Canadian Politics II: The Polite War

[Aemon Stark]

Meanwhile in Ottawa:

The Prime Minister's chief of staff has resigned over his role in the $90,000 bailout of former Conservative Senator Mike Duffy's expense account.

Nigel Wright issued a statement Sunday morning to announce his resignation, which Prime Minister Stephen Harper has accepted.

Mr. Wright repeated that he had not informed Mr. Harper of his decision to cut a cheque to Mr. Duffy as the PEI senator and former journalist was engulfed in a controversy over his expense account.

I don't really believe for a second that a control freak like Stephen Harper didn't approve this in advance.

[Fragile Bird]

Ha ha. Neither do I, and neither, I bet, do most Canadians. Nigel Wright is too savvy to do something like that without telling Harper first.

[Lord Lymond Lychester]

What I find interesting about this whole payment of Mike Duffy's expense account is...

1) Mike Duffy and Nigel Wright are not known to be friends of any sort, so it's quite weird for him to offer a $90,000 gift to help with Duffy's financial woes

2) Mike Duffy has shown no financial instability, he was making 200,000 a year for his work as a ctv journalist before his career in politics, and 135,000 or so per year for his work as a sentator, as well as whatever earnings his media consulting company makes (in no way whatsoever should he be so strapped for cash that he cannot pay off at least some of his expense account)

3) Pamela Wallin and Mike Duffy were heavily involved in running the conservative party conventions, which should not be payed for with tax-payer money but money from the conservative party

4) Because Nigel Wright has paid off the expense account and resigned, further investigation into what the expenses were has been stopped.

5) In January 2013 Nigel Wright was supposed to go back to working at Onex, the company he worked for before. He is one of the most political and business savvy individuals in Canada, and he slipped up by paying off Mike Duffy's expense account? It just doesn't make sense

Chalk it up as a conspiracy theory, or my frustration towards the harper government, but I believe that because Nigel Wright payed off Mike Duffy's account and resigned, he has, at least for now, stopped an investigation from finding discrepancies directly related to the harper government. Meanwhile he safely goes back to his job in Onex without having to worry about his career in politics,

Nigel Wright was one of the only people in the PMO who wasn't one of Harper's "yes men" (not saying this is a good thing, he's the person harper went to for reason). But now that Harper will be surrounded by yes men, we might just see the true side of harper, he might just put those last few nails in the coffin that is the conservative party.

[Salome the Persian Witch]

On a slightly different note - this garbage was sent to me (in all sincerity) by a true believer with the subject line "Fear is better than hope". I still feel I have to scourge and purify my inbox.

Some of my favourite gems:

Anger is better than love, and fear works better than hope

Voters (especially women) might tell focus groups ahead of time that they don't like negative attacks and prefer positive campaign ads, but that feedback is given in isolation from exposure to the other campaign.

Facts and subtleties get lost in a campaign, while a lie that touches a key value, if repeated relentlessly, cuts through.

Conservative parties received confirmation last night that they are right to stay in their own bubble and mistrust the 'analysis' coming from the policy wonks in the media (or, evidently, me). They learned that they can speak to their core supporters, who have very different demographics and values, and ignore everyone else.

Yes, there are many lessons to be learned from the B.C. election - but, really? Really?!?!

[roxWolfox]

Ah, thanks to Mr. Dalton and reports such as this, I miss Jack Layton more and more all the time (even though I'm an Elizabeth May fan, myself). I pray that this pundit was being overly sarcastic, and has more respect for us than that. Mind you, the last provincial election voter turn-out for Windsor was really bad. My husband and I felt rather lonely in that big empty gymnasium. :crying:

[Fragile Bird]

Nice front page to the Huffington Post.ca today. http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/ And also from the same source, a political comment about something that has been bothering me more and more over the past few years, especially with the appointments of Pamela Wallin and Mike Duffy to the senate, but something that really started to bug me when Peter Kent was elected.

Of the myriad dark unpleasantries surrounding Senator Mike Duffy at the moment, it's a bit odd that one of the most critical underlying questions about the man seems to have largely escaped discussion.

