Dimitri Soudas gets senior job with Conservatives

Dimitri Soudas, the former communications director for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, is the new executive director of the Conservative Party of Canada.

The party's national council confirmed his new position Friday night in a move that would suggest Harper is surrounding himself with hardened, partisan loyalists in the lead-up to the next federal election.

The prime minister has recently brought into his inner circle two fiercely loyal Conservatives, Ray Novak, who is now working as his chief of staff, and Jenni Byrne, who is serving as deputy chief of staff.

Caucus members contacted by CBC News had mixed feelings about having Soudas return to the party's ranks.

Soudas left the Prime Minister's Office in 2011 to work for the Canadian Olympic Committee.
He announced his resignation from the COC on Thursday.

Original Article
Source: CBC
Author: cbc

The network Conservative attempts to increase its stranglehold on the city administration

The imminent appointment of a general manager for the City of Montreal is the center of tightness which the Harper Conservatives are not strangers. Among the candidates approached, the name of the former director of communications for Prime Minister, Dimitri Soudas , was circulated at the Hotel de Ville. This prospect raises fears that the conservative network already installed mayor's office takes control of the administrative machine, learned Le Devoir.

The nomination of Mr. Soudas was considered in view of the need there is a great complicity and confidence between the mayor Gérald Tremblay, the executive committee chairman, Michael Applebaum, and the general manager, said a person familiar with the case who requested anonymity.

Hostility had developed between Louis Roquet, who stepped down as CEO just before Christmas, and M. Applebaum. It has blocked a few weeks earlier the recommendation of Mr. Roquet to hire a new general counsel. In front of the interference when he was hired to reform the administrative processes including who was said too tainted by politics, Louis Roquet turned on his heel.

In this context, the name of Dimitri Soudas arose in the City Hall since he worked at the accession of Gerald Tremblay for mayor of Montreal in 2001 by passing such a breakthrough with ethnic communities. The following year he became Assistant for Quebec in the team of Stephen Harper, then the Canadian Alliance, which later became the Conservative Party of Canada. Until last summer, he was communications director for Mr. Harper. Since October, he led the communications of the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC).

Joint late yesterday afternoon, Dimitri Soudas said he did not intend to return to Montreal, because he likes his new role in the COC. "The 2012 Games in London are a golden opportunity to showcase Canadian athletes and their dreams," he said by email. On the phone, he declined to say if he had been contacted, merely to emphasize that he had no control over who could make his promotion.