Party of One author Harris calls his book an ‘indictment’ of PM Harper

When Michael Harris was driving to distant corners of Canada while gathering facts and conducting interviews for his 500-page opus on the political turbulence the country has gone through under Prime Minister Stephen Harper, one former member of the Conservative caucus insisted on speaking to Mr. Harris on condition the two meet at a lonely highway gas station—more than 20 km outside the city.

And even then, in afterthought and following consultation with a lawyer, the interviewee, however eager to assist Mr. Harris, was so concerned about anything being traced back, that Mr. Harris not even paraphrase what he told him in his book.

'Party of One': An Indictment of Stephen Harper -- Seeking a documented record of eight years of deliberate misrule? This is your book.

• Party of One: Stephen Harper and Canada's Radical Makeover
• Michael Harris
• Viking (2014)

If the news cycle is 24 hours, the public's attention span is that of a gerbil on crystal meth. Today's outrage is next week's shrug and next month's blank stare.

Conservative politicians not only understand this phenomenon, they revel in it. They've even turned it into a talking point. Asked by reporters about the current scandal, they don't even bother to defend themselves. They just smirk and say, "Most Canadians don't care."