Liberal-appointed senators have come under scrutiny for paying $52,000 in taxpayer money for six months of media consulting from James Baxter, a former editor of iPolitics. The contract, which expired Monday, has raised questions about the transparency and necessity of such expenses.“Yes, Mr. Baxter is the former editor of iPolitics,” confirmed Senate spokesperson Zoe Naidoo. “He was hired on a short-term contract” to assist with communications for the Independent Senators Group while their senior communications specialist was on maternity leave. Naidoo did not provide further details on Baxter’s specific tasks during his tenure, even though the Senate has not convened in eight weeks.Baxter, who sold iPolitics to Torstar Corporation in 2018 for $1.4 million, has a history of involvement with organizations receiving federal subsidies. Since 2019, iPolitics has received at least $2,199,303 from federal agencies as part of a media subsidy program. This connection has sparked criticism, particularly from Conservative MP Kelly McCauley (Edmonton West), who accused the Toronto Star, a Torstar publication, of being a “known mouthpiece for the Liberal Party.”Baxter, now 60, is also a director of the Rideau Hall Foundation, chaired by former governor general David Johnston and partially funded by $10 million in public money. Additionally, Baxter contributes to Policy magazine, an Ottawa-based periodical.Reflecting on his career in journalism, Baxter testified at a 2016 Commons heritage committee hearing that "Journalism was never stable employment for anyone under the age of 50." He likened the state of Ottawa's media landscape to a "melting glacier," predicting that the decline of traditional media models would eventually lead to a necessary renewal.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had previously expelled his appointees from the Liberal caucus, leading to the formation of the Independent Senators Group. “The only way to be part of the Liberal caucus is to be put there by the people of Canada,” Trudeau remarked at the time.
