Innovation Minister Champagne, former B.C. premier Clark not running to replace Trudeau
House leader Karina Gould will launch leadership bid this week: source
The pool of potential candidates to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continues to dwindle down with both former B.C. premier Christy Clark and Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne announcing they won't seek the Liberal Party leadership.
Clark made her announcement Tuesday, just days after she had to walk back a claim that she was never a member of the Conservative Party.
Joining the ever-growing list of cabinet ministers who aren't seeking their boss's position, Champagne told the Canadian Club Toronto shortly after that he will also not be seeking the leadership.
"I will dedicate my energy to defend Canada, to defend Canadians, to defend Canadian businesses," he told the crowd.
"It was probably one of the most difficult decisions in my life but I think it's the right one at the right time."
Trudeau announced last week he will step down once his party chooses a successor, as he stared down a growing revolt in caucus and struggling poll numbers.
Champagne, who's earned the nickname "Franky Bubbles" on Parliament Hill for his animated personality, had signalled his interest in the job. The Saint-Maurice-Champlain MP grew his profile as the minister in charge of Canada's multi-billion-dollar investments in electric vehicle and battery production.
Speaking on stage with business reporter Amanda Lang, he did not answer whether he'll run in the federal election later this year.
"Can I take one decision at a time?" he responded.
Clark says race too short, her French not good enough
Clark told supporters she made the "difficult decision" to step back because there isn't enough time to mount a successful campaign. Clark also said while she's been working on her French, "it's not where it needs to be" for her to connect with francophone Canadians.
In an interview that aired Saturday, Clark told CBC Radio's The House she was "seriously thinking about" running to replace Trudeau. She also denied ever being a member of the Conservative Party.
Clark publicly endorsed Jean Charest in the Conservative leadership race in 2022, and said she intended to join the party to vote for her preferred candidate.
"I never got a membership and I never got a ballot," Clark told host Catherine Cullen.
A spokesperson for the Conservative Party refuted Clark's claims and provided a screenshot of their records.
"Well, I misspoke. Sh*t happens. Lesson learned," the former premier later posted on social media.
The Liberal Party announced they will choose their next leader — and Canada's next prime minister — on March 9. Hopefuls have until Jan. 23 to declare their candidacy. People can register with the party to vote in the leadership race up until Jan. 27.
Clark used her "thank you" note to supporters to take a parting shot at the Liberal Party's main rival — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
"I won't be in this leadership race, but I won't stop fighting. Pierre Poilievre would rather attack Canadians than call out Donald Trump," she wrote.
"He's a bully when he's here at home and a pathetic pushover for the MAGA Republicans. We don't need Governor Poilievre. We need the Liberal Party at the top of its game."
Race narrowing
The race to replace Trudeau is coming into focus as a number of contenders are set to declare their intentions in the coming days.
House leader Karina Gould will launch a leadership bid this week, according to a source with knowledge of her plans. The 37-year-old would be the youngest candidate in the race.
During a news conference in her Burlington, Ont., riding on Tuesday, Gould would only say that she'll have more to add soon.
"I think it is extremely important that we have a younger voice in the race who can relate to people where they are," she said.
Former finance minister and deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland is expected to announce a bid for the Liberal leadership within the week, a source has told CBC News/Radio-Canada.
Sources said to expect Freeland to officially make the announcement before U.S. president-elect Donald Trump is sworn in next Monday.
Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney is expected to formally announce his bid Thursday, according to a source close to him.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson is still deciding and will not announce his plans this week, according to a source.
Only three candidates have officially said they will run to be Trudeau's replacement.
Nova Scotia MP Jaime Battiste said Monday that he would be seeking the leadership. Ottawa MP Chandra Arya and former Montreal MP Frank Baylis declared their intentions to run last week.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Former B.C. premier Christy Clark won't run for Liberal leadership
Clark told CBC News last week she was 'seriously thinking about' entering the race
Former B.C. premier Christy Clark is out of the race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, just days after she had to walk back a claim that she was never a member of the Conservative Party.
In a statement to supporters on Tuesday, Clark said she made the "difficult decision" to step back because there isn't enough time to mount a successful campaign. Clark also said while she's been working on her French, "it's not where it needs to be" for her to connect with francophone Canadians.
In an interview that aired Saturday, Clark told CBC Radio's The House she was "seriously thinking about" running to replace Trudeau. She also denied ever being a member of the Conservative Party.
Clark publicly endorsed Jean Charest in the Conservative leadership race in 2022, and said she intended to join the party to vote for her preferred candidate.
