David Raymond Amos @DavidRayAmos
"Gerry Butts is now roadkill"
Oh My My Methinks Mr Macdonald is a man of many opinions N'esy Pas?
https://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.com/2019/02/gerald-butts-was-done-in-at-least.html
https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/gerald-butts-1.5023925
Gerald Butts was done in, at least partially, by the ethos of identity politics: Neil Macdonald
Comments Comments in the morning
Commenting is now closed for this story. 
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Richard Sharp
You want real interference in
prosecutions? Real obstruction? Look what Trump and his kind are
doing down south every day. It’s literally ho hum stuff. It makes the
so called “scandal” up here based on ZERO proof, a total joke.
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Ryder Pures
Ryder Pures
@Richard Sharp
What about ... ?
What about ... ?
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Malcolm F. Brown
Malcolm F. Brown
@Richard Sharp And that why
almost every judicial ruling is in favour of those that have made suing
the Trump administration on an almost daily occurrence. If your
determined to go of topic at least try to get your facts right.
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debi mcdonald
debi mcdonald
@Richard Sharp I could not
care less as far as the US, however am very concerned with the here and
now in my great country Canada ! Time will tell just how much the
scandal will be. A joke maybe maybe not.......
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Kevin Delaney
Kevin Delaney
@Richard Sharp
Yes there is truth in ones perspective. America is 300+ million & Canada is 30+ million. There is a 10 fold magnifier to all things re an American - Canada comparison. Now that does not offer up any excuse for a failed Canadian PMO that offered poor advice & set up a PM who was not capable of saying to his backroom... gee guys we have a conflict here that is very tricky and possibly quite damaging.
Yes there is truth in ones perspective. America is 300+ million & Canada is 30+ million. There is a 10 fold magnifier to all things re an American - Canada comparison. Now that does not offer up any excuse for a failed Canadian PMO that offered poor advice & set up a PM who was not capable of saying to his backroom... gee guys we have a conflict here that is very tricky and possibly quite damaging.
A PM who failed to see the risks in compromising his female Justice Minister and a PMO who equally failed to see that risk as well. Further both failed to put right before wrong. Odd how that plays out in Party Politics... regardless of political stripes.
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Richard Sharp
Richard Sharp
@debi mcdonald
The comparison is glaring. The corporate media in the USA have largely come to accept President Trump despite his racism, sexism, xenophobia, lies, smears, dangerous appointments and policies etc.
The corporate media up here have not and will not accept the Trudeau Libs, despite their almost squeaky clean record, a few minor ethics breaches notwithstanding. The most inclusive Cabinet in history is systematically accomplishing almost all of their remarkable 354 campaign promises and they are being derailed by this single Cabinet shuffle with zero evidence of wrongdoing?
The comparison is glaring. The corporate media in the USA have largely come to accept President Trump despite his racism, sexism, xenophobia, lies, smears, dangerous appointments and policies etc.
The corporate media up here have not and will not accept the Trudeau Libs, despite their almost squeaky clean record, a few minor ethics breaches notwithstanding. The most inclusive Cabinet in history is systematically accomplishing almost all of their remarkable 354 campaign promises and they are being derailed by this single Cabinet shuffle with zero evidence of wrongdoing?
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William Weston
William Weston
@Richard Sharp
Will we need to keep changing the comparative country to make Canada look better?
We have enough to keep us occupied with Canadian politics, the direction it has taken, the direction Canadians think it should take and the best path to get us on it.
United States should not distract Canadians from the problems in our own house.
Will we need to keep changing the comparative country to make Canada look better?
We have enough to keep us occupied with Canadian politics, the direction it has taken, the direction Canadians think it should take and the best path to get us on it.
United States should not distract Canadians from the problems in our own house.
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Jim McAlpine
Jim McAlpine
@Richard Sharp - whataboutism
solves nothing. Focus on this issue. An investigation is needed in
order to get to the truth. The optics alone are enough to topple the
government (we've seen it before), so it's in everyone's best interest
to get to the truth and put speculation to rest.
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Richard Sharp
Richard Sharp
@Jim McAlpine
No whataboutism. The Libs have welcomed the ethics investigation and even allowed a concurrent investigation by the justice committee, despite issues of Cabinet confidentiality, solicitor-client privilège and the ongoing investigation.
No whataboutism. The Libs have welcomed the ethics investigation and even allowed a concurrent investigation by the justice committee, despite issues of Cabinet confidentiality, solicitor-client privilège and the ongoing investigation.
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Gordon Kent
Gordon Kent
@Richard Sharp I’ve noticed
that some people treat politics like a team sport. They have their
favourite team, wear their jersey on game day, get really upset when
their team loses, and get outraged when the referee makes a call against
their team. No Canadian government in history has been as squeaky
clean and virtuous as you believe the current one to be. It’s how the
game is played, and the current champs are just as much beneficiaries of
this as any other team has been.
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Richard Sharp
Richard Sharp
@Gordon Kent
They are relatively very clean in terms of ethics, respect for others, inclusiveness, openness, trust and other character traits. They are not clean in terms of policy, such as their blind loyalty to the USA, NATO and Israel, “free”trade deals that still give way too much sovereignty to corporations, etc.
They are relatively very clean in terms of ethics, respect for others, inclusiveness, openness, trust and other character traits. They are not clean in terms of policy, such as their blind loyalty to the USA, NATO and Israel, “free”trade deals that still give way too much sovereignty to corporations, etc.
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David Amos
David Amos
@Richard Sharp Methinks this opinion piece is about your liberal heroes not their nemesis Mr Trump N'esy Pas?
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William Ben
William Ben
@Richard Sharp its not about Trump - he America bad man. Trudeau he Canada bad man.
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Dave Davidson
Dave Davidson
@Richard Sharp
Where there is smoke,..........
I see a lot of smoke, now let’s go in and put out the fire.
I’m against just standing back and watching it all burn to the ground.
Where there is smoke,..........
I see a lot of smoke, now let’s go in and put out the fire.
I’m against just standing back and watching it all burn to the ground.
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Dave Davidson
Dave Davidson
@Richard Sharp
So your Liberal government is transparent about allowing a proper investigation, but your not?
Ok then
So your Liberal government is transparent about allowing a proper investigation, but your not?
Ok then
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David Amos
David Amos
@Dave Davidson "So your Liberal government is transparent about allowing a proper investigation, but your not?"
Methinks you should ask Mr Sharp about a story he told me of an encounter he had with a Mountie in a stairwell on the night Trudeau The Elder won the liberal leadership when we were young N'esy Pas?
Methinks you should ask Mr Sharp about a story he told me of an encounter he had with a Mountie in a stairwell on the night Trudeau The Elder won the liberal leadership when we were young N'esy Pas?
Tom Abbott
I am more concerned about the
honesty of our PM than the dishonesty of SNC Lavalin. Transparency in
government was an election promise that was NEVER kept. We deserve an
independent inquiry into the potential unethical and illegal dealings
that might have occurred under Justin's watch.
Dee Thompsan
@Tom Abbott transparency in liberal is code for "Woo whooo bring on the bags of cash!"
drew Currah
@Tom Abbott
Well put, I feel the same way.
Well put, I feel the same way.
Jim McAlpine
@Dee Thompsan - your statement is applicable to any political party in general (expect brown envelopes work just fine too).
Richard Sharp
@Tom Abbott
The Trudeau Libs record on transparency and accountability is unquestionably positive. They disclose, track and report progress on Ministerial mandate letters for the first time ever, have unmuzzled government scientists and other bureaucrats, hold maybe ten times more press conferences without concern for who is asking what questions, deal properly through the PCO rather than the PMO, have empowered Parliamentary committees and MPs like never before, do not launch personal attacks against Supreme Court justices, officers of Parliament or senior bureaucrats who disagree with them and on and on. In time, Canadians will surely see through this witch-hunt.
The Trudeau Libs record on transparency and accountability is unquestionably positive. They disclose, track and report progress on Ministerial mandate letters for the first time ever, have unmuzzled government scientists and other bureaucrats, hold maybe ten times more press conferences without concern for who is asking what questions, deal properly through the PCO rather than the PMO, have empowered Parliamentary committees and MPs like never before, do not launch personal attacks against Supreme Court justices, officers of Parliament or senior bureaucrats who disagree with them and on and on. In time, Canadians will surely see through this witch-hunt.
Ron Brady
@Richard Sharp Demonstrably untrue.
David Amos
@Richard Sharp "The Trudeau Libs record on transparency and accountability is unquestionably positive."
Yea Right
Methinks like you your hero Neil Macdonald is a man of many opinions N'esy Pas?
Yea Right
Methinks like you your hero Neil Macdonald is a man of many opinions N'esy Pas?
Jemma Mallard
@Richard Sharp That’s true, so what changed?
Richard Sharp
@Kevin Lacroix
Why not counter my assertions instead of attacking me? Prove me wrong.
Why not counter my assertions instead of attacking me? Prove me wrong.
Richard Sharp
@Jim Clark
Instead of insulting me, disprove any of many factual claims about the Libs. One will do.
Instead of insulting me, disprove any of many factual claims about the Libs. One will do.
