L. (Lawrence) Ian MacDonald (born 1947) is a Canadian author, columnist, broadcaster, public speaker, and diplomat. In his career he has written speeches for Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney as his primary speechwriter, written the Queen's Canadian speeches, and worked as head of communications (Minister of Public Affairs) at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., in the United States. He has also been a columnist for the Montreal Gazette (as national affairs columnist), and the now-defunct Montreal Daily News. He was editor-in-chief of Policy Options, his political column appears on iPolitics, and he is a frequent commentator on CPAC (the Cable Public Affairs Channel) and CTV (the CTV Television Network). He has also written a number of books.
Biography
Early life
His mother was Marian MacDonald, and his father, Arthur, was an engineer who died of a heart attack in 1958 when Ian was 10 years old. MacDonald graduated from Concordia University (Loyola) (L BA '69; honors political science). He lives in Montreal, Canada. He was enshrined in the Concordia University Sports Hall of Fame in 2002 as equipment manager of the Loyola College Warriors 1968 hockey team.
Career
From 1985 to 1988, for four years MacDonald wrote speeches for Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney as his primary speechwriter, and for years wrote the Queen's Canadian speeches. From 1992 to 1994 he worked as head of communications (Minister of Public Affairs) at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., in the United States.
MacDonald has been a columnist for the Montreal Gazette (as national affairs columnist), and the now-defunct Montreal Daily News. He writes frequently for Canadian newspapers and news sites. He has served as editor and publisher of Policy magazine, a bi-monthly on Canadian politics and public policy. He was editor-in-chief from 2002 to 2012 of Policy Options, published by the Institute for Research on Public Policy. His political column appears on iPolitics and he is a frequent commentator on CPAC (the Cable Public Affairs Channel) and CTV (the CTV Television Network). Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney said: "The thing that makes Ian MacDonald’s columns interesting and important to read is that he’s worked on the inside at very senior levels of government and knows how it works. And it shows."
He wrote his first book in 1984, "Mulroney: The Making of the Prime Minister" that covered Brian Mulroney's rise from boyhood to Prime Minister of Canada. MacDonald has published six more books, all with McGill-Queen's University Press, most recently Politics, People & Potpourri, selected by CBC (CBC Television) as "one of the best political reads" of 2009, and Inside Politics, a collection published in 2018.
Personal life
MacDonald has two daughters.
Publications
Mulroney: The Making of the Prime Minister, by L. Ian MacDonald, 1984. Free Trade: Risks and Rewards, edited by L. Ian MacDonald, 2000. From Bourassa to Bourassa: Wilderness to Restoration, by L. Ian MacDonald, 2002.
Leo: A Life, by Leo Kolber, with L. Ian MacDonald, 2003. Politics, People & Potpourri, by L. Ian MacDonald, 2009. Inside Politics, by L. Ian MacDonald, 2018. Politics & Players, by L. Ian MacDonald, 2022.