John Diefenbaker

the very honourable John George Diefenbaker , C.H., C.P., C.R., B.A., M.A., LL.B, LL.D., D.C.L, M.S.R.C, F.R.S.A., D.LITT, D.S.L (born the September 18th 1895, deceased the August 16th 1979) was thirteenth the Prime Minister of Canada of the June 21st 1957 with the April 22nd 1963. Born with Neustadt (Ontario) from his parents William and Mary (Bannerman), it supplemented its baccalaureat in 1915, a control in Political science and economy in 1916, and a license in Droit in 1919 to the Université of Saskatchewan. Diefenbaker married Edna Brower (1901 - 1951) in 1929. In 1953, after the death of Edna, it was remarié in Olive Palmer (1902 - 1976), who had a girl of one preceding marriage. Diefenbaker did not generate any child.

Diefenbaker was affublé several nicknames during its career, including " Dief" , " Dief the Chief" , " J.G.D." , and " The Leader" (it continued to trail this last even after its departure of the post of Prime Minister).

Beginning of career

John George Diefenbaker briefly made service in the Canadian Armée in the First World War, of March 1916 at July 1917, acquiérant the rank of lieutenant in the 29e Light Horse. He was sent in England for drive of pre-deployment. He was never deployed in France, having undergone a wound which made him cough blood. He was declared invalid and returned to the Canada, where he was released from his military service, being médicalement inapt for the service because of cardiac irregularities. He was accepted with the bar of the Saskatchewan in 1919, and became lawyer in criminal right. In 1920, Diefenbaker was elected alderman for the municipal council of the town of Wakaw (Saskatchewan). It failed in its attempt to be made re-elect in 1923. At that time, its lawyer career succeeded better than his political career, and it was named with the Council of the King in 1929.

Diefenbaker directed the Conservative party of Saskatchewan of 1936 to 1938, taking the reins of the party after its total destruction at the time of the provincial election of 1934 which made fall the conservative government from the Prime Minister James T.M. Anderson. The career of Diefenbaker, at its beginnings, was marked especially by a singular absence of success; it was presented, without success, in more than one dozen of elections at the municipal, provincial and federal level, as well in Saskatchewan as in Alberta, before being finally made elect again.

Diefenbaker was elected for the first time at the House of Commons of Canada to the federal election of 1940. It was among a small handle of conservatives of the Western to being elected appointed under the unfruitful platforme of a National Government advanced by the party. The conservative party spent the years between 1935 and 1957 in the opposition, without any chance with the capacity, and Diefenbaker was one of the rare deputies inspiring of the opposition lasting this period. In 1952, he was the delegate of Canada to UNO.

Diefenbaker was candidate at the time of four races to the direction of the Parti progressist-conservative. In 1943, it was overcome by the Prime Minister Manitoba in John Bracken. In 1948, it was demolishes by the Ontarian Prime Minister George Drew. It gained finally the victory in 1956. It was also demolishes by the Prime Minister Nova Scotian Robert Stanfield in his attempt to remain with the direction of the party in 1967.

Prime Minister of Canada

Diefenbaker directed the Parti progressist-conservative Canada of 1956 to 1967, and was Prime Minister of Canada June 21st 1957 with the April 22nd 1963. It led its party to the victory with the election of 1957, which enabled him to form a Minority government. Diefenbaker again led its party to the election of 1958 and gained largest parliamentary majority hitherto in the Histoire of Canada. It named Ellen Fairclough like first woman minister in Canada

Diefenbaker took what some regard as one of the most discussed political decisions last century in Canada, the February 10th 1959, when its government cancelled the development and the production of the Avro CF-105 Arrow. Arrow was a technologically advanced fighter plan being able to reach high speeds Mach 2, built by A.V. Roe Canada (Avro) in Malton, in Ontario (in the west of Toronto). 40000 employment direct and indirect was lost. Canada by this fact, which had all the charts to become world leader in aeronautics, took again its row of dependant. After having cancelled the project, the Canadian government bought the Bomarc missiles and of the interceptors F-101 Voodoo all worn] with American, to defend Canada in the possibility of an attack of nuclear bombers Soviet coming from north. However, although the government had initially approved Bomarc and Voodoo, he balked by realizing that both would be equipped with nuclear warheads. The refusal of Diefenbaker to allow nuclear weapons in Canadian ground led to several resignations of the members of its cabinet and the fall of its government in 1963.