Jim Clark
@Richard Sharp he won’t allow
jwr to speak freely.he can allow it.she wants to,the Canadian public
want her to but Justin says no.theres your proof Richard.in one
sentence.
Richard Sharp
@Jim Clark
Not so. She’s seeking legal advice as are the Libs. There are these little things like Cabinet confidentiality, solicitor-client privilege and an ongoing investigation to work through.
Not so. She’s seeking legal advice as are the Libs. There are these little things like Cabinet confidentiality, solicitor-client privilege and an ongoing investigation to work through.
Austin Nisbett
@Jim Clark wrong. No part of
the pact is legally binding. It is clearly stated multiple times in the
pact, I suggest reading it before reacting
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
You think you make a good argument...but you don't. Cabinet Minister mandate letters? Whoopy! Can't say I noticed a flood of scientific information that was allegedly bottled up by the previous government. PRESS CONFERENCE!? That's one of my favourites: of course they don't worry about who or what the question is!! Trudeau goes before the media with memorized lines for the questions his team expect. Sometimes he forgets and needs time to think of them (we've seen this a few times, including last week). If he doesn't have a script that matches the question, he gives whatever he thinks is the closest, even when it's not related at all (re. Regina town hall question about his comments on construction workers, or last week when asked if JWR could have "experienced things differently" - Trudeau started talking about creating jobs).
You think you make a good argument...but you don't. Cabinet Minister mandate letters? Whoopy! Can't say I noticed a flood of scientific information that was allegedly bottled up by the previous government. PRESS CONFERENCE!? That's one of my favourites: of course they don't worry about who or what the question is!! Trudeau goes before the media with memorized lines for the questions his team expect. Sometimes he forgets and needs time to think of them (we've seen this a few times, including last week). If he doesn't have a script that matches the question, he gives whatever he thinks is the closest, even when it's not related at all (re. Regina town hall question about his comments on construction workers, or last week when asked if JWR could have "experienced things differently" - Trudeau started talking about creating jobs).
Jim Clark
@Richard Sharp they are stalling and you know it.she is muzzled by trudeaus powers.The advice has been given.
Jim Clark
@Austin Nisbett why would a
leader of any country sign any pact that takes away free speech.It being
a legal document or not.Tell me that.If it’s not legal,why sign it.
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
That's interesting that you lump those things together, because it appears Trudeau and the PMO are using cabinet confidentiality and solicitor-client privilege to hamper an investigation.
That's interesting that you lump those things together, because it appears Trudeau and the PMO are using cabinet confidentiality and solicitor-client privilege to hamper an investigation.
John Sollows
@Tom Abbott
Agreed. That should apply to any government when something questionable happens.
But, but Harper! Sorry, that shoe also fits. Stevo would have squelched this real fast. That doesn't necessarily serve the common good better.
Agreed. That should apply to any government when something questionable happens.
But, but Harper! Sorry, that shoe also fits. Stevo would have squelched this real fast. That doesn't necessarily serve the common good better.
Richard Sharp
@Jamie Gillis
Mandate letters tied to campaign promises, publicly disclosed, tracked, explained and reported on PCO’s website for the first time in Canadian history and thus providing full transparency and accountability on those promises, and the best you do is “Whoopy?”
Speaks volumes.
Mandate letters tied to campaign promises, publicly disclosed, tracked, explained and reported on PCO’s website for the first time in Canadian history and thus providing full transparency and accountability on those promises, and the best you do is “Whoopy?”
Speaks volumes.
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
The fact that you bring in the Privy Council Office's "Mandate Tracker," essentially a self-graded report card, is what speaks volumes. I don't need mandate letters to know what the party promised to do. It's all there in their platform. I also don't need a mandate tracker to know if they actually did it or not. The media covers all this thoroughly. I have not seen one reputable journalist or pundit call open mandate letters a game changer in transparency. Most likely because it's not.
I agree that it was something new, and perhaps has tones of openness, but a fundamental shift "for the first time in history"? I think not.
The fact that you bring in the Privy Council Office's "Mandate Tracker," essentially a self-graded report card, is what speaks volumes. I don't need mandate letters to know what the party promised to do. It's all there in their platform. I also don't need a mandate tracker to know if they actually did it or not. The media covers all this thoroughly. I have not seen one reputable journalist or pundit call open mandate letters a game changer in transparency. Most likely because it's not.
I agree that it was something new, and perhaps has tones of openness, but a fundamental shift "for the first time in history"? I think not.
Troy Mann
@Tom Abbott
If you read the article it clearly states exactly what I have been saying, nothing unethical or illegal was done...
And 4 chief of staffs? Wow...
If you read the article it clearly states exactly what I have been saying, nothing unethical or illegal was done...
And 4 chief of staffs? Wow...
David Amos
@Richard Sharp "Speaks volumes."
Methinks all I hear is crickets coming to me from your neck of the woods I bet you are concerned that I am in your town within the convoy of other upset Maritimers N'esy Pas?
Methinks all I hear is crickets coming to me from your neck of the woods I bet you are concerned that I am in your town within the convoy of other upset Maritimers N'esy Pas?
Bill Hill
@Tom Abbott
It would be far faster to dwell on promises he kept. The list if much shorter than the promises he did not keep.
It would be far faster to dwell on promises he kept. The list if much shorter than the promises he did not keep.
Bill Hill
@Richard Sharp
The fact that Butts resigned truly speaks volumes.
The fact that Butts resigned truly speaks volumes.
Steven Arsenault
@Richard Sharp
Their Omnibus bills they promised would be a think of the past. Support for coups in the Ukraine, Venezuela. Israel and calling the BDS movement immoral is despicable. Pandering to the rich. Talk but no concrete action on climate change that could have happened years ago (ex. federal rebates on EV's like the USA).
If you disagree with the level of immigration you are anti-Canadian. If you think people should be hired on merit over gender or culture you are disparaged.
Sorry Richard I could go on but clearly Trudeau in many ways is his own worst enemy.
Harper was cold and uncompromising and his supporters loved him for it.
Their Omnibus bills they promised would be a think of the past. Support for coups in the Ukraine, Venezuela. Israel and calling the BDS movement immoral is despicable. Pandering to the rich. Talk but no concrete action on climate change that could have happened years ago (ex. federal rebates on EV's like the USA).
If you disagree with the level of immigration you are anti-Canadian. If you think people should be hired on merit over gender or culture you are disparaged.
Sorry Richard I could go on but clearly Trudeau in many ways is his own worst enemy.
Harper was cold and uncompromising and his supporters loved him for it.
Tom Abbott
@John Sollows
I am talking about the current government and its leader....Not past governments. Please stop trying to deflect the attention away from Trudeau and his cronies.
I am talking about the current government and its leader....Not past governments. Please stop trying to deflect the attention away from Trudeau and his cronies.
Tom Abbott
@Troy Mann
Try again Troy...the only person saying that nothing unethical or illegal happened was Trudeau....I personally do not take anyone at their word...Look south of the border to see a perfect example.
Try again Troy...the only person saying that nothing unethical or illegal happened was Trudeau....I personally do not take anyone at their word...Look south of the border to see a perfect example.
Richard Sharp
@Tom Abbott
Trudeau’s electoral reforms as promised include: undoing Harper’s voter suppression measures, such as unnecessary ID requirements hurting seniors, students and FN people and restoring voting rights to dual citizens/expats, reempowering Elections Canada/commissioner of Elections to promote voting and investigation electoral fraud, setting up an independent body to oversee debates, restricting political and third party spending between and during elections, requiring companies like FB to report whose advertising on their platforms, and more.
Trudeau’s electoral reforms as promised include: undoing Harper’s voter suppression measures, such as unnecessary ID requirements hurting seniors, students and FN people and restoring voting rights to dual citizens/expats, reempowering Elections Canada/commissioner of Elections to promote voting and investigation electoral fraud, setting up an independent body to oversee debates, restricting political and third party spending between and during elections, requiring companies like FB to report whose advertising on their platforms, and more.
Neil Turv
@Richard Sharp
I'd have more respect for Trudeau if he'd finish his sentences in a timely manner:
During the election:
"This will be the last election in Canada with FPTP......"
After the non-partisan committee reported their findings:
".......Unless Canadians reject my preferred option the one that overwhelmingly favours the Liberal party."
From the last election (and still on the Liberal party website today):
"Stephen Harper has also used omnibus bills to prevent Parliament from properly...
I'd have more respect for Trudeau if he'd finish his sentences in a timely manner:
During the election:
"This will be the last election in Canada with FPTP......"
After the non-partisan committee reported their findings:
".......Unless Canadians reject my preferred option the one that overwhelmingly favours the Liberal party."
From the last election (and still on the Liberal party website today):
"Stephen Harper has also used omnibus bills to prevent Parliament from properly...
Richard Sharp
@Neil Turv
FPTP would be gone today if Cullen and the rest of the pigheaded NDP had accepted the Libs’ choice, ranked voting. The NDP, btw, would have done exceedingly well with ranked voting when led by the likes of Jack Layton.
As for the allegation of the Libs’ abuse of omnibus bills, the length of a budget document is not the telling factor; on the matter of DPAs, for example, there was a two month public consultation on them in the fall before the budget. Nothing sneaky about it when they were brought in.
