Cape Breton veteran reacts to cabinet shuffle

Published on January 05, 2015

Ron Clarke

Published on February 13, 2014

Julian Fantino

SYDNEY Cape Breton veterans advocate Ron Clarke said he isn't optimistic anything will change as a result of Monday's cabinet shuffle.

"We didn't lose anything by having him (Fantino) fired, and we didn't gain anything either by them putting in (Erin) O'Toole. I can't put all the blame on (Fantino) because Mr. Harper runs the show and they'll do what Mr. Harper tells them to do," he said in a phone interview with the Cape Breton Post on Monday afternoon.

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Clarke, who was named newsmaker of the year by the Cape Breton Post last week, has become a household name when it comes to cuts to Veterans Affairs. He led his charge to the nation's capital where he met with parliamentarians, senators and other officials to protest cuts made under Fantino's leadership. He has asked for the reopening of eight Veterans Affairs offices that were closed last year, including the one in Sydney.

"It's not a democracy, especially when Harper says 'Jump' and they say 'How high?'" Clarke said.

Clarke said he doesn't have high expectations for Fantino's replacement, O'Toole.

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Cape Breton veteran reacts to cabinet shuffle