View source for Chuck Strahl

{{Short description|Canadian politician (1957–2024)}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = [[The Honourable]]
| name                = Chuck Strahl
| honorific-suffix    = {{post-nominals|country=CAN|PC|size=100%}}
| image               = Chuck Strahl 2014.jpg
| caption             = Strahl in 2014
| office1             = [[Minister of Transport (Canada)|Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities]]
| primeminister1      = [[Stephen Harper]]
| term_start1         = August 6, 2010
| term_end1           = May 18, 2011
| predecessor1        = [[John Baird (Canadian politician)|John Baird]]
| successor1          = [[Denis Lebel]]
| office2             = [[Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations|Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development]]
| primeminister2      = [[Stephen Harper]]
| term_start2         = August 14, 2007
| term_end2           = August 6, 2010
| predecessor2        = [[Jim Prentice]]
| successor2          = [[John Duncan (Canadian politician)|John Duncan]]
| office5             = [[Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food|Minister of Agriculture]]
| primeminister5      = [[Stephen Harper]]
| term_start5         = February 6, 2006
| term_end5           = August 14, 2007
| predecessor5        = [[Andy Mitchell (politician)|Andy Mitchell]]
| successor5          = [[Gerry Ritz]]
| parliament6         = Canadian
| riding6             = [[Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon]]<br />{{small|([[Fraser Valley (electoral district)|Fraser Valley]]; 1997–2004)}}<br />{{small|([[Fraser Valley East]]; 1993–1997)}}
| term_start6         = October 25, 1993
| term_end6           = May 2, 2011
| predecessor6        = [[Ross Belsher]]
| successor6          = [[Mark Strahl]]
| birth_name          = Charles Richard Strahl
| birth_date          = {{birth date|1957|02|25}}
| birth_place         = [[New Westminster|New Westminster, British Columbia]], Canada
| death_date          = {{nowrap|{{Death date and age|2024|08|13|1957|02|25}}}}
| death_place         = [[Chilliwack|Chilliwack, British Columbia]], Canada
| party               = [[Conservative Party of Canada|Conservative]] (from 2003)
| otherparty          = [[Reform Party of Canada|Reform]] (1993–2000)<br />[[Canadian Alliance]] (2000–2001, 2002–2003)<br />[[Democratic Representative Caucus]] (2001–2002)
| profession          = Businessman, politician
| alma_mater          = [[Trinity Western University]]
| spouse              = Deb Strahl
| residence           = Chilliwack, British Columbia
| children            = Karina Strahl Loewen, [[Mark Strahl]]
}}

'''Charles Richard Strahl'''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chuckstrahl.com/|title=Chuck Strahl Consulting|website=www.chuckstrahl.com}}</ref> {{post-nominals|country=CAN|PC}} (February 25, 1957 – August 13, 2024) was a Canadian businessman and politician. He was a [[Member of Parliament (Canada)|Member of Parliament]] from 1993 to 2011. First elected for the Reform Party, he was the leader of the [[Democratic Representative Caucus]] that left the [[Canadian Alliance]] in opposition to [[Stockwell Day]]'s leadership. When the Conservatives won power in 2006, he became a prominent cabinet minister and served as Minister of Agriculture, [[Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations|Indian and Northern Affairs]], and Transportation.

On June 14, 2012, Strahl was appointed to serve a five-year term as chair of the [[Security Intelligence Review Committee]], but resigned in controversy over conflict of interest accusations resulting from his lobbying efforts for oil and pipeline companies.<ref name="CBC 2014">{{cite web | title=Chuck Strahl steps down as spy watchdog amid lobbying questions - CBC News | website=CBC | date=2014-01-24 | url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/chuck-strahl-steps-down-as-spy-watchdog-amid-lobbying-questions-1.2510321 | access-date=2020-03-04}}</ref>

==Before politics==
Strahl was born in Westminster, British Columbia, the son of Martha (Ens) Schroeder and Omer William "Bill" Strahl.<ref>https://www.theprogress.com/obituaries/charles-richard-chuck-strahl-7495652</ref><ref>https://www.dignitymemorial.com/en-ca/obituaries/chilliwack-bc/martha-strahl-schroeder-12149070</ref> He was raised in British Columbia's Interior, attended [[Trinity Western University]], and worked for Cheam Construction, a logging and road-building company owned by his father. Chuck Strahl and his siblings took over the business after their father died.