FPTP would be gone today if Cullen and the rest of the pigheaded NDP had accepted the Libs’ choice, ranked voting. The NDP, btw, would have done exceedingly well with ranked voting when led by the likes of Jack Layton.
As for the allegation of the Libs’ abuse of omnibus bills, the length of a budget document is not the telling factor; on the matter of DPAs, for example, there was a two month public consultation on them in the fall before the budget. Nothing sneaky about it when they were brought in.
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp "FPTP would be
gone today if Cullen and the rest of the pigheaded NDP had accepted the
Libs’ choice, ranked voting."
This is categorically false. The actual events leading to Trudeau turning his back on this promise are clear and don't support this narrative. The 2015 Liberal platform placed no conditions on their promise and everything was being followed to the letter and progressing until Trudeau stepped in and shut it down. The events are well documented.
This is categorically false. The actual events leading to Trudeau turning his back on this promise are clear and don't support this narrative. The 2015 Liberal platform placed no conditions on their promise and everything was being followed to the letter and progressing until Trudeau stepped in and shut it down. The events are well documented.
Sally Ride
@Richard Sharp Nothing is ever their fault is it Richard? How about door-to-door mail delivery? Didn't they blow that one?
Moira Wilkinson
@Tom Abbott
No transparency? See who? Theconservatives? You must be kidding..ytudeaus problem is he stands and holds press briefings and answers questions as long as they are asked. Unlike The last government who ruled that no more than 5 questions could be asked but each question must be about a different topic.
No transparency? See who? Theconservatives? You must be kidding..ytudeaus problem is he stands and holds press briefings and answers questions as long as they are asked. Unlike The last government who ruled that no more than 5 questions could be asked but each question must be about a different topic.
Don Cameron
@Jamie Gillis said,
"This is categorically false."
Indeed.
Richard has been repeating this fantasy for a couple of years now. Those of us who were following this promise with some anticipation of what it might have yielded, remember exactly how Trudeau threw out the recommendations of the all party committee, and shut down the whole process.
"This is categorically false."
Indeed.
Richard has been repeating this fantasy for a couple of years now. Those of us who were following this promise with some anticipation of what it might have yielded, remember exactly how Trudeau threw out the recommendations of the all party committee, and shut down the whole process.
@Richard Sharp
The NDP choosing to go with the findings of the council and the will of the Canadian public is not a negative behavior.
I'll state it again, at no time did Trudeau say "electoral reform ONLY if you decide on ranked ballots". He said they would reform the system and would consult Canada on the new method.
Your defense of their actions on that file are as flimsy and cynical as their actions themselves.
Party's are beholden to the taxpayer not the current party in power.
The NDP choosing to go with the findings of the council and the will of the Canadian public is not a negative behavior.
I'll state it again, at no time did Trudeau say "electoral reform ONLY if you decide on ranked ballots". He said they would reform the system and would consult Canada on the new method.
Your defense of their actions on that file are as flimsy and cynical as their actions themselves.
Party's are beholden to the taxpayer not the current party in power.
Moira Wilkinson
@Richard Sharp
But , according to the conservatives- among others, the sky is falling, the
Government is in chaos. The conservatives are your only chance of saving Canada . Crisis time. - looks more like the cons are creating a lot more ‘ manufacturing ‘ jobs
But , according to the conservatives- among others, the sky is falling, the
Government is in chaos. The conservatives are your only chance of saving Canada . Crisis time. - looks more like the cons are creating a lot more ‘ manufacturing ‘ jobs
Moira Wilkinson
@Jamie Gillis
As opposed to Harper. His favourite audience was never Canadians, it was the Republican think tanks down south. Starting with his 1997 Montreal speech.
As opposed to Harper. His favourite audience was never Canadians, it was the Republican think tanks down south. Starting with his 1997 Montreal speech.
Richard Sharp
@Jamie Gillis
Nope. FPTP would be gone right now if the pigheaded NDP had realized it was a rump third party and couldn’t demand anything. Ranked voting, where the NDP would do very well with the likes of Jack Layton, was there for the taking, no referendum required. The NDP refused and so it got nothing. Cullen was the worst representative because he was the most pigheaded of all.
Nope. FPTP would be gone right now if the pigheaded NDP had realized it was a rump third party and couldn’t demand anything. Ranked voting, where the NDP would do very well with the likes of Jack Layton, was there for the taking, no referendum required. The NDP refused and so it got nothing. Cullen was the worst representative because he was the most pigheaded of all.
Richard Sharp
@Sally Ride
All I was doing was proving that, while the Libs failed to get rid of the FPTP (thanks to the pigheaded NDP, which the Cons played like a fiddle), the Libs otherwise brought in other transformative electoral reforms. Read my list.
All I was doing was proving that, while the Libs failed to get rid of the FPTP (thanks to the pigheaded NDP, which the Cons played like a fiddle), the Libs otherwise brought in other transformative electoral reforms. Read my list.
Darren MacDonald
@Tom Abbott "I am more concerned about the honesty of our PM than the dishonesty of SNC Lavalin."
People are experiencing things differently.
People are experiencing things differently.
Darren MacDonald
@Bill Hill "It would be far faster to dwell on promises he kept. The list if much shorter than the promises he did not keep."
It's at 40% tops which isn't something to be proud of.
It's at 40% tops which isn't something to be proud of.
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
You don't know what would have happened if the NDP decided to give up a key platform promise and support the Liberals instead (frankly I find it extremely pigheaded of you to say they should have and smear Cullen for not doing so).
After the fact Trudeau said in question period that there was (suddenly!?) no consensus among Canadians as to how or even if they wanted (yeah, he actually said that) electoral reform. Are you saying he wasn't being honest? Let me guess: if the NDP had changed their mind, suddenly Trudeau would have heard Canadians loud and clear? Come on!
Bottom line is the process was going forward. The committee had their recommendation! Just like the Liberal platform planned! The next step was to act on it and TRUDEAU SHUT IT DOWN!
Not Cullen, not the NDP, TRUDEAU. Irrefutable.
You don't know what would have happened if the NDP decided to give up a key platform promise and support the Liberals instead (frankly I find it extremely pigheaded of you to say they should have and smear Cullen for not doing so).
After the fact Trudeau said in question period that there was (suddenly!?) no consensus among Canadians as to how or even if they wanted (yeah, he actually said that) electoral reform. Are you saying he wasn't being honest? Let me guess: if the NDP had changed their mind, suddenly Trudeau would have heard Canadians loud and clear? Come on!
Bottom line is the process was going forward. The committee had their recommendation! Just like the Liberal platform planned! The next step was to act on it and TRUDEAU SHUT IT DOWN!
Not Cullen, not the NDP, TRUDEAU. Irrefutable.
Richard Sharp
@Jamie Gillis
You still stalking me? Take a break.
You still stalking me? Take a break.
David Amos
@Richard Sharp "You still stalking me? Take a break."
Wow what a whimpy reply
Wow what a whimpy reply
David Amos
@Richard Sharp "You want real
interference in prosecutions? Real obstruction? Look what Trump and his
kind are doing down south every day. It’s literally ho hum stuff. It
makes the so called “scandal” up here based on ZERO proof, a total
joke."
Methinks it was no joke when "Poof" you were gone N'esy Pas?
Methinks it was no joke when "Poof" you were gone N'esy Pas?
@Richard Sharp "The
comparison is glaring. The corporate media in the USA have largely come
to accept President Trump despite his racism, sexism, xenophobia, lies,
smears, dangerous appointments and policies etc.
The corporate media up here have not and will not accept the Trudeau Libs, despite their almost squeaky clean record, a few minor ethics breaches notwithstanding. The most inclusive Cabinet in history is systematically accomplishing almost all of their remarkable 354 campaign promises and they are being derailed by this single Cabinet shuffle with zero evidence of wrongdoing?"
Yea Right
The corporate media up here have not and will not accept the Trudeau Libs, despite their almost squeaky clean record, a few minor ethics breaches notwithstanding. The most inclusive Cabinet in history is systematically accomplishing almost all of their remarkable 354 campaign promises and they are being derailed by this single Cabinet shuffle with zero evidence of wrongdoing?"
Yea Right
David Amos
@Richard Sharp "No
whataboutism. The Libs have welcomed the ethics investigation and even
allowed a concurrent investigation by the justice committee, despite
issues of Cabinet confidentiality, solicitor-client privilège and the
ongoing investigation.
They are relatively very clean in terms of ethics, respect for others, inclusiveness, openness, trust and other character traits. They are not clean in terms of policy, such as their blind loyalty to the USA, NATO and Israel, “free”trade deals that still give way too much sovereignty to corporations, etc."
Methinks this opinion piece is about your liberal heroes not their nemesis Mr Trump N'esy Pas?
mo bennett
" the vital work the PM is doing for all Canadians"? witch planet you bin hidin' on there, gerry?
Richard Sharp
@mo bennett
This planet: Transformational reforms of child benefits, helping out 9 families out of ten and pulling 300,000 children out of poverty; of the Senate, no constitutional crisis required; of Supreme Court and other senior level government appointments; of elections, including undoing Harper’s voter suppression measures, empowering Elections Canada, restricting third party spending and placing debates under an independent body; help for FNs, the unemployed, the elderly and students; a climate action plan that is working and balances sustainable development; three trade deals.....
