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Martin wants Bono for convention but still hasn't found what he's looking for
ALEXANDER PANETTA
OTTAWA (CP) - The Liberals want to add a little glitter to an otherwise lacklustre leadership convention by inviting Bono - one of the biggest rock stars in the world - to attend.
The lead singer for U2 is being sought as a potential guest speaker at next week's convention in Toronto on the night that Paul Martin would become the federal party leader. The Irish rocker is being wooed by the Martin campaign in an attempt to spice up the victory celebration his organizers expect to hold a week from Friday.
Bono's appearance would add star power to an event that is seen as such a foregone conclusion that the Liberal party has had trouble attracting delegates to attend.
Martin organizers are skittish about scaring off their prized catch - so skittish they can hardly be prodded to confirm his appearance, deny it, talk about it, or even speculate out loud.
One top Martin aide cut off any reference to Bono: "I am not commenting in any respect. I've got nothing to say and I'm not giving an answer."
Another source close to the Martin campaign was slightly more forthcoming: "We've put out feelers," said that source.
The prospect of Bono - he of the trademark bug's eye sunglasses - at a partisan political event in Toronto is not as implausible as it sounds.
The Grammy-winning singer has met with Prime Minister Jean Chretien and Martin in the past.
The U2 singer has talked extensively with Martin about a common cause they share: relieving Third World debt.
In 2000, the Irish rocker was brimming with praise for then-finance minister Martin's zeal for easing the burden of debt on poorer countries.
Dressed in a black leather jacket and wearing his trademark wraparound black spectacles - monogrammed with golden Bs - Bono described his meeting with Martin.
"He (Martin) struck me as more than a money man actually, he had some vision about it," Bono told reporters at the time.
"Canada doesn't have the size of debt that some of the other major players have, but for that reason, I think it has a chance to speak out and to take the moral high ground on this issue and we're really grateful to Paul Martin for that."
One Liberal insider was marginally more vocal in his belief the U2 frontman will attend.
"It's very hush-hush," said the Liberal official, who added that the last he'd heard, Bono would be speaking to the thousands of Liberal delegates on Friday night.
In addition to spurring interest in a drama-free convention, a Bono appearance would hammer home a message that Martin organizers have been trying to convey for months.
They want to portray the arrival of the 65-year-old prime minister-in-waiting as a changing of the generational guard from the retiring Chretien, who is just four years Martin's senior.
What better way to make that point than inviting a contemporary pop icon to party with Martin and the gang?
In contrast, the outgoing Chretien will have 1950s crooner Paul Anka and jazz legends Oscar Peterson and Oliver Jones performing at his going-away party.
ALEXANDER PANETTA
OTTAWA (CP) - The Liberals want to add a little glitter to an otherwise lacklustre leadership convention by inviting Bono - one of the biggest rock stars in the world - to attend.
The lead singer for U2 is being sought as a potential guest speaker at next week's convention in Toronto on the night that Paul Martin would become the federal party leader. The Irish rocker is being wooed by the Martin campaign in an attempt to spice up the victory celebration his organizers expect to hold a week from Friday.
Bono's appearance would add star power to an event that is seen as such a foregone conclusion that the Liberal party has had trouble attracting delegates to attend.
Martin organizers are skittish about scaring off their prized catch - so skittish they can hardly be prodded to confirm his appearance, deny it, talk about it, or even speculate out loud.
One top Martin aide cut off any reference to Bono: "I am not commenting in any respect. I've got nothing to say and I'm not giving an answer."
Another source close to the Martin campaign was slightly more forthcoming: "We've put out feelers," said that source.
The prospect of Bono - he of the trademark bug's eye sunglasses - at a partisan political event in Toronto is not as implausible as it sounds.
The Grammy-winning singer has met with Prime Minister Jean Chretien and Martin in the past.
The U2 singer has talked extensively with Martin about a common cause they share: relieving Third World debt.
In 2000, the Irish rocker was brimming with praise for then-finance minister Martin's zeal for easing the burden of debt on poorer countries.
Dressed in a black leather jacket and wearing his trademark wraparound black spectacles - monogrammed with golden Bs - Bono described his meeting with Martin.
"He (Martin) struck me as more than a money man actually, he had some vision about it," Bono told reporters at the time.
"Canada doesn't have the size of debt that some of the other major players have, but for that reason, I think it has a chance to speak out and to take the moral high ground on this issue and we're really grateful to Paul Martin for that."
One Liberal insider was marginally more vocal in his belief the U2 frontman will attend.
"It's very hush-hush," said the Liberal official, who added that the last he'd heard, Bono would be speaking to the thousands of Liberal delegates on Friday night.
In addition to spurring interest in a drama-free convention, a Bono appearance would hammer home a message that Martin organizers have been trying to convey for months.
They want to portray the arrival of the 65-year-old prime minister-in-waiting as a changing of the generational guard from the retiring Chretien, who is just four years Martin's senior.
What better way to make that point than inviting a contemporary pop icon to party with Martin and the gang?
In contrast, the outgoing Chretien will have 1950s crooner Paul Anka and jazz legends Oscar Peterson and Oliver Jones performing at his going-away party.