Namely: what's a CTV talking-head even doing in politics in the first place?

The Canadian press, ostensibly, is a neutral instrument of public service that covers politics but does not covet it. On the contrary, if anything, we expect our reporters, editors, producers, and pundits to be turned off by the whole mess, since a mild distaste (or at least distrust) for their subject matter is what helps motivate coverage that's adversarial, skeptical, and suspicious towards the behaviour of folks known for, shall we say, a somewhat relaxed attitude towards truth and accountability.

In modern Canada, alas, that critical detachment between press and politics -- the notion that these two worlds are incurably hostile parties locked in existential opposition -- seems to be steadily eroding, as notables on both sides make peace in a cozy truce. Because political journalism and politics itself are professions broadly "about" the same things, the trades are increasingly assumed to be a great deal more interchangeable than they probably are. The result is a line separating present-day commentator from future commentee that's getting pretty darn blurry.

The full article: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/jj-mccullough/mike-duffy-journalist_b_3324050.html

[kairparavel]

A Conservative with integrity

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/mps-exit-ramps-up-pressure-on-harper-over-transparency/article12403329/

The resignation came after Conservatives watered down Mr. Rathgeber’s private member’s bill, one aimed at disclosing bureaucrats’ salaries. Now, nearly all those specific salary amounts will remain hidden at a time when the Prime Minister is facing daily questions about the transparency of his government.

So what does this mean? Anything? Will this guy cross the floor? Go independent? Will anything penetrate Harper's slimy teflon exterior?

[snake]

He will sit as an independent and yes Stephen Harper's image, as well as that of the Conservative government, are taking a beating on this. Whether or not it lasts until election day is another thing.

There messaging, deflections and attacks are not making this go away and if anything are making it worse.

Also, Rathgeber's press conference in Edmonton really hurt the Conservatives because you could see that he really struggled with his decision but in the end felt the government had failed him and the people that supported him. Some pretty damning stuff.

[Fragile Bird]

Another very interesting story popped up about the way the Harper government runs things. Elections Canada notified the Speaker of the House two weeks ago that two Conservative MPs need to be suspended because of their violations under the Elections Act, and the Speaker, Conservative Andrew Sheer, has ignored it contrary to all parliamentary practice from the past. And on top of that, he has even refused to show the House the letter, as if he were above the law and above parliament.

Lovely to see the cover the Conservatives have hidden themselves under ("We are the most transparent government in history!") being ripped off in so many places week after week.

I was looking for a copy of that story when I saw a story done by Elizabeth May in the Huffington Post where she gives 10 reasons why Harper isn't really Canadian. Normally I would just link the story, but I thought I'd run her points, even if a bit long, in the hope more of you will read it. She mentions she's been attacked, some tweets being very ugly, because she was born in the USA, but she definitely is more immersed in Canadian parliamentary tradition that Harper is, and probably because her father was British and always explained the differences between the US and the British systems. Whereas Tom Flanagan took Harper and other students from his university class to be educated at a young Republican boot camp when he was at university. No wonder so much American attitude has crept in to the House.

1) First prime minister of Canada to prorogue to avoid political difficulties since Sir John A Macdonald, and Macdonald, on return, immediately went to an election.

2) First Canadian prime minister to prorogue twice to avoid political difficulties.

3) Only prime minister in the entire Commonwealth in the last 100 years to prorogue to avoid a political difficulty. (The prime minister of Sri Lanka tried once, but the Governor General refused).

4) First prime minister to run a system of rigid party discipline in parliamentary committees, rejecting any and all amendments to legislation. Previously legislative committee worked quite collaboratively and legislation was nearly always amended prior to Royal Assent.

5) Prime minister Harper was found guilty of contempt of parliament in refusing to turn over the documents in the Afghan detainee matter. The documents have not been tabled to this day.

6) First prime minister to visibly chafe at the reality that he is not head of state. In Canada Day festivities on Parliament Hill one year, he insisted on accepting the Royal Salute ahead of the former Governor General. The use of Centre Block as a stage for pomp and ceremony for visiting presidents is contrary to our constitution. Heads of state should be greeted at Rideau Hall. The red carpets and flags in the main hall of Parliament are completely contrary to our traditions.

