Thumper: The Memoirs of the Honourable Donald S. Macdonald by Donald S. Macdonald (review)

The memoirs of Donald Macdonald ought to be something to look forward to. Macdonald was a young hopeful in the Lester Pearson government, and one of the most important ministers in the governments of Pierre Trudeau. His role as head of the Royal Commission on the Economic Union and Development Prospects for Canada led to a recommendation for free trade with the United States, an idea the next Conservative government took up, of course. Readers of this journal might also remember him for his role as Canada's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. His career left perhaps only one achievement unfulfilled, the prime ministership.

Yet the most interesting parts of this memoir, written with the assistance of Rod McQueen, deal with Macdonald's life before entering politics. We learn of his privileged yet uniquely challenging childhood, and the story of his accomplished civil servant mother. There is also his early legal career with its focus on international economy, and the tantalising foreshadowing between this background and his later stance on free trade. Readers hoping for other more significant insights into Macdonald's political career, however, are likely to leave unsatisfied. Thumper reads more like a memoir written for his grandchildren. Again and again we have accounts of events that merely skim the surface of what must have happened. None is less revealing than the account of Macdonald's almost-run for the Liberal leadership in 1979. This was when Pierre Trudeau had resigned from power and Joe Clark was leading a minority Progressive Conservative government. Macdonald emerged as perhaps the top candidate to lead the Liberals, and as Pierre Trudeau's choice. Yet, the sudden downfall of the Clark government convinced Trudeau to instead stay on as leader, and of course the Liberals won the next election. Trudeau's decision washed away Macdonald's future as possible Liberal leader and prime minister. He didn't run in the 1980 election.

Macdonald's account of this event is quickly over. He claims to be have been relieved. Perhaps he was. But he also didn't run in 1984 even though he had planned to run to be leader and prime minister. There was clearly more to be said, but the memoir is more decorous than revealing on this and other matters. That said, Macdonald's career makes for a fascinating story. He offers another insider perspective of the October Crisis of 1970 and other matters. There is much here to appreciate and to dwell on. It also, though, makes one wish there were more political biographers to go round.