==Member of Parliament (1993–2011)==
Shortly after the business failed, Strahl ran for office under the Reform Party banner.  He was first elected to office in the [[Reform Party of Canada|Reform Party]] sweep of the region in the [[1993 Canadian federal election|1993 election]]. He was re-elected in the [[1997 Canadian federal election|1997]] and [[2000 Canadian federal election|2000]] elections, running as a member of the [[Canadian Alliance]], which had replaced Reform, in 2000. He represented [[Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon]], a large riding comprising the [[Fraser Valley|Upper Fraser Valley]], a primarily agricultural area of the province, and the [[Fraser Canyon]]-[[Lillooet Country|Lillooet]]-[[Bridge River Country|Bridge River]] regions, which are mostly wilderness with a resource-based economy and also, like the Chilliwack area, have a significant First Nations population. He held a number of [[shadow cabinet]] and committee positions.

Strahl rose into national prominence in the summer of 2001 when he was the leader and most outspoken member of a group of Canadian Alliance MPs that left the Alliance caucus and sat as members of the [[Democratic Representative Caucus]].

Strahl's own leadership ambitions were frustrated due to his inability to speak French as well as the lingering distrust among many colleagues over the perceived disloyalty shown to his party in 2001. He attempted to launch a bid for the [[2004 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election|leadership of the Conservative Party]], but was not able to secure enough financial or political support.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/lack-of-money-may-prevent-strahl-from-entering-conservative-leadership-race-1.485229 | work=CBC News | title=Lack of money may prevent Strahl from entering Conservative leadership race | date=15 January 2004 | access-date=2014-04-04}}</ref> Strahl then supported [[Tony Clement]] in his failed leadership bid.

At the outset of the [[38th Canadian Parliament|38th Parliament of Canada]] in October 2004, Strahl was appointed [[Speaker of the House of Commons (Canada)|Deputy Speaker]] and Chairman of Committees of the Whole under the new rules brought about as a result of the Liberal minority government situation.

Strahl was appointed [[Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]] and Minister for the [[Canadian Wheat Board]] (CWB) at the beginning of the 39th Parliament on 6 February 2006.<ref name=canmin/>  Strahl removed upwards of 16,000 farmers from the voters list in the midst of the 2006 election to the CWB. They were disqualified for such reasons as not having delivered any grain to the Wheat Board in the previous two years or not having produced enough wheat or malt barley to have generated significant enough income from which to subsist.<ref>{{cite press release |author1=Art Macklin |title=Pro-CWB Director Election Campaign |url=https://www.theholmteam.ca/CWB.voter.purge.pdf |publisher=Canadian Wheat Board |access-date=August 7, 2022 |date=October 23, 2006 |via=theholmteam.ca}}</ref>  On 19 December 2006 he dismissed CWB president Adrian Measner, because "It's a position that [he] serves at pleasure. And that position was no longer his" because he displeased the Cabinet.<ref name="fired">
{{cite news | title=Strahl fires wheat board president | date=2006-12-19 | publisher=CBC News | url =http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/strahl-fires-wheat-board-president-1.596641 | access-date = 2014-04-04 }}</ref>

Strahl was appointed Minister of [[Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Development Canada|Indian Affairs and Northern Development]] and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status 
Indians in a cabinet shuffle on 14 August 2007.  He added to his responsibilities the title of Minister of the [[Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency]] on 5 February 2010.<ref name="canmin" />