7) He acts as though he is in charge of Parliament, instead of acknowledging the supremacy of Parliament. This attitude is reflected in telling civil servants they should refer to the Government of Canada, as the "Harper Government."

8) Understanding Canadian parliamentary democracy includes understanding that every MP is part of the Government of Canada. The Conservative executive is comprised of the PM and his Cabinet (or Privy Council). Mr. Harper is the first prime minister to insist on treating Opposition MPs as though they are not part of the government. This is demonstrated in the systematic exclusion of local Opposition MPs from announcements in their ridings. The Harper approach is to tell local groups they cannot hold events at which federal dollars are involved with their own MP, unless that MP is Conservative. So, local MPs are not given the courtesy of even a chance to sit in the back row, while Conservative MPs from other areas make local announcements.

9) Mr. Harper rejects the role of Parliament as having control of the public purse. MPs are not given enough fiscal background to make wise choices. The former Parliamentary Budget Officer went to court to gain access to such information for MPs. Despite gaining court approval for our right to that information, the new PBO has still not successfully wrested it from the executive.

10) Add to all this the consistent application of U.S.-style attack ads, even outside of writ periods. Stephen Harper is the first political leader in Canadian history to run television advertising more than a year before the election.

Now, none of this is illegal. Any prime minister could have done these things. Think back to the days leading up to November 28, 2005 (the day selected for the non-confidence vote announced in advance by the NDP, Bloc, and Conservative leaders to bring down the Liberal minority government.) Former prime minister Paul Martin could have prorogued. Why didn't he?

The reality is (I am sure) that it never occurred to him, because it was simply not done. Respect for tradition has protected Canadians from abusive use of the potential all-powerful role of the Prime Minister's Office. A prime minister who does not respect these traditions falls outside the normal spectrum of Canadian political thought.

/sp

[Tempra]

With the possible exception of number 10, I fail to see how any of those actions evince an "American attitude." Is that just shorthand for being something you dislike?

[Fragile Bird]

With the possible exception of number 10, I fail to see how any of those actions evince an "American attitude." Is that just shorthand for being something you dislike?

No, it's a little more complicated than that. Harper, though raised in Ontario, moved to Alberta and went to university there and got deeply involved in western-alienation politics. Alberta has been run by Big Oil since WW 2, and it has a different feel and attitude than other places in Canada. Do you do surveys in the USA about whether residents of states feel they are, say, Californian first and American second? If you do, my guess is most people feel American first (correct me if I'm wrong). In Canada (leaving out Quebec, which is a whole different world) the closer you live to the capital, Ottawa, the more likely you are to consider yourself a Canadian first. The further west you go, the more you identify with your province (just tried to google it, but I couldn't find the last survey I read) and the feeling is pretty strong in Alberta that the USA does things better. There have been Alberta separatist movements, Alberta let's-ask-to-join-the-US movements, and a lot of resentment over natural resources and the environment.

A lot of Canadians feel like oil companies run Canada now, the way I think many Americans felt when the Bushes were in power.

it's also a reference to the way the Conservative party is bringing up US political consultants here to help plan and run election campaigns, and a reference to No. 10. But not just No. 10 - we see No. 4 as introducing the intensity of US Republican and Democrat polarization to Canada, like Harper and crowd have taken their lead from Bush. A lot from Bush - Harper, when in opposition, demanded Canada join the US in the invasion of Iraq. He demanded we not participate in the Kyoto agreement (Alberta produces the largest portion of greenhouse gases). Every other province has worked hard to reduce emissions (in Ontario we're shutting down ALL coal fired generating plants, Alberta not only has the oil sands, it has electricity produced by coal) and the Conservatives have used the reductions made in the rest of the country to justify not doing anything to impede the oil sands. They even cancelled the necessity to have some environmental studies to be done for major projects, All this contributed to the Bush/Republicans of the North image of Harper and the Conservatives.

