Senate a career ‘capstone’ for former L-P publisher
In the hours after he was publicly named Saskatchewan’s newest senator, Marty Klyne burnt through two battery charges on his phone.
He’s been taking one call after another. He said it feels as if his life has turned upside down.
“This is all coming together pretty quickly, just from the ask on Friday to the announcement here this morning,” said the former Regina Leader-post publisher on Monday, the day his appointment was revealed.
“I’m just trying to catch my breath.”
The Friday ask also came through a phone call — from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“The prime minister shared his views and perspectives on the Senate, and I’m very grateful to have the opportunity,” said Klyne.
“It was with great pride, enthusiasm and energy that I accepted to sit as an independent in the Senate.”
He said he views the post as a “capstone” to a long career. Klyne was born and raised in Regina. He graduated with distinction from the University of Regina with a degree in business administration and finance. He later owned Regina’s Maaco Collision Repair & Auto Painting, along with his wife, Charlene.
He was publisher of the Regina Leader-post from 2008 to 2013. He has also served as CEO of the RCMP Heritage Centre, the Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation and the Queen City Sports Entertainment Group, which owns the Regina Pats.
Klyne said his “broad and varied background” will be an asset in his new role.
“I am a lateral thinker,” he said. “So the good thing about that is I can bring a number of perspectives from across a number of industries.”
He called his time at the LeaderPost “the most stressful five years” of his career.
But he said the journalistic values of objectivity and openness will serve him well in the Senate, which he views as a neutral player in the political process.
Klyne has also served on numerous committees and boards, including the Interim Reconciliation Regina Council and the National Aboriginal Economic Development Board. He called himself “a very proud Cree-métis,” and suggested that his connection to Indigenous issues will continue in his new role.
“I’m sure that those interests will gravitate toward some committee work,” he said.
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) emphasized that experience in a Monday press release announcing the appointment, saying Klyne “has spent much of his time advancing Aboriginal economic development and speaking up for Aboriginal interests to accelerate their participation in the mainstream economy.”
Klyne will be in Ottawa on Thursday for a swearing-in ceremony.
He said he’s ready to live out of a suitcase for a while as he settles into the national capital.
But he will retain a home base in Saskatchewan, as he is constitutionally obliged to do as one of the province’s representatives in the upper chamber.
“I will continue to keep a pulse on the province and take temperature checks and make sure I am up to speed on the opportunities, issues and challenges of Saskatchewan,” he said.
The prime minister appointed another senator with a Regina connection on Monday: former interim RCMP commissioner Beverley Busson. In a long career of firsts, Busson once served as commanding officer for Saskatchewan’s “F” Division, based in Regina.
She was part of the first troop of women admitted to the RCMP, in 1974. She rose through the ranks to become the first female commissioned officer, the first female criminal operations officer, the first female divisional commander, the first female deputy commissioner of a region and the first woman to lead the RCMP.
According to the PMO release, Busson “became a champion of women in the workforce.” She will now go on to fill a Senate vacancy for British Columbia.
Both Klyne and Busson were chosen using the Senate’s independent appointments process, which affords all Canadians a chance to apply for a seat in the red chamber.
Applications are then reviewed by an advisory board, which is tasked with recommending candidates according to a merit-based system in accordance with constitutional requirements.
Trudeau has made other moves to increase the appearance of impartiality in the Senate. As thirdparty leader in 2014, he expelled all Liberal senators from the party caucus. They became independents, the affiliation Klyne will now take on.
“I think the right direction is being provided within the Senate, being allowed to operate independently if you will,” said Klyne.
“I think it plays a vital role.”