"I never got a membership and I never got a ballot," Clark told host Catherine Cullen.
A spokesperson for the Conservative Party refuted Clark's claims and provided a screenshot of their records.
"Well, I misspoke. Sh*t happens. Lesson learned," Clark later posted on social media.
The Liberal Party announced they will choose their next leader — and Canada's next prime minister — on March 9. Hopefuls have until Jan. 23 to declare their candidacy. People can register with the party to vote in the leadership race up until Jan. 27.
Clark used her "thank you" note to supporters to take a parting shot at the Liberal Party's main rival — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
"I won't be in this leadership race, but I won't stop fighting. Pierre Poilievre would rather attack Canadians than call out Donald Trump," she wrote.
"He's a bully when he's here at home and a pathetic pushover for the MAGA Republicans. We don't need Governor Poilievre. We need the Liberal Party at the top of its game."
Race narrowing
The race to replace Trudeau is coming into focus as a number of contenders are set to declare their intentions in the coming days.
Government House Leader Karina Gould will launch a leadership bid this week, according to a source with knowledge of her plans. The 37-year-old would be the youngest candidate in the race.
During a news conference in her Burlington, Ont., riding on Tuesday, Gould would only say that she'll have more to add soon.
"I think it is extremely important that we have a younger voice in the race who can relate to people where they are," she said.
Gould won't confirm she's entering Liberal leadership raceCabinet colleague Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne is expected to reveal his intentions later Tuesday morning during a talk to the Canadian Club Toronto.
Former finance minister and deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland is expected to announce a bid for the Liberal leadership within the week, a source has told CBC News/Radio-Canada.
Sources said to expect Freeland to officially make the announcement before U.S. president-elect Donald Trump is sworn in next Monday.
Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney is expected to formally announce his bid Thursday, according to a source close to him.
Innovation,
Science and Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne rises during
question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on
Monday, Dec. 9, 2024. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson is still deciding and will not announce his plans this week, according to a source close to him.
Only three candidates have officially said they will run to be Trudeau's replacement.
Nova Scotia MP Jaime Battiste said Monday that he would be seeking the leadership. Ottawa MP Chandra Arya and former Montreal MP Frank Baylis declared their intentions to run last week.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
SKETCHY: Liberal insider process to pick next Prime Minister, here are all the problems
From: Rempel, Michelle - M.P. <Michelle.Rempel@parl.gc.ca>
Date: Sun, Feb 20, 2022 at 8:15 PM
Subject: Automatic reply: RE Trudeau Invoking the Emergency Act and Freeland defending her liberal democracy byway of her bankster buddies
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
On behalf of the Honourable Michelle Rempel Garner, P.C., M.P. thank you for your email. Our office appreciates the time you took to get in touch with the MP. Due to the high volume of email correspondence our office receives, below is a guide on how your email will be responded to:
If you are a constituent of Calgary Nose Hill:
Queries regarding government programs, policies and operations take time to research, contact appropriate departments and collate information for dissemination to you. If you have provided your full contact details on your query, your email will be responded to as necessary.
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If you are not a Calgary Nose Hill resident, given the high volume of
emails we receive, your email will be reviewed and filed as INFORMATION.
If the email is Critic portfolio in nature, it will be responded to as
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If you are contacting MP Rempel Garner to review your case work, please first contact your local MP for assistance.
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Thank you for submitting this form letter. Due to the high volume of emails M.P. Rempel Garner’s office receives, we are unable to individually reply to form letters, particularly from non constituents. Form letters are template letters generated by organizations, webforms and other sources on a given issue. However, M.P. Rempel Garner does review and consider information received from all form letters.
If you are a constituent and would like a response regarding the specific issue raised in your form letter, please email M.P. Rempel Garner’s office individually at this email address with “Constituent - (Insert subject)” in the subject of your email. This helps us to identify constituents who wish to receive a response among the hundreds of form letter responses our office receives on any given day.
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*M.P. Rempel Garner's office has a zero tolerance policy for threatening, abusive, or aggressive language or behaviour towards the Member and their staff. Phone calls, voicemails and emails containing threatening or abusive language will result in the termination of communications.
Thank you again.
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Office of The Honourable Michelle Rempel Garner, P.C., M.P.
Calgary Nose Hill
Shadow Minister for Natural Resources
From: Rempel, Michelle - M.P. <Michelle.Rempel@parl.gc.ca>
Date: Thu, Dec 1, 2022 at 11:10 AM
Subject: Automatic reply: YO Trudeau Methinks Michelle Rempel and her pal Raquel Dancho are having a little giggle about your nonsense about now N'esy Pas?