This planet: Transformational reforms of child benefits, helping out 9 families out of ten and pulling 300,000 children out of poverty; of the Senate, no constitutional crisis required; of Supreme Court and other senior level government appointments; of elections, including undoing Harper’s voter suppression measures, empowering Elections Canada, restricting third party spending and placing debates under an independent body; help for FNs, the unemployed, the elderly and students; a climate action plan that is working and balances sustainable development; three trade deals.....
Richard Sharp
@Eric Biallas
I don’t need your help. The bullies on this site do though.
I don’t need your help. The bullies on this site do though.
Eric Biallas
@Richard Sharp Not trying to
put the lights out at the party. But for you to continue your support
for unethical behaviour by the Liberals? There is NO logic in it.
Trudeau has ethics violations against him.The only PM in history! And
you still defend this? Makes your judgement biased at the least.
Richard Sharp
@Eric Biallas
Trudeau’s ethics violations were minor. Who knew the commissioner would make “new law” in finding that the Aga Khan was not a personal friend? Trudeau had spent several Xmas vacations with him as a kid. A helicopter ride instead of a boat? Big friggin’ deal.
Now Harper was the first PM in the history of the Commonwealth to be found in contempt of Parliament. That’s a scandal.
Trudeau’s ethics violations were minor. Who knew the commissioner would make “new law” in finding that the Aga Khan was not a personal friend? Trudeau had spent several Xmas vacations with him as a kid. A helicopter ride instead of a boat? Big friggin’ deal.
Now Harper was the first PM in the history of the Commonwealth to be found in contempt of Parliament. That’s a scandal.
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David Amos
@mo bennett YO MO Methinks you were up early too N'esy Pas?
Content disabled.
David Amos
@Richard Sharp Methinks
everybody knows that I am far from done with dealing with Mr Harper and
his buddy the Aga Khan N'esy Pas?
Jim Clark
@Richard Sharp Trudeau’s
ethics violations were minor.Sure they were.if you say so.I find them
illegal and disgusting and so does the Canadian public.Canada deserves
and wants much better.
David Amos
@mo bennettYO MO Methinks its strange that I am no permitted to confer with you N'esy Pas?
Keith Laughton
@Richard Sharp
That would be the Harper Climate action plan and the trade deals Mr Trudeau opposed while the leader of the third party?
His own record includes 2015 as the last election using FPTP, if Canadians had only accepted that Mr Trudeau's chosen view was perfect, even if not presented for debate.
A record including 25 years of deficits although the campaign promised a return to balance in 4.
The purchase of 35 year old jets in place of the immediate open competition.
I do agree that in some of his foreign affairs decisions he has got it correct. Especially the ongoing support for NATO in the Baltics and for Ukraine in face of Russian aggression.
He even limited the damage that could have been done to the Canadian Armed forces by limiting the Mali mission to a single year. A better decision would have been to continue breaking his promise of UN "Peacekeeping" missions in an area without a peace to keep.
Regards,
That would be the Harper Climate action plan and the trade deals Mr Trudeau opposed while the leader of the third party?
His own record includes 2015 as the last election using FPTP, if Canadians had only accepted that Mr Trudeau's chosen view was perfect, even if not presented for debate.
A record including 25 years of deficits although the campaign promised a return to balance in 4.
The purchase of 35 year old jets in place of the immediate open competition.
I do agree that in some of his foreign affairs decisions he has got it correct. Especially the ongoing support for NATO in the Baltics and for Ukraine in face of Russian aggression.
He even limited the damage that could have been done to the Canadian Armed forces by limiting the Mali mission to a single year. A better decision would have been to continue breaking his promise of UN "Peacekeeping" missions in an area without a peace to keep.
Regards,
Keith Laughton
@Richard Sharp
You continue to miss that Mr Trudeau and his staff arrogantly didn't bother to actually read the law past his hoped for "Get Out Of Jail Free Card" to the section where he had to ask permission before accepting the free helicopter flight.
You also miss that if the Aga Khan was truly a friend then Mr Trudeau would have broken the act when he attended meetings between government officials and the Aga Khan's representatives.
As an aside, I wonder why Mr Trudeau has such a low view of teachers and MPs. After all, he claimed he couldn't act on that "lifelong friendship" until he was the leader of a federal party and later PM with the ability to direct policy for a government, including continuing government funding to an applicant like the Aga Khan's group.
Lastly, can you explain why the Liberal Party is no longer interested in what led to the political theatre of the Contempt charge? After all, we are still waiting for the numbers associated with the various attempted jet purchases for Mr Trudeau's "capability Gap" that did not actually come from the military.
Regards ,
You continue to miss that Mr Trudeau and his staff arrogantly didn't bother to actually read the law past his hoped for "Get Out Of Jail Free Card" to the section where he had to ask permission before accepting the free helicopter flight.
You also miss that if the Aga Khan was truly a friend then Mr Trudeau would have broken the act when he attended meetings between government officials and the Aga Khan's representatives.
As an aside, I wonder why Mr Trudeau has such a low view of teachers and MPs. After all, he claimed he couldn't act on that "lifelong friendship" until he was the leader of a federal party and later PM with the ability to direct policy for a government, including continuing government funding to an applicant like the Aga Khan's group.
Lastly, can you explain why the Liberal Party is no longer interested in what led to the political theatre of the Contempt charge? After all, we are still waiting for the numbers associated with the various attempted jet purchases for Mr Trudeau's "capability Gap" that did not actually come from the military.
Regards ,
Bill Hill
@Richard Sharp
If the Aga Khan was a personal friend, why didn't Trudeau recuse himself from consultations regarding Canadian donations to the Aga Khan Foundation?
If the Aga Khan was a personal friend, why didn't Trudeau recuse himself from consultations regarding Canadian donations to the Aga Khan Foundation?
Bill Hill
@Richard Sharp
A helicopter ride? How about taking several friends including the President of the Liberal Party of Canada on a taxpayer funded junket. How about the Prime Ministers wife taking her friends on a taxpayer funded trip, without the Prime Minister (didn't know spouses were entitled to MP benefits.) How about the not so secret meeting with American Liberal John Kerry while on the Aga Khans island, conducting Liberal Party business on the taxpayers dime.
A helicopter ride? How about taking several friends including the President of the Liberal Party of Canada on a taxpayer funded junket. How about the Prime Ministers wife taking her friends on a taxpayer funded trip, without the Prime Minister (didn't know spouses were entitled to MP benefits.) How about the not so secret meeting with American Liberal John Kerry while on the Aga Khans island, conducting Liberal Party business on the taxpayers dime.
Bert Law
@Richard Sharp
Just wondering why any and all liberals have been saying that 300,000 were lifted out of poverty for over a year now.
Shouldn’t it be like 300,001 by now.
Unless maybe it’s not a real number....
Just wondering why any and all liberals have been saying that 300,000 were lifted out of poverty for over a year now.
Shouldn’t it be like 300,001 by now.
Unless maybe it’s not a real number....
Don Cameron
@Bert Law said,
"Shouldn’t it be like 300,001 by now. "
Great post Bert.
Richard likes using Liberal propaganda as fact. When he says, over and over, "pulling 300,000 children out of poverty", he's merely regurgitating what the Liberals hoped would be the outcome.
He quotes it as 'fact', even though there has never been proof that they actually accomplished this.
"Shouldn’t it be like 300,001 by now. "
Great post Bert.
Richard likes using Liberal propaganda as fact. When he says, over and over, "pulling 300,000 children out of poverty", he's merely regurgitating what the Liberals hoped would be the outcome.
He quotes it as 'fact', even though there has never been proof that they actually accomplished this.
Richard Sharp
@Don Cameron
Actually, it’s more like 400,000 and, as usual, I can back it up, while you simply hurl insults.
http://behindthenumbers.ca/2016/07/20/3-positive-steps-toward-ending-poverty-in-canada/
Actually, it’s more like 400,000 and, as usual, I can back it up, while you simply hurl insults.
http://behindthenumbers.ca/2016/07/20/3-positive-steps-toward-ending-poverty-in-canada/
Jamie Gillis
@Don Cameron
Anyone interested should do a search for the Canadian Press' "Baloney Meter" on the Liberals 300,000 claim. In summary "This one earns a rating of "a lot of baloney" because while there is a hint of truth in the statement -- child poverty is on the decline, and the CCB may help -- it takes a bit of a leap to connect the CCB alone to 300,000."
Anyone interested should do a search for the Canadian Press' "Baloney Meter" on the Liberals 300,000 claim. In summary "This one earns a rating of "a lot of baloney" because while there is a hint of truth in the statement -- child poverty is on the decline, and the CCB may help -- it takes a bit of a leap to connect the CCB alone to 300,000."
Richard Sharp
@Jamie Gillis
This from the OAG’s website:
“The Canada Child Benefit (CCB) which, starting in July 2016, replaced the Canada Child Tax Benefit, National Child Benefit Supplement, and the Universal Child Care Benefit with a single monthly tax-free payment for families with children under the age of 18. The Canada Child Benefit is simpler, more generous, and better targeted so that about nine out of ten families are better off than under the former suite of child benefits. It is estimated that, as a result of the introduction of the CCB, about 300,000 fewer children are living in poverty in 2017, which represents a reduction of about 40% in child poverty in Canada.”
