.

Do you really think we could trust that man with our most vital national security secrets?

That chatty cathy, that gossipy little girl can't keep a simple phone call from the Queen's secretary secret, without wanting to rush down to the cool kids in the press gallery to impress them.

And we're expected to believe that he would respect the secrecy of our national security documents?

The quicker we can send this spoiled brat back down to Harvard, the better for all of us -- including him.