No 6, his taking precedence over the representative of the Crown, No. 6, 7 and 8, the feeling he's trying to run an American style presidency instead of a parliamentary government.

He has for years viciously attacked and tried to destroy the main opposition party, the Liberals, with the expressed intent to reduce our country from an essentially 3 party system to a 2 party system, just like the US.

And the author of the quotes does not say anything about being more American, she puts it from the other way, he's less a Canadian.

[Aemon Stark]

With the possible exception of number 10, I fail to see how any of those actions evince an "American attitude." Is that just shorthand for being something you dislike?

I actually agree. In the US, Congress is a much more effective check on executive power than Canada's Parliament, and the President could never just decide to shut down the House or Senate if they were proceeding with, say, impeachment. The influence of lobbyists aside, we need far more US-style checks and balances in the Canadian system, especially to strip power from the PMO and party apparatuses generally.

I think the most disturbing aspect of this government is that it seems to operate solely for the perpetuation of the Party rather than Canada.

No, it's a little more complicated than that. Harper, though raised in Ontario, moved to Alberta and went to university there and got deeply involved in western-alienation politics. Alberta has been run by Big Oil since WW 2, and it has a different feel and attitude than other places in Canada. Do you do surveys in the USA about whether residents of states feel they are, say, Californian first and American second? If you do, my guess is most people feel American first (correct me if I'm wrong). In Canada (leaving out Quebec, which is a whole different world) the closer you live to the capital, Ottawa, the more likely you are to consider yourself a Canadian first. The further west you go, the more you identify with your province (just tried to google it, but I couldn't find the last survey I read) and the feeling is pretty strong in Alberta that the USA does things better. There have been Alberta separatist movements, Alberta let's-ask-to-join-the-US movements, and a lot of resentment over natural resources and the environment.

Alberta separatist movements have always been at the fringe. I do think you're a bit unfair here. Nothing about Alberta feels closer to the US; it does, after all, have the highest public spending of any province, and has income taxes like everywhere else (and unlike numerous US states). Plus there are an awful lot of Maritimers and Newfoundlanders working there. ;)

It's true that Alberta has a strong-ish provincial identity, but I'd say that it's no different on the East Coast, and here people are arguably much more insular. Google "Come From Away" to see what I mean.

Anyway, I linked above, but I wanted to highlight this too:

CBC News has learned that Stephen Harper’s former chief of staff, Nigel Wright, had control of a secret fund in the Prime Minister’s Office when he cut the now infamous $90,000 "personal cheque" to disgraced Senator Mike Duffy.

In exclusive interviews, sources familiar with the fund tell CBC the money in it comes from Conservative Party coffers, and at times has reached almost $1 million.

Like all political party funds, more than half of all the cash in the secret PMO stash ultimately comes from taxpayers' pockets. Individual donors to political parties receive generous tax credits. Parties also receive millions from taxpayers through a per-vote subsidy, which is being phased out by 2015.

Sources tell CBC that Harper's chief of staff — to date, there have been four, including Wright — has exclusive signing authority over the fund, which was set up in the PMO when the Conservatives came to power in 2006.

Its existence has apparently been a closely guarded secret for the past seven years, even within the Prime Minister's Office. Only a few Conservative insiders know how the PMO cash stash has been spent.

Like all political party financing, there is little external oversight. The fund is completely off-limits to the auditor general and even Elections Canada, which monitors party donations but not expenses outside of an election period.

The only oversight outside the PMO appears to be the five-member board of the Conservative Fund of Canada, the party’s fundraising arm and source of the money in the clandestine account.

[Fragile Bird]

I actually agree. In the US, Congress is a much more effective check on executive power than Canada's Parliament, and the President could never just decide to shut down the House or Senate if they were proceeding with, say, impeachment. The influence of lobbyists aside, we need far more US-style checks and balances in the Canadian system, especially to strip power from the PMO and party apparatuses generally.

I think the most disturbing aspect of this government is that it seems to operate solely for the perpetuation of the Party rather than Canada.

