28 Apr How the US views Darrell Dexter

Nice guy, as socialists go

When Darrell Dexter’s New Democrats swept to power in 2009, it fell to Harold D. Foster, the US Consul General in Halifax, to profile the new premier for his State Department colleagues. His assessment, in a cable sent one week after Dexter’s government took office, was among the diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks Thursday. Moneyquote:

Dexter is highly regarded by friends and political foes alike as a nice, down-to-earth kind of guy who has the interests of his constituents at heart. However, his victory came about primarily through his skill as a natural consensus builder, evidenced early on by his ability to bring together several differing factions within own his party. When he became NDP leader in 2001, Dexter inherited a party that still had a heavy influence of what pundits like to call the “fiery, socialist old guard”–members who were bitterly opposed to people like Dexter who wanted to move the party to a more centrist position on the political spectrum.

Post has had a longstanding cordial relationship with Dexter and his inner circle of advisors who come from both the old and young guards of the party. All, like their predecessors the Tories, attach great importance to issues of interest to the United States: fostering bilateral trade, increasing energy exports to the United States, and working cooperatively with the Canadian federal government on secure border issues. Dexter is also a frequent visitor to the United States, primarily to play golf even if (as he has confided) it means going by himself when none of his golfing partners is available to travel with him. Overall, post anticipates seeing this cordial relationship continue and expand as this well-liked and respected Premier settles down to implementing an agenda overwhelmingly embraced by the voters of Nova Scotia.