An implausible reaction

The Cons' Invisible Minister seems to be looking to make a name for herself in the government's ever-burgeoning spin department, as Carol Skelton is claiming to be happy to be on the receiving end of the sole unmitigated demotion in Harper's cabinet shuffle:

Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar MP Carol Skelton, who remains Saskatchewan's lone representative at the cabinet table as minister of national revenue, loses the portfolio of Western Economic Diversification to Alberta's Rona Ambrose, who was demoted from environment to intergovernmental affairs.

In an interview Thursday, Skelton said she was happy with the move, adding it was unusual for the national revenue minister -- who oversees the country's tax system -- to hold another portfolio.

"I'm extremely excited about what the prime minister has done. When he appointed cabinet to start with, he gave lots of us two and three different areas of expertise to look at. We've done our job and they've decided that possibly it's time to move some of these around to different departments," said Skelton, who was also moved off of cabinet's operations committee -- which charts the day-to-day course of the government -- but remains on cabinet's Treasury Board and economic affairs committee.

Clay Serby, Saskatchewan's deputy premier and a member of an NDP government that has been embroiled in a number of disputes with the federal Conservatives and its 12 Saskatchewan MPs, said he's troubled by what he says is clearly a "demotion" for Skelton.

Naturally, there's no explanation as to why Skelton would prefer the national revenue position to one which would allow Saskatchewan's lone cabinet minister to at least have some say in regional issues. And the committee demotion also seems to signal Skelton's removal from the ongoing administration of the Cons' government in favour of a wider planning role whose work product doesn't seem likely to survive the next election.

That said, Harper must surely be glad to know Skelton is such a loyal foot soldier as to take a strong public stand in favour of her own demotion rather than worrying about her province's loss of representation. Which means that if the Cons hold onto power long enough to shuffle their cabinet again, she figures to be in line to improve her position - unless, of course, she'd genuinely rather be demoted once more.

Update: Apparently Skelton is just as invisible in her own party as in the public at large.