Alberta separatist movements have always been at the fringe. I do think you're a bit unfair here. Nothing about Alberta feels closer to the US; it does, after all, have the highest public spending of any province, and has income taxes like everywhere else (and unlike numerous US states). Plus there are an awful lot of Maritimers and Newfoundlanders working there. ;)

It's true that Alberta has a strong-ish provincial identity, but I'd say that it's no different on the East Coast, and here people are arguably much more insular. Google "Come From Away" to see what I mean.

Anyway, I linked above, but I wanted to highlight this too:

I should qualify, you're right, people see the worst of American politics being introduced by the Conservatives, the sleazy tactics, not the best. And you have to remember, Harper is doing things that no one has ever tried to do, as Elizabeth May points out. The US set up it it's system exactly so that it was a system of checks and balances, but that system has also been distorted by a poisoned political atmosphere, the way the House has been. Pearson's government, for example, was a badly leaking ship of state, but even so look what was accomplished, the flag, the abolition of the death penalty, bilingualism, the CPP set up, the Canada health system. People still co-operated even while screaming at each other across the floor.

And yes, Alberta is still Canadian, but it is still the most American of all provinces, IMHO. I've been to the east coast, all except Newfoundland (next year, I hope, and hope you will still be there! I can buy you a brewski or three!)) and it's not like Alberta. Which, btw, I love for their friendliness. First time I went to Edmonton on a business trip, one of the business people picked me up at the airport and had to stop to get gas. I stepped out of the truck (what else, it was an oil well servicing business) and immediately got into a lengthy, friendly discussion with the guy next to us filling up his truck. Afterwards, even the manager who picked me up said oh, how unusual you ran into a friend at the gas station, and was surprised he was a total stranger.

ETA: And yes! The Conservative slush fund, funded by all those good grass roots folk across the west sending in their $10 a month! I squeeled with delight - I wonder what they're saying on the radio talk shows now...

[TrueMetis]

Well there's a criminal investigation going on about the Duffy thing. Story Here. Should be interesting to see where this goes.

In other news the "Conservatives accuse Justin Trudeau of profiting from not-for-profits" which seem like a lame ass attempt to deflect to me.

[Salome the Persian Witch]

Trudeau is hired through his speaker's bureau for his speaking rate, the charity fucks up and only sells 120 tickets, and somehow Trudeau's the asshole? Bullshit, misrepresentation tactics. Almost as bad as him being a drama teacher. :rolleyes:

[maarsen]

Trudeau is hired through his speaker's bureau for his speaking rate, the charity fucks up and only sells 120 tickets, and somehow Trudeau's the asshole? Bullshit, misrepresentation tactics. Almost as bad as him being a drama teacher. :rolleyes:

I also blame Justin Trudeau for the fact my penis extender did not work as advertised. :drunk:

[Aemon Stark]

I don't think he should have been charging speaking fees as an MP (much less $20,000!! Who does he think he is?), but it does seem more like a Conservative muckraking attempt than anything else.

[kairparavel]

Is there anyone in the Senate not being investigated for expenses? I didn't realize Pamela Wallin was also asked to 'turn in the receipts' during this Duffy thing. Oi.

And so ends the Dalton McGuinty era in Ontario. I can't believe I voted for that guy, once upon a time.

I blame Mike Harris.

[Salome the Persian Witch]

On another note - Shit Harper Did is applying for the government contract to produce the "Economic Action Plan" commercials for the next 3 years. They say they want to produce cheaper commercials that actually inform. :rofl: They're looking for "references" and have 3,000 already!

[Lord Lymond Lychester]

Apparently the PMO sent an email to the Barrie Examiner in Ontario about Trudeau's speaking role at Georgian College. Georgian lost, or did not make, around $4,000 due to the speaking engagement; which is a problem to the PMO because colleges are publicly funded.

Article: http://www.thebarrie...ist-of-concerns

The article says everything I'd like to say, minus the cursing and frustration.

Edit: An article from the Toronto Sun discussing the Examiner's Article... http://www.torontosun.com/2013/06/18/stephen-harper-targets-justin-trudeau-over-charity-gigs