Between 6 August 2010 and 18 May 2011, Strahl was [[Minister of Transport (Canada)|Minister of Transport]], Infrastructure and Communities.<ref name=canmin>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/ministries|title=Ministry (Cabinet) as of November 20, 2019 - Members of Parliament - House of Commons of Canada|website=www.ourcommons.ca}}</ref>

===Health problems===
In August 2005, Strahl announced that he had lung cancer as the result of exposure to [[asbestos]] many years prior. The illness was diagnosed after one of his lungs collapsed twice.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/conservative-mp-chuck-strahl-has-lung-cancer-1.554294 | work=CBC News | title=Conservative MP Chuck Strahl has lung cancer | date=22 August 2005 | access-date=2014-04-04}}</ref>

However, despite his health problems, he successfully ran for re-election in the 2006 election. He later held various positions in the Cabinet such as Minister of Agriculture, Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs, and Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities.

On March 12, 2011, Strahl announced he would not be seeking re-election in the [[2011 Canadian federal election|upcoming federal election]],<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/day-strahl-call-it-quits-as-tories-clear-deck-for-possible-election/article571042/ |title=Day, Strahl call it quits as Tories clear deck for possible election |work=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=March 12, 2011 |location=Toronto |first=John |last=Ibbitson |access-date=2014-12-10}}</ref> which was held on May 2, 2011.

==Chair of Security Intelligence Review Committee (2012–2014) Controversy==
On June 14, 2012, Strahl was appointed to serve a five-year term as chair of the [[Security Intelligence Review Committee]] (SIRC) - Canada's spy agency watchdog. 
In January 2014, he resigned his position as chair after the media revealed that he was a registered lobbyist for the [[Enbridge]] [[Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipelines|Northern Gateway]] project.<ref>{{cite news | first=Steven | last=Chase |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canadas-top-spy-watchdog-resigns-over-lobbying-questions/article16498943/| title=Canada's top spy watchdog resigns over lobbying questions| date=January 24, 2014 |access-date=2014-12-10 | publisher=[[The Globe and Mail]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/spy-watchdogs-registration-for-northern-gateway-lobbying-under-fire-from-ndp/article16219804/ | title=Spy watchdog's registration for Northern Gateway lobbying under fire from NDP | date=January 6, 2014 | access-date=2014-12-10 | publisher=[[The Globe and Mail]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=http://rabble.ca/podcasts/shows/democracy-north/2014/01/democracy-north-jan-18-csis-watchdog%E2%80%99s-enbridge-job-battered-| title=CSIS watchdog's Enbridge job| date=January 23, 2014| access-date=2014-12-10| publisher=[[Democracy North]]| archive-date=2014-12-10| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141210120629/http://rabble.ca/podcasts/shows/democracy-north/2014/01/democracy-north-jan-18-csis-watchdog%E2%80%99s-enbridge-job-battered-| url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.huffpost.com/archive/ca/entry/chuck-strahl-csis-watchdog-chair-registers-as-northern-gateway_n_4549384 | title=Chuck Strahl, CSIS Watchdog Chair, Registers As Northern Gateway Lobbyist  | work=[[HuffPost]] | date=January 6, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = 'I'm no Arthur Porter': The four defences of Chuck Strahl By Sarah Schmidt | url = http://rabble.ca/news/2014/01/im-no-arthur-porter-four-defences-chuck-strahl| date = 2014-01-10 | access-date = 2014-03-02 | work = [[Rabble.ca]]}}</ref>

Former Tory MP [[Deborah Grey]], already a SIRC member, was appointed Strahl's successor by Prime Minister [[Stephen Harper]].

==Personal life==
Strahl married in 1975 and had four children.