Its hostility towards the American government and its irritation towards the president John F. Kennedy when this one omitted to consult it in advance on the question returned Diefenbaker skeptic as for the gravity of the Crise of the missiles of Cuba. It was égalemenet slow to react to the American request to raise the level of alarm of the Canadian armed forces to the Defcon 3. The Minister for defense, Douglas Harkness, defied Diefenbaker and put the army in state of alert two days before the decision of the cabinet to authorize it there. Diefenbaker played a big role in the adoption of the Canadian Déclaration of the rights in 1960. This was the first attempt to state the basic rights of the Canadian citizens in a bill. Because the Declaration of the rights was a simple law, and not part of the Canadian Constitution, the rights were not codified in a way legally applicable, since the courts could not use it to cancel federal laws or provincial which were contradictory there. Therefore, its effect on the decisions of the courts, contrary to the Canadian Charter of the rights and freedoms of 1982, was limited.

The progressist-conservatives lost their parliamentary majority with the elections of 1962. Immediately after, the minority government of Diefenbaker started a program to reduce the governmental expenditure and to raise the customs tariffs and interest rates of the banks. It reorganized its cabinet, transferring its Minister for Finance Donald Fleming to the post of minister from justice, the substitute by George C. Nowlan.

In September 1962, Diefenbaker attended the conference of the Prime Ministers for the the Commonwealth to London. It tackled the British accession there with the European Economic community, informant that it would be with the expenses of Canada which would become more and more depending economically on the the United States. He also criticized the policy of the Apartheid in South Africa, and was opposed successfully to the réadmission of this country in the Commonwealth after his transformation into République.

Chief of the opposition

Diefenbaker was beaten in the federal election of 1963 by the liberal Lester B. Pearson.

Diefenbaker remained chief of the Party progressist-conservative after the election of 1963. To the debate on the flag in 1964, Diefenbaker led the opposition to the Unifolié, preferring to keep the Red Ensign Canadian like national flag. To surprised of several, it conducted a aggressive campaign in 1965, confining the liberals of Pearson at a minority government. Pearson had started the election in the meantime to collect a majority. The most impassioned intervention of Diefenbaker as chief of the opposition was his opposition to the unifoliate flag proposed, than it called the Pearson Pennant (flag of Pearson).

However, a dissatisfaction growing towards him led to a dissension open in the party. The president of the party, Dalton Camp, asked for a vote of confidence, a possibility which was not envisaged in the constitution of the party. The efforts of Camp led to a race with the direction of the party in 1967. Although he was candidate for his own succession, Diefenbaker was beaten by the Prime Minister Nova Scotian Robert Stanfield. It retained however its seat at the Parliament for the twelve next years, until its death. In 1969, it was named chancellor with the Université of Saskatchewan to Saskatoon.

Diefenbaker died the August 16th 1979 with Ottawa, in Ontario. In conformity with its last wills, its skin was transported by train of Ottawa until Saskatoon to be buried there. Thousands of Canadian were assembled close to the rails of the railroad to bid their farewell with " Dief" before it was buried beside Right Honourable John G. Diefenbaker Center with the Université of Saskatchewan. It had envisaged a special ceremony according to which the Unifolié would cover its coffin in first, which would be then covered by the red Enseigne which it had defended with such an amount of intensity at the Parliament. Its funeral of state was carried out as it had planned them years aupauravant. They were chaired by the transitory government of the Prime Minister Joe Clark, a preserving colleague who had excluded it from his cabinet, not without controversy. During the funerary services, Clark pronounced a funeral praise.