This from the OAG’s website:
“The Canada Child Benefit (CCB) which, starting in July 2016, replaced the Canada Child Tax Benefit, National Child Benefit Supplement, and the Universal Child Care Benefit with a single monthly tax-free payment for families with children under the age of 18. The Canada Child Benefit is simpler, more generous, and better targeted so that about nine out of ten families are better off than under the former suite of child benefits. It is estimated that, as a result of the introduction of the CCB, about 300,000 fewer children are living in poverty in 2017, which represents a reduction of about 40% in child poverty in Canada.”
Bert Law
@Richard Sharp
Borrowing more money to throw once again at some liberal based idea of socialism where everyone should work for the government is unsustainable.
300,000 x 600 = 180,000,00 million a month.
CCB increased nearly 600% and now costs taxpayers over 2.2 billon a year, all of which is borrowed money and contributes over 20% to the 10 + billion deficits.
Not something to be bragging about.
Borrowing more money to throw once again at some liberal based idea of socialism where everyone should work for the government is unsustainable.
300,000 x 600 = 180,000,00 million a month.
CCB increased nearly 600% and now costs taxpayers over 2.2 billon a year, all of which is borrowed money and contributes over 20% to the 10 + billion deficits.
Not something to be bragging about.
Bert Law
@Bert Law
oops. 180 million a month... face palm.
oops. 180 million a month... face palm.
Don Cameron
@Richard Sharp said,
"I can back it up,"
No, you can't.
This is a guesstimate on the part of the leftwing Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. I give them as much credence as you do the Frasier Inst.
In the article they acknowledge their numbers are not definitive.
"Now, I may be getting ahead of myself since poverty rates are calculated annually."
A load of propaganda as bad as anything the Liberals are putting out.
BTW, have you come up with a source for your disinformation about JWR being offered Philpott's prestigious cabinet position? You've been asked for a source 5 times, and keep ignoring the request.
"I can back it up,"
No, you can't.
This is a guesstimate on the part of the leftwing Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. I give them as much credence as you do the Frasier Inst.
In the article they acknowledge their numbers are not definitive.
"Now, I may be getting ahead of myself since poverty rates are calculated annually."
A load of propaganda as bad as anything the Liberals are putting out.
BTW, have you come up with a source for your disinformation about JWR being offered Philpott's prestigious cabinet position? You've been asked for a source 5 times, and keep ignoring the request.
Richard Sharp
@Don Cameron
First time I was asked for a source that I saw, I provided it. Now I see you ask for it and my response is look it up yourself.
First time I was asked for a source that I saw, I provided it. Now I see you ask for it and my response is look it up yourself.
Darren MacDonald
@mo bennett Canadians would like to know what this vital work is. Word salad is not vital work.
Darren MacDonald
@Bert Law "Just wondering why
any and all liberals have been saying that 300,000 were lifted out of
poverty for over a year now."
Poverty has increased since 2015, it's an easy number to find.
Poverty has increased since 2015, it's an easy number to find.
David Amos
@Richard Sharp "my response is look it up yourself"
Methinks while you are at it why not Google your name and mine N'esy Pas?
Methinks while you are at it why not Google your name and mine N'esy Pas?
David Amos
@Bill Hill "If the Aga Khan
was a personal friend, why didn't Trudeau recuse himself from
consultations regarding Canadian donations to the Aga Khan Foundation?"
Methinks you should ask Mr Sharp about a story he told me of an encounter he had with a Mountie in a stairwell on the night Trudeau The Elder won the liberal leadership when we were young N'esy Pas?
Methinks you should ask Mr Sharp about a story he told me of an encounter he had with a Mountie in a stairwell on the night Trudeau The Elder won the liberal leadership when we were young N'esy Pas?
Sulehan Callahan
The beginning of the end for Trudeau identity politics which only seeks to fuel prejudice and bigotry
Roch Quesnel
@Sulehan Callahan Cut the guy some slack..it's not easy being better than everybody else..
Evan Mulligan
@Sulehan Callahan
Identity politics didn't start with Trudeau.
And the right and far-right have become masters of identity politics. It's just that they tend to focus on gun ownership and religiosity.
Like it or not - and I can assure you, I personally don't like it one bit - identity politics will outlast Trudeau.
Identity politics didn't start with Trudeau.
And the right and far-right have become masters of identity politics. It's just that they tend to focus on gun ownership and religiosity.
Like it or not - and I can assure you, I personally don't like it one bit - identity politics will outlast Trudeau.
Sulehan Callahan
@Evan Mulligan
Fake news alert
Fake news alert
Evan Mulligan
@Sulehan Callahan
Which bit, specifically, is fake? Be precise.
Which bit, specifically, is fake? Be precise.
Guy Trembley
@Sulehan Callahan
Yeah. The Old Stock will fix that, right?
Yeah. The Old Stock will fix that, right?
Sally Ride
@Evan Mulligan Trudy elevated it to an art.
Evan Mulligan
@Sally Ride
JT is an also-ran when it comes to leftist identity politics. Its real foundation rests in universities, specifically some - not all - of the humanities. Gender studies and sociology are rife with it.
The right and far-right took note and seen how divisive it can be, so they've co-opted it and use it in their own politics. "If you're not with us, you're against us" is a standard right-wing trope now, which is pure identity politics.
It's going to be with us for a long time to come.
JT is an also-ran when it comes to leftist identity politics. Its real foundation rests in universities, specifically some - not all - of the humanities. Gender studies and sociology are rife with it.
The right and far-right took note and seen how divisive it can be, so they've co-opted it and use it in their own politics. "If you're not with us, you're against us" is a standard right-wing trope now, which is pure identity politics.
It's going to be with us for a long time to come.
Freeman Cowan
@Evan Mulligan It is not my right wing stance.
David Amos
@Sulehan Callahan YUP
David Amos
@Roch Quesnel Oh So True
John Chow
@Evan Mulligan
Identity politics, from the right or the left, are not desirable.
Identity politics, from the right or the left, are not desirable.
Richard Sharp
@Sulehan Callahan
There has never been a more inclusive, respectful government than the Trudeau government. From the diversity of Cabinet amd senior government appointments to immigration and refugees to UN and free trade deals, this government lives and breathes respect for all and human dignity.
It would the Cons who play on fear of foreigners, anger and hate to gain political advantage.
There has never been a more inclusive, respectful government than the Trudeau government. From the diversity of Cabinet amd senior government appointments to immigration and refugees to UN and free trade deals, this government lives and breathes respect for all and human dignity.
It would the Cons who play on fear of foreigners, anger and hate to gain political advantage.
Darren MacDonald
@Sulehan Callahan If you disagree with his vision, you are un-Canadian.
Darren MacDonald
@John Chow I'd agree with that, the interest of all Canadians should be forefront.
David Amos
@Richard Sharp Methinks you
should explain to me why Jody appointed her Deputy to the bench in
Federal Court real slow sometime soon N'esy Pas?
William Burnham
My complements to the author, well nuanced. Justin cares mostly in the mode of his mentor Narcissus
David Amos
@William Burnham Methinks I should kinda sorta agree for obvious reasons to anyone who has read my lawsuit N'esy Pas?
Jim Donald
Trudeau has a long lists of
broken promises and a habit of questionable ethical behavior. It is
difficult to believe anything that he says. And what he has said so far
on this affair rings false. So yes, you can manipulate facts to support
what ever theory you want like Neil has done. But that is hardly a
answer.
David Amos
@Jim Donald I Wholeheartedly Agree Sir
Richard Sharp
@Jim Donald
The Trudeau Libs have kept 80% of their remarkable 354 campaign promises in whole or in part, another 16% are not yet rated. Just 4% (16) have been deemed broken according to independent analysis (Laval U):
https://www.poltext.org/en/trudeau-polimeter
The Trudeau Libs have kept 80% of their remarkable 354 campaign promises in whole or in part, another 16% are not yet rated. Just 4% (16) have been deemed broken according to independent analysis (Laval U):
https://www.poltext.org/en/trudeau-polimeter
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
That's not exactly what the information on their site says. 50.6% kept. 37.9% kept in part *or in the works*. That's a key distinction, because according to their own methodology: "Promises classified as “kept in part or in the works” at the end of a regular parliamentary cycle are reassessed. For example, when a new election is called and a bill dies on the order paper as a result, the corresponding promise is reclassified from " in the works " to " broken ". Other promises remain “kept in part or in the works” as long as the government action related to the promise has produced concrete results, even though these actions fail to entirely fulfill the promise."
A significant portion of that 37.9% could end up in the broken pile, along with all the "not yet rated" and already "borken" promises. In fact, when they did the same thing with Harper, only 7.1% remained "kept in part." If this case is similar, I think we can expect around 40% promises broken in the end.
That's not exactly what the information on their site says. 50.6% kept. 37.9% kept in part *or in the works*. That's a key distinction, because according to their own methodology: "Promises classified as “kept in part or in the works” at the end of a regular parliamentary cycle are reassessed. For example, when a new election is called and a bill dies on the order paper as a result, the corresponding promise is reclassified from " in the works " to " broken ". Other promises remain “kept in part or in the works” as long as the government action related to the promise has produced concrete results, even though these actions fail to entirely fulfill the promise."