On March 18, 2011, [[Mark Strahl]] succeeded his father as nominee for the Conservative Party in the riding of [[Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon]]. The nomination process, which is usually four weeks, lasted only a week. Mark Strahl was endorsed by [[Preston Manning]], former leader of the [[Reform Party of Canada]], who said "Mark Strahl -- by virtue of his family background ... is well prepared for service in the House of Commons."<ref name=hend/>

Former [[Chilliwack City Council]]lor Casey Langbroek said most Conservative Party members from the riding were upset and that the nomination process effectively barred 80% of party members from running. Party member [[Alex Moens]] said "High public office should not be like a [[nepotism|family business]], where it's passed on from father to son."<ref name=hend>{{cite news|author=Paul Henderson|title=Selection debacle dogs local Tory party|url=http://www.chilliwacktimes.com/Selection+debacle+dogs+local+Tory+party/4542616/story.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408151656/http://www.chilliwacktimes.com/Selection%2Bdebacle%2Bdogs%2Blocal%2BTory%2Bparty/4542616/story.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2011-04-08}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Michael Smyth|title=Tories grumbling over fast-track nominations|url=http://www2.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=529aa944-466c-4b71-8384-7dc601c8be60|publisher=[[The Province]]|date=April 1, 2011|access-date=2014-12-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213233307/http://www2.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=529aa944-466c-4b71-8384-7dc601c8be60|archive-date=December 13, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Strahl died after a prolonged battle with [[mesothelioma]] in Chilliwack, on August 13, 2024, at the age of 67.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-08-14 |title=Long-time former Chilliwack MP Chuck Strahl dies from mesothelioma |url=https://www.theprogress.com/local-news/long-time-former-chilliwack-mp-chuck-strahl-dies-from-mesothelioma-7486410 |access-date=2024-08-14 |website=The Chilliwack Progress |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20081220142030/http://webinfo.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/ProfileMP.aspx?Key=128584&Language=E Federal Political Profile from the Library of Parliament]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090604094706/http://www.howdtheyvote.ca/member.php?id=277 Chuck Strahl's voting record]

{{s-start}}
{{Canadian federal ministry navigational box header |ministry=28}}
{{ministry box cabinet posts
| post3         = [[Minister of Transport (Canada)|Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities]]
| post3years    = August 6, 2010 – May 2, 2011
| post3note     =
| post3preceded = [[John Baird (Canadian politician)|John Baird]]
| post3followed = [[Denis Lebel]]
| post2         = [[Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development (Canada)|Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]]
| post2years    = August 14, 2007 – August 6, 2010
| post2note     =
| post2preceded = [[Jim Prentice]]
| post2followed = [[John Duncan (Canadian politician)|John Duncan]]
| post1         = [[Minister of Agriculture (Canada)|Minister of Agriculture]]
| post1years    = February 6, 2006 – August 14, 2007
| post1note     =
| post1preceded = [[Andy Mitchell (politician)|Andy Mitchell]]
| post1followed = [[Gerry Ritz]]
}}
{{s-off}}
{{succession box|title=Deputy [[Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada|Speaker of the House of Commons]] & Chairman of Committees of the Whole
| before = [[Bob Kilger]]
| after  = [[Bill Blaikie]]
| years  = 2004&ndash;2006}}
{{s-end}}
{{Harper Ministry}}

{{CA-Ministers of Agriculture}}
{{CA-Ministers of Transport}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Strahl, Chuck}}
[[Category:1957 births]]
[[Category:2024 deaths]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from British Columbia]]
[[Category:Canadian businesspeople in the timber industry]]
[[Category:Canadian Alliance MPs]]
[[Category:Democratic Representative Caucus MPs]]
[[Category:Conservative Party of Canada MPs]]
[[Category:Canadian evangelicals]]
[[Category:Members of the Christian and Missionary Alliance]]
[[Category:Members of the House of Commons of Canada from British Columbia]]
[[Category:Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada]]
[[Category:People from Chilliwack]]
[[Category:Politicians from New Westminster]]
[[Category:Reform Party of Canada MPs]]
[[Category:Trinity Western University alumni]]
[[Category:Members of the 28th Canadian Ministry]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada]]
[[Category:Deaths from mesothelioma]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in British Columbia]]
[[Category:21st-century members of the House of Commons of Canada]]
[[Category:Canadian people of Norwegian descent]]