Pubdate: Fri, 05 May 2006
Source: Vancouver Courier (CN BC)
Copyright: 2006 Vancouver Courier
Contact:  http://www.vancourier.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/474
Author: Allen Garr
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/hr.htm (Harm Reduction)

CRAFTY SAM SLINGS WHOPPERS

Mayor Sam Sullivan is proving to be a lot craftier than I have ever 
given him credit for. Just look at his statement to the RCMP about 
him paying for two addicts to buy illicit drugs.

I'm not just referring to the content of the statement or the timing 
of it. There is also the very fact it was made public and the way it 
was made public.

When have you ever seen any statement made to the police that was 
released to the media at the very same time it was delivered to the 
cops? Why would Sullivan do that?

Maybe he doesn't trust the cops. More likely he had an opportunity 
for political advantage. I'll explain why in just a moment.

But first: You should know this statement didn't come our way through 
the political staff in the mayor's office.

Journalists actually received notice that both the statement and the 
mayor were available from a PR outfit called Reputations. Reputations 
has its fingers in a number of interesting pots around this city. The 
owner is Wayne Hartrick. He was the spokesman for the Wal-Mart 
development on Southeast Marine Drive when the COPE council rejected 
it. (It will most likely be back before Sullivan's NPA council again 
this summer.) His company is currently helping Gastown merchants 
fight the proposed stadium on the Vancouver waterfront.

Hartrick has been a long time advisor to Sullivan and put his 
company's resources at Sullivan's disposal in the battle against 
Christy Clark for the NPA nomination. Hartrick was the NPA spokesman 
during the election. One of Hartrick's senior employees, Allen 
Langdon, was NPA Coun. Peter Ladner's campaign manager and continues 
to advise the NPA caucus. Langdon was just elected to the NPA board.

A Reputations spokesman says Sullivan used the firm because this is a 
"personal matter." When the mayor, who is also the chair of the 
police board, is asked to explain to the RCMP statements to the press 
that, while he was a city councillor, he gave people money 
specifically so they could buy illicit drugs, that's personal.

So why was Hartrick used on a couple of Sullivan's Olympic 
activities, including his flag waving demonstration and the rest of 
his time in Turin? Is that personal, too?

It looks like Sullivan is running a parallel, off the books, spin 
machine. Extraordinary.

After stalling for months on this statement, Sullivan's timing 
couldn't have been better. It hit the front pages right in the middle 
of the international harm reduction conference. (A day later it would 
have been buried by coverage of the federal budget.)

He presents more of a campaign speech than what would be considered a 
statement to police explaining, for example, an incident like a car 
accident or a home break-in.

Instead, Sullivan can rewrite history by serving up more Whoppers 
than Burger King.

He sets himself up as the guiding light of the city's harm reduction 
strategy. He was the guy who thought of it first and had to convince 
former mayor Philip Owen to come along because of Owen's "initial 
reservations."

Even though the story of his drug buying donations were prominently 
reported in the media and based on interviews with him, he casts 
himself, as usual, as a victim.

In this case, it wasn't his front page confessions-it was Larry 
Campbell and Vision Vancouver that caused him grief over the issue. 
Campbell's complaints forced the police chief's hand to ask the RCMP 
to look into the matter, Sullivan says.

Sullivan seems to make a habit of being frugal with the truth.

Former NPA councillor Lynne Kennedy is still smarting from the fact 
that, during the last election campaign, Sullivan ripped her off for 
credit she deserves for championing the no-smoking bylaw in Vancouver.

And so far the crafty fellow has gotten away with it all.