A significant portion of that 37.9% could end up in the broken pile, along with all the "not yet rated" and already "borken" promises. In fact, when they did the same thing with Harper, only 7.1% remained "kept in part." If this case is similar, I think we can expect around 40% promises broken in the end.
David Amos
@Richard Sharp Yea Right
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp "What of “in whole or in part” don’t you understand? Why are you stalking me, anyway?"
I haven't misunderstood anything. You're lumping two categories from their website together which is false and misleading because you're leaving out the phrase "in the works" and what that means. Their website is very clear about this and I believe I was too.
You should look up "stalking." That's something done stealthily. I'm happy to challenge your spin out in the open and as often as I like, seeing as it's omnipresent on this site.
I haven't misunderstood anything. You're lumping two categories from their website together which is false and misleading because you're leaving out the phrase "in the works" and what that means. Their website is very clear about this and I believe I was too.
You should look up "stalking." That's something done stealthily. I'm happy to challenge your spin out in the open and as often as I like, seeing as it's omnipresent on this site.
Richard Sharp
@Jamie Gillis
What part of “in whole or in part” don’t you understand?
What part of “in whole or in part” don’t you understand?
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
See above.
See above.
Jim Donald
@Richard Sharp Some people
will actually do research on claims people make. And you tried to spin a
statistic. Even funnier, Laval in their superior to us wisdom added
promises that were not part of the liberal platform. That skews the over
all statistics badly.
For instance, the promise to launch an immediate open process to acquire new jet fighters. I do not accept used obsolete jets as in part completed. So, get your facts either straight or dry with no spin.
For instance, the promise to launch an immediate open process to acquire new jet fighters. I do not accept used obsolete jets as in part completed. So, get your facts either straight or dry with no spin.
Richard Sharp
@Jim Donald
Typical shoot the messenger response from a typical Con fan.
Typical shoot the messenger response from a typical Con fan.
Jim Donald
@Jamie Gillis Well Jamie, as
usual a liberal supporters proclamation of "kept 80% of their remarkable
354 campaign promises" statement is not defendable. They didn't
actually make 354 promises and the 80% is out in left field. So the name
calling starts.
Jamie Gillis
@Jim Donald
He doesn't take well to being persistently challenged, does he? The reason I call him out more than others is because he says the same misleading things over and over again. I've pointed out to him the methodology used by Laval. I know that he knows, but he says it anyhow. And tomorrow, he'll say it again regardless.
He doesn't take well to being persistently challenged, does he? The reason I call him out more than others is because he says the same misleading things over and over again. I've pointed out to him the methodology used by Laval. I know that he knows, but he says it anyhow. And tomorrow, he'll say it again regardless.
David Amos
@Jim Donald "Some people will actually do research on claims people make."
Trust that Gerald Butts, Andrew Scheer and everyone else who sits in opposition know that Jody Wilson-Raybould may have lost her mandate as Justice Minister because of her failings in Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal within my lawsuit against the Crown that was filed when Harper was the Prime Minister and Mr Scheer was the Speaker. Need I say that it irritated me big time when Jody appointed her Deputy Minister to the bench of Federal Court not long after I argued their minions in the Federal Court of Appeal?
Methinks anyone can check my work by simply Googling two names "Jody Wilson-Raybould David Raymond Amos" N'esy Pas?
Trust that Gerald Butts, Andrew Scheer and everyone else who sits in opposition know that Jody Wilson-Raybould may have lost her mandate as Justice Minister because of her failings in Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal within my lawsuit against the Crown that was filed when Harper was the Prime Minister and Mr Scheer was the Speaker. Need I say that it irritated me big time when Jody appointed her Deputy Minister to the bench of Federal Court not long after I argued their minions in the Federal Court of Appeal?
Methinks anyone can check my work by simply Googling two names "Jody Wilson-Raybould David Raymond Amos" N'esy Pas?
David Amos
@Jim Donald More
Methinks truth is stranger than fiction and anyone can easily Google "David Amos Federal Court file No." in order to sort out the truth from fiction for themselves. Its blatantly obvious that Mr Trudeau had a duty to talk to Harper's Minister of justice and Peter MacKay and had them pay particular attention to info found within statement 83 of my lawsuit long before the election in October of 2015
Everybody knows why I am about to put the aforementioned matter before the Supreme Court and file several more lawsuits in the Federal Court against the RCMP and the CRA etc and also run for a seat in Parliament again N'esy Pas?
mo bennett
messin' around with the justice minister was really bad form gerry.
Richard Sharp
@mo bennett
I believe Butts when he sstates that it was JWR that approached him, not the other way around, and that he rightly told her to deal with the Clerk of the Privy Council. Do you have any proof otherwise? If not, you should cool off.
I believe Butts when he sstates that it was JWR that approached him, not the other way around, and that he rightly told her to deal with the Clerk of the Privy Council. Do you have any proof otherwise? If not, you should cool off.
David Amos
@mo bennett YO MO Methinks you already know that I obviously agree with you and not Mr Sharp N'esy Pas?
Jim Clark
@Richard Sharp I’m sure you would believe that.proof?
Richard Sharp
@Jim Clark
I don’t need to. Ever heard of the presumption of innuence or due process?
I don’t need to. Ever heard of the presumption of innuence or due process?
Jamie Gillis
@Richard Sharp
Trudeau, the PMO, and the Liberals on the Justice Committee have a funny view of "due process." A party that preaches from on high about openness and transparency, doing politics differently and sunny ways should welcome the most thorough of investigation and examination when questions arise. That has undeniably NOT happened so far.
Trudeau, the PMO, and the Liberals on the Justice Committee have a funny view of "due process." A party that preaches from on high about openness and transparency, doing politics differently and sunny ways should welcome the most thorough of investigation and examination when questions arise. That has undeniably NOT happened so far.
Jim Clark
@Richard Sharp sort of like all the anonymous sources the media always uses for Justin.
David Amos
@mo bennett YO MO It appears
that I must my last comment back Methinks its now rather obvious that I
can only reveal certain things to you N'esy Pas?
Kevin Lacroix
Transparency, ethics, fairness, middle class...……. ya right. Need I continue?
David Amos
@Kevin Lacroix Nope Methinks a little Deja Vu will do N'esy Pas?
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/fundy-royal-riding-profile-1.3274276
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/fundy-royal-riding-profile-1.3274276
Sally Ride
You know they are in the soup when even the CBC is piling on.
David Amos
@Sally Ride Oh So True
Ron Brady
"Every action has an equal and opposite reaction."
The equal and opposite reaction to the damaging identity politics forced upon Canadians is now taking place.
The equal and opposite reaction to the damaging identity politics forced upon Canadians is now taking place.
Roch Quesnel
@Ron Brady +1 You can't change minds by laws and force..
David Amos
@Roch Quesnel I disagree Trudeau the Younger made smoking dope legal didn't he?
Jay Jackson
Vote up If you'll be voting for anyone other than J. Trudeau and the Libs this October.
Chris commishavich
@Jay Jackson
That's an easy vote. I have never & will never vote Liberal.
That's an easy vote. I have never & will never vote Liberal.
Joe Rosco
@Jay Jackson ---That's too easy for up votes, but I will give it to you anyway.
Rob Roy
@Chris commishavich
I have and would again...but not these Liberals.
I have and would again...but not these Liberals.
Marcus Aetuis
@Jay Jackson
But....but....the polls?
But....but....the polls?
David Amos
@Marcus Aetuis Methinks nobody should care about a poll on a straw man N'esy Pas?
Buford Wilson
This is the most secretive and unethical government in Canadian history.
We can do better.
We can do better.
Mark O'Connell
@Buford Wilson oh please the last guy was much worse. You needed a special invite to attend a rally.
David Conway
@Buford Wilson
When did you get elected ?
When did you get elected ?
James fisher
@David Conway
lol liberals scrambling to undermine Canada, not surprised.
lol liberals scrambling to undermine Canada, not surprised.
David Amos
@Buford Wilson "We can do better"
Who Is We?.
David Amos
@Mark O'Connell I remember a dude with the same name as you in 2004
Chuck Darwin
Liberal days are painful days for Canadians
Bring back integrity in the October election
Bring back integrity in the October election
Guy Trembley
@Chuck Darwin
And the party you recommend is?
And the party you recommend is?
Amy J Parr
@Chuck Darwin Integrity in the previous government? How short are conservative memories.
Dawn MacNeill
@Chuck Darwin What, the
integrity of the last party. You don't remember Del Maestro in chains?
You don't remember the Phoenix debacle we are still left with thanks to
Steve and Rona? Seriously?
John Smith
@Guy Trembley
The province of Quebec and SNC
The province of Quebec and SNC
Brad Evans
@Guy Trembley The Social Darwinist Party of course.
David Amos
@Chuck Darwin Dream on
Kevin Delaney
Well this is what happens when there is a clash of oh what. ???, Sensitivities?? All Things to All Interests.