Legacy

In 1967, the house of childhood of Diefenbaker was moved of Borden (Saskatchewan) to the Wascana park with Regina, Saskatchewan. In 2001, Wascana Center Authority prohibits the site with the visitors, and in 2004 it was moved with the museum Sukanene Ship and Pioneer Village, to 13 km in the south of Moose Jaw.

The lake Diefenbaker bears the name of the former Prime Minister. It is a tank on Southern the Saskatchewan river created following the construction of the Gardiner stopping. One also baptized the airport of Saskatoon the John G. Diefenbaker International Airport in his honor. A planet in the universe of BattleTech Wargame also bears its name.

Between 1993 and 2003 Diefenbaker was often presented like a " father spirituel" or like a symbol of the values Red Tory , or the conservatism progressist preached by the Party staggering progressist-conservative. In a book publishes in 2000 and entitled In Defense off Civility (Defense of the courtesy), the strategist tory and former candidate with the progressist-preserving direction, the senator Hugh Segal declares that Diefenbaker " conservatism progressist defined as the ultimate balance between the free enterprise, the profits and the economic growth on a side, and social justice and the respect for the interests of the men and ordinary women of the autre." (Diefenbaker defined Progressive Conservatism ace the ultimate balances for free enterprise, profit-making and economic growth one the one hand, and social justice and respect for the interests off the common man one the other.) Several progressist-conservatives red tory, like David Orchard and Heward Grafftey, embarrassed or not very fond of delicacies of the Prime Ministers recent progressist-conservatives like Joe Clark, Brian Mulroney and Kim Campbell, identified their own political traditions, values and positions at the Diefenbaker era. Nevertheless, although the political némésis of Diefenbaker, the liberal chief To ballast B. Pearson, was somewhat eclipsed by the blazing charisma of Diefenbaker during the tenth decade of the confederation, the reputation of Diefenbaker did not cease fading with time, whereas that of Pearson did not cease being embellished.

In its memories, Diefenbaker affirmed that he had never liked the name " progressist-conservateur" adoptee by the party in 1943. In the first volume of its autobiography One Canada Diefenbaker declares: " Since its origins as a very first national political party in Canada in 1854, the party was called preserving. The name was changed under Dr. Robert Manion. In the election of 1940, the “preserving” word was never mentioned. The party became the Party of the national government. More important still of John Bracken in 1943 was the requirement so that the party adopts the name of progressist-conservative. The direction of these operations escapes to me. I always preferred the name of conservateur." (From its inception ace Canada' S first national political party in 1854, the Conservative Party has been called. The name was changed under Dr. Robert Manion. In the 1940 election, Conservative was nowhere mentioned. The party became the National Government Party. Important Perhaps more was John Bracken' S demand in 1943 that the Party changes its name to Conservative Progressive. Judicious The off thesis moves escape me. I cuts always preferred the name Conservative.)

Various facts

Except for recent the Prime Ministers Kim Campbell, Jean Chrétien and the first outgoing minister Paul Martin, Diefenbaker is the only former Prime Minister living at the time of the creation of the Ordre of Canada which did not receive it. The politicians in function are not acceptable to receive the order, and since Diefenbaker did not leave the House of Commons before its death, it was never acceptable.

The nuclear shelters built for the Canadian government were called the Diefenbunker S , a name which persists at day.

The Canadian-English televised series Due South had a character, a wolf, which was called Diefenbaker.

References

Renegade in Power: The Diefenbaker Years , Peter C. Newman (1963)

External bonds

Canadian Declaration of the rights (complete text)
Files of Radio-Canada on Diefenbaker
Biography of the '' biographical Dictionnaire of Canada in line
federal political Experiment, Library of the Parliament

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