Some members of the press haven't spoken very kindly about Peter Van Loan. They've compared him to the likes of Chris Farley, Don Cherry and even Barney Rubble. But behind his blunt exterior, the man Hill insiders call PVL is one highly skilled political strategist and a key member of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's cabinet.
The 45-year-old Bay Street lawyer from southern Ontario is Government House Leader, a crucial role in a minority government. It's his job to negotiate with the opposition house leaders to ensure passage of bills and to make sure his party remains in power.
That also means carefully controlling the Conservative message. From his seat behind the prime minister, Van Loan deftly answers tough questions for other cabinet ministers, and often for Stephen Harper himself.
He earned the nickname "Answer Man" after an Ottawa Citizen analysis over one year found him four times more likely to respond to a question than any other Conservative MP.
Van Loan was a strategist long before he was elected. He was president of the Ontario PC party during the Mike Harris era. Later, he led the federal PC party before resigning after a perceived attempt to oust Joe Clark. He also was a chief organizer in the Unite the Right movement.
He was first elected federally in the riding of York Simcoe in 2004, then again in 2006, taking on several cabinet posts. It was during his term as Minister responsible for Democratic Reform that he sparked a war of words with Dalton McGuinty.
He had introduced Bill C-22, legislation that would see Ontario, BC and Alberta gain more seats in the House of Commons. When the Ontario Premier hinted that PVL had deliberately shortchanged Ontario on seats because they were in Liberal ridings, Van Loan called McGuinty a "small man of Confederation."
Now does that sound like something Barney Rubble would say?