Failed. It failed big time. One cannot be the champion of Women and empower them and then sell out an empowered Female Champion because there was a more important Corporate entity that needed supporting. One meets one's downfall that way. So down fell a Spin Master who turned out to be not so Masterful at Spinning. Now would the Spin Master have fallen if his boss had the good sense to point out to the Spin Master that there was danger in a path that was being taken?? Sad when there was no one capable of deeper critical thinking. So here they are trying to run away from a rather large mistake. Good Luck.
Failed. It failed big time. One cannot be the champion of Women and empower them and then sell out an empowered Female Champion because there was a more important Corporate entity that needed supporting. One meets one's downfall that way. So down fell a Spin Master who turned out to be not so Masterful at Spinning. Now would the Spin Master have fallen if his boss had the good sense to point out to the Spin Master that there was danger in a path that was being taken?? Sad when there was no one capable of deeper critical thinking. So here they are trying to run away from a rather large mistake. Good Luck.
David Amos
@Kevin Delaney "So down fell a Spin Master who turned out to be not so Masterful at Spinning"
True
True
George Shears
Liberals as a whole will face a backlash at the polls over this debacle.
I am not a fan of Andrew Scheer or Jagmeet Singh, neither are visionaries, but each will have an unprecedented opportunity to capitalize prior to the next federal election.
I thought perhaps Trudeau would bring a refreshing approach to the town that fun forgot, but this is pretty much same old same old.
Vailed democracies are weighing us down!
I am not a fan of Andrew Scheer or Jagmeet Singh, neither are visionaries, but each will have an unprecedented opportunity to capitalize prior to the next federal election.
I thought perhaps Trudeau would bring a refreshing approach to the town that fun forgot, but this is pretty much same old same old.
Vailed democracies are weighing us down!
Michael MacKenzie
@George Shears Scheer and Singh are both duds. As an alternative to the traditional parties, consider the Green Party.
David Amos
@George Shears I agree
David Amos
@Michael MacKenzie Now that is truly funny
Mick Fontana
@Michael MacKenzie I'll vote PPC instead for a more realistic platform.
Irv Millar
Excellent article Neil. You
nary mentioned the right wing party of Canada. Who espouse no plank,
platform or policy to date. You are correct, there isn't a distraction
anymore. Time for Mr. Scheer to step up or step off the bus.
Richard Jay
@Irv Millar
"Excellent article Neil"
Sure sure, yes excellent. Just what the left wants to hear.
"Gerry Butts has been done in, at least partly, by the ethos of identity politics and virtue signaling he himself helped create around our prime minister."
Had this been anyone on the right CBC would be pointing out how this confirms his guilt. But for anyone on the left it's because of "the ethos of identity politics". You see only the right are guilty when they step down after being accused of something.
"Excellent article Neil"
Sure sure, yes excellent. Just what the left wants to hear.
"Gerry Butts has been done in, at least partly, by the ethos of identity politics and virtue signaling he himself helped create around our prime minister."
Had this been anyone on the right CBC would be pointing out how this confirms his guilt. But for anyone on the left it's because of "the ethos of identity politics". You see only the right are guilty when they step down after being accused of something.
Walter Lantz
@Irv Millar
"You nary mentioned the right wing party of Canada. Who espouse no plank, platform or policy to date"
Exactly - and if the Cons are smart they won't give the Liberals a chance to change the channel which they so desperately want to do.
The Liberals have messed up everything they've touched and now managed to cap it off with a scandal - possibly two - whenever the Admiral Norman mess gets sorted.
The Liberal trail of tears can and should occupy the spotlight between now and the election.
"You nary mentioned the right wing party of Canada. Who espouse no plank, platform or policy to date"
Exactly - and if the Cons are smart they won't give the Liberals a chance to change the channel which they so desperately want to do.
The Liberals have messed up everything they've touched and now managed to cap it off with a scandal - possibly two - whenever the Admiral Norman mess gets sorted.
The Liberal trail of tears can and should occupy the spotlight between now and the election.
David Amos
@Irv Millar "Excellent article Neil. You nary mentioned the right wing party of Canada"
Methinks it is merely an opinion that our taxes fund N'esy Pas?
Methinks it is merely an opinion that our taxes fund N'esy Pas?
mo bennett
C'mon, Neil! you bin around this crap longer than most, and even novice political hacks know he's hidin' somethin'!
Jim McAlpine
@mo bennett - whether he is
or not, Neil at least has the journalistic integrity to only comment on
what he knows for sure. It's mostly opinion, but with Neil it's never
fake news.
David Amos
@mo bennett Mais Oui
Lesley Durham-McPhee
This is a stinky mess, no
doubt. I just hope the 'loyal opposition' doesn't somehow find a way to
look good in all of this. The only thing they would have done
differently is to have a Minister of Justice that would have gone along
with the corporate agenda instead of even considering prosecution.
David Amos
@Lesley Durham-McPhee "I just hope the 'loyal opposition' doesn't somehow find a way to look good in all of this."
Me Too
Me Too
William Weston
@Lesley Durham-McPhee
There is also the option to put candidates on ballots whose names
haven’t been worked into the national vernacular. It requires engaged
constituents working together locally to take control from parties and
their national political celebrities. We can continue to see ourselves as the victims of the politicians chosen by others to be elected by us, or build a little enthusiasm, spend a little time – no money required – and send the best representative for the constituents to parliament without party affiliation or interference. If we work within the community, rather than paying so much attention to national media and marketing we could build the representation Canadians deserve.
We need to stop complaining about politicians and start sending the ones we believe will do the job properly. We are only victims of politicians as much as we elect to be.
Gerald Butts was done in, at least partially, by the ethos of identity politics: Neil Macdonald
It's the same ethos that he himself helped create around our prime minister
A good headline, like Varsol, cuts through the grease and varnish applied to any story by political or corporate message-crafters.
So, my suggestion for the big political headline of the day:
"Nothing Happened, So I'm Quitting" — Gerald Butts
Now, Gerry Butts — until Monday Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's principal secretary — is a smart fellow. No denying that. He can be eloquent in person, and loves being the guy who commandeers the discussion with an original take.
But he's going out with a message track so hackneyed and wheezing that it could've been written by the superannuated PR hacks who used to hang around the Press Club bar, when Ottawa still had a Press Club.
'Simply not true'
In a published statement, he indignantly scolded anonymous sources for saying he or Trudeau had pressured the former justice minister, Jody Wilson-Raybould, to intervene in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin. As though anonymous sources are necessarily dodgy and wrong (they're not).
"I categorically deny the accusation," said Butts. He'd acted only with integrity, he declared, always honouring Wilson-Raybould's office. "I have served the public interest."
The accusation that he or his staff pressured the attorney general "is simply not true."
So, naturally, he has no choice but to resign.
Why? Because "this accusation exists." Its very existence, untrue as it is, is forcing out this good public servant.
Then Butts continued: "It cannot and should not take one moment away from the vital work the prime minister and his office is doing for all Canadians."
Therefore, "It is in the best interests of the office and its important work for me to step away."
In other words, Butts went for the old "distraction" ploy.
Well, at least he has lots of company. A few other recent examples:
A year ago, Trudeau's minister of sports and persons with disabilities, Kent Hehr, said he was not leaving cabinet because he had been accused of sexual harassment, but because he'd "become a distraction." (Trudeau accepted, saying "harassment of any kind is unacceptable.")
He quit last July, but not because of ethics concerns.
"He didn't want to be a distraction," said Trump, accepting the resignation.
Ditto Ryan Zinke, the interior secretary accused of using his position for personal gain. Vicious political attacks, he declared, had "created an unfortunate distraction" from the president's important work.
Maria Miller, British culture secretary in former prime minister David Cameron's Conservative government, didn't quit in 2014 because she'd padded expenses, but because "this has become an enormous distraction, and it's not right that I'm detracting from the incredible achievements of this government."
And so on, and so on.
Now, none of this is to say Butts is a sleaze. I don't know anyone who thinks he is. He's not terribly popular among MPs, but that goes with the job. Trudeau, in accepting his resignation, basically declared his friend a great Canadian.
So why did he have to go?
- Gerald Butts resigns as Trudeau's principal secretary
- Commons justice committee to probe SNC-Lavalin affair with limited witness list
Gerry Butts has been done in, at least partly, by the ethos of identity politics and virtue signaling he himself helped create around our prime minister.
A clear-eyed look at the Raybould-Wilson controversy cannot conclude it is a matter of "rule of law," as opposition critics claim.
Had Wilson-Raybould wished, she could have decreed a deferred prosecution agreement and fines for SNC-Lavalin as punishment for charges of bribing foreign officials. The law itself allows it.
If Trudeau, through Butts, indicated that was his preferred legal outcome, so what? Is the prime minister not allowed to weigh in on a question that affects thousands of Canadian jobs? By suggesting an outcome allowed under the law? That constitutes "pressure"? And define "pressure," please.
In any case, if there was pressure, it failed. Wilson-Raybould decided not to issue such a decree, which was her prerogative as attorney general.
Legally, the system worked.
Wilson-Raybould's demotion
The sin for which Butts and the prime minister are actually paying is the subsequent demotion of Wilson-Raybould to veterans affairs minister last month.
Wilson-Raybould, by all accounts, was a competent justice minister. She was obviously angry about the demotion, but she's hardly the first competent minister to be demoted, or to be upset about it.
After the Lavalin story broke, Trudeau loyalists put it about that Wilson-Raybould is not a team player, that she is hard to work with, that she berates colleagues, and that she went through four chiefs of staff for a reason. A Liberal staffer I know, a fellow who doesn't shy from discussing the PM's own shortcomings, describes her as "mean."
Again, nothing new there. Plenty of competent ministers, Liberal and Conservative, have been unpleasant people. I can name a few dozen. That's politics. A cabinet minister serves at the pleasure of the prime minister and can be demoted for any reason, or no reason at all.
But she is also the first Indigenous woman to hold the post of attorney general. More to the point, she was elevated by a prime minister who holds himself out not just as Canada's most prominent feminist, but as a tattooed champion of Indigenous rights and determined advocate of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples after centuries of oppression.
Set yourself up like that, and happily take bragging rights for trailblazing appointments like Wilson-Raybould's, and you narrow your options down the road. The characterizations of Wilson-Raybould quickly blew back on the PMO, which wound up proclaiming its agreement that such language is racist and sexist.
The National
Justin Trudeau insists Jody Wilson-Raybould wasn't pressured to go easy on SNC-Lavalin
Justin Trudeau insists
Jody Wilson-Raybould was not pressured to steer the corruption and fraud
case against SNC-Lavalin away from a courtroom. 2:10
It's actually a bit like those pious Christian conservative leaders and politicians in the U.S. who get caught soliciting gay sex in a bathroom or smoking meth with a prostitute. The irony is what makes journalists lick their chops.
Wilson-Raybould has handled it beautifully and methodically. She has taken her revenge without saying a public word about the Lavalin affair. Criticism of her leadership skills, however valid such criticism might be, is not on. Were it another minister, or a different prime minister, it would probably be a different calculation. But it's not.
Wilson-Raybould no doubt has an end game, and we'll see it eventually. Maybe she crosses the floor, maybe she decides to become the most influential Indigenous leader in Canadian history. Maybe she'll make history. She has options. And Gerry Butts is now roadkill.
But at least he isn't a distraction anymore.
This column is part of CBC's Opinion section. For more information about this section, please read our FAQ.
About the Author
https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/ontario-disaster-architects-1.3884108
Be afraid: The brains behind Ontario's energy disaster are now advising PM
Phasing out coal, a feverish pursuit of green energy, new tax regimes — where have we heard all this before?
It is uncontroversial to call
Ontario's energy situation a disaster. As Premier Kathleen Wynne has
herself conceded: Ontarians are now having to "choose between paying the
electricity bill and buying food or paying rent."
Wynne's polling numbers suggest that most Ontarians know where to square the blame, with a pitiful 15 per cent approval rating and 58 per cent of the electorate believing she should resign.
However, Wynne alone shouldn't bear the burden for the fact that hydro bills for the average consumer have skyrocketed over recent years; it was former premier Dalton McGuinty and his Liberal team from 2003 to 2012 — including his former principal secretary and "policy guru" Gerald Butts — who set Ontario on this financially bleak, dead-end road. And now, Butts is headed on the same path, leading not the premier, but the prime minister, on the way down.
Butts was, according to the Toronto Star, "the man they call 'the brains behind the operation'" and the "policy architect of the Liberal government since 2003." Butts departed from McGuinty's government in 2008, but not before he and the Ontario Liberal team set the stage for the ill-fated Green Energy Act, in part, by signing onto dubious wind power projects and its cripplingly inefficient Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program (RESOP).
For those thinking Butts cannot be held responsible for the Ontario hydro plights of today and tomorrow, many past articles give — and Butts himself takes — credit for initially enacting and seeing through those energy policies. As the Toronto Star reported in 2012: "On his biography page at the WWF website, Butts cites how he was 'intimately' involved with the McGuinty government's environmental initiatives." Another Canadian Press article made it clear that Ontario's energy policy was Butts' design: "McGuinty's plan, which called for replacing coal with a combination of conservation, renewable energy, natural gas and nuclear power, came from his senior adviser, Gerald Butts."
Butts has himself taken credit for McGuinty's energy plan. (Canadian Press)
Butts
has graduated to the halls of Parliament Hill as Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau's own principal secretary, leaving behind a province still
paying the price, literally, for his tenure. His promise to eliminate
coal, for example — a worthy gambit, if done fiscally responsibly— cost
Ontario consumers an extra $37 billion between 2006 and 2014, according
to an auditor general, and is expected to cost another $133 billion from
2015 to 2032.
Now he's doubling down, via the prime minister, on his green energy gambit by promising to enact carbon pricing regimes (read: tax) on all provinces by 2018 and phasing out coal by 2030, even as our neighbour and biggest competitor moves in the opposite direction. How team Trudeau sees a carbon-priced Canada competing against the U.S. on an off-kilter playing field confounds most people's common sense.
The incoherence of the federal government's energy plans is further evidenced by its approvals of the Pacific Northwest liquefied natural gas project — with a cap of 4.3 million tonnes of emissions per year — as well as Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline and Enbridge's Line 3, combining to pump out about a million more barrels of cheap oil a day into the world market. Although the approval of these projects is great news for Alberta's anaemic economy in particular (especially if they all actually come to fruition), they also create a conundrum: how can the government at once pledge to reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions, while simultaneously increasing them through new pipeline infrastructure? Does it not undermine the government's lofty goal of helping reduce overall emissions on the planet?
The federal Liberals, under the stewardship of Butts, has already run a projected $30 billion deficit in its first year in office. Phasing out all coal by 2030 will have a cost that will add to that deficit. (This sounds awfully familiar, no?) Forcing carbon taxes on all Canadians by 2018 will, in theory, be a revenue generator for Canada, yet it also promises to eat up more of Canadians' paycheques, and potentially trigger businesses to flee to greener (and cheaper) pastures down south — a phenomenon that is of real and pressing concern for Ontario's government.
The architects of Ontario's energy fiasco are now stationed in the PMO. The whole country should be wary of the financial disaster of that province being replicated nationwide.
This column is an opinion. For more information about our commentary section, please read this editor's blog and our FAQ.
Wynne's polling numbers suggest that most Ontarians know where to square the blame, with a pitiful 15 per cent approval rating and 58 per cent of the electorate believing she should resign.
However, Wynne alone shouldn't bear the burden for the fact that hydro bills for the average consumer have skyrocketed over recent years; it was former premier Dalton McGuinty and his Liberal team from 2003 to 2012 — including his former principal secretary and "policy guru" Gerald Butts — who set Ontario on this financially bleak, dead-end road. And now, Butts is headed on the same path, leading not the premier, but the prime minister, on the way down.
'The brains behind the operation'
Butts was, according to the Toronto Star, "the man they call 'the brains behind the operation'" and the "policy architect of the Liberal government since 2003." Butts departed from McGuinty's government in 2008, but not before he and the Ontario Liberal team set the stage for the ill-fated Green Energy Act, in part, by signing onto dubious wind power projects and its cripplingly inefficient Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program (RESOP).
For those thinking Butts cannot be held responsible for the Ontario hydro plights of today and tomorrow, many past articles give — and Butts himself takes — credit for initially enacting and seeing through those energy policies. As the Toronto Star reported in 2012: "On his biography page at the WWF website, Butts cites how he was 'intimately' involved with the McGuinty government's environmental initiatives." Another Canadian Press article made it clear that Ontario's energy policy was Butts' design: "McGuinty's plan, which called for replacing coal with a combination of conservation, renewable energy, natural gas and nuclear power, came from his senior adviser, Gerald Butts."
Now he's doubling down, via the prime minister, on his green energy gambit by promising to enact carbon pricing regimes (read: tax) on all provinces by 2018 and phasing out coal by 2030, even as our neighbour and biggest competitor moves in the opposite direction. How team Trudeau sees a carbon-priced Canada competing against the U.S. on an off-kilter playing field confounds most people's common sense.
The incoherence of the federal government's energy plans is further evidenced by its approvals of the Pacific Northwest liquefied natural gas project — with a cap of 4.3 million tonnes of emissions per year — as well as Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline and Enbridge's Line 3, combining to pump out about a million more barrels of cheap oil a day into the world market. Although the approval of these projects is great news for Alberta's anaemic economy in particular (especially if they all actually come to fruition), they also create a conundrum: how can the government at once pledge to reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions, while simultaneously increasing them through new pipeline infrastructure? Does it not undermine the government's lofty goal of helping reduce overall emissions on the planet?
Running deficits
The federal Liberals, under the stewardship of Butts, has already run a projected $30 billion deficit in its first year in office. Phasing out all coal by 2030 will have a cost that will add to that deficit. (This sounds awfully familiar, no?) Forcing carbon taxes on all Canadians by 2018 will, in theory, be a revenue generator for Canada, yet it also promises to eat up more of Canadians' paycheques, and potentially trigger businesses to flee to greener (and cheaper) pastures down south — a phenomenon that is of real and pressing concern for Ontario's government.
The architects of Ontario's energy fiasco are now stationed in the PMO. The whole country should be wary of the financial disaster of that province being replicated nationwide.
This column is an opinion. For more information about our commentary section, please read this editor's blog and our FAQ.
About the Author
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices
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