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
On behalf of the Honourable Michelle Rempel Garner, P.C., M.P. thank you for your email. Our office appreciates the time you took to get in touch with the MP. Due to the high volume of email correspondence our office receives, below is a guide on how your email will be responded to:
If you are a constituent of Calgary Nose Hill:
Queries regarding government programs, policies and operations take time to research, contact appropriate departments and collate information for dissemination to you. If you have provided your full contact details on your query, your email will be responded to as necessary.
If your query is case related (i.e. immigration, CPP, EI, tax issues, etc.), consent forms will need to be filled out before your file can be activated. If you have not yet filled out our office’s consent form, a staff member will be in contact with you.
If you are not a constituent of Calgary Nose Hill:
If you are not a Calgary Nose Hill resident, given the high volume of
emails we receive, your email will be reviewed and filed as INFORMATION.
If the email is Critic portfolio in nature, it will be responded to as
necessary.
If you are contacting MP Rempel Garner to review your case work, please first contact your local MP for assistance.
If your email is a form letter:
Thank you for submitting this form letter. Due to the high volume of emails M.P. Rempel Garner’s office receives, we are unable to individually reply to form letters, particularly from non constituents. Form letters are template letters generated by organizations, webforms and other sources on a given issue. However, M.P. Rempel Garner does review and consider information received from all form letters.
If you are a constituent and would like a response regarding the specific issue raised in your form letter, please email M.P. Rempel Garner’s office individually at this email address with “Constituent - (Insert subject)” in the subject of your email. This helps us to identify constituents who wish to receive a response among the hundreds of form letter responses our office receives on any given day.
Again, thank you for reaching out to our office.
Invites:
If you have invited MP Rempel Garner to your event, please note that decisions on what events to attend are completed on a bi-monthly basis. As our office receives hundreds of invitations each week, our office will only contact you if MP Rempel Garner will be attending.
Updates on MP Rempel Garner’s Work:
If you wish to know what is happening in Calgary Nose Hill and the job MP Rempel Garner is doing for you in Ottawa, please sign up for her e-newsletter on her website: https://mprempel.ca/
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Office of The Honourable Michelle Rempel Garner, P.C., M.P.
Calgary Nose Hill
Carney pledges 'no bailouts'
Carney on regulationBank of Canada governor Mark Carney says he wants to reform global financial rules to ensure that no banks can become large enough that they'd threaten the global economy.
"I'm saying no bailouts," Carney told the CBC's George Stroumboulopoulos in a recent interview. "The objective [is] ending 'too big to fail'."
Carney was recently named head of the Financial Stability Board, a recently formed international agency with a mandate to oversee the international financial system. In the interview, he says the goal is to bring global rules closer to Canada's model.
"We're going to change the rules so the system as a whole is more resilient," he said. "If a big global bank fails, the system goes on. [Just] that company goes away.
Some of the rules will be changes to capital ratios. The ultimate goal, Carney says, is to ensure that the financial system works like any other industry. "If you succeed you get rewarded but if you fail, you fail and the rest of the economy goes on," he said.
While he says the U.S. decision to bail out a number of banks in 2008 was "absolutely" the right decision at the time, he doesn't want to see a repeat.
"If you make a mistake, you go out of business," he said.
Banks got $114B from governments during recession
Support for banks 'more substantial than Canadians were led to believe': CCPA report
Canada's biggest banks accepted tens of billions in government funds during the recession, according to a report released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
Canada's banking system is often lauded for being one of the world's safest. But an analysis by CCPA senior economist David Macdonald concluded that Canada's major lenders were in a far worse position during the downturn than previously believed.
Macdonald examined data provided by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions and the big banks themselves for his report published Monday.
It says support for Canadian banks from various agencies reached $114 billion at its peak. That works out to $3,400 for every man, woman and child in Canada, and also to seven per cent of Canada's gross domestic product in 2009.
The figure is also 10 times the amount Canadian taxpayers spent on the auto industry in 2009.
"At some point during the crisis, three of Canada's banks — CIBC, BMO, and Scotiabank — were completely under water, with government support exceeding the market value of the company," Macdonald said.
"Without government supports to fall back on, Canadian banks would have been in serious trouble."
During October 2008 and June 2010, the banks combined to report $27 billion in profits on their balance sheets.
CMHC mortgage program aided banks
One of the most well-known ways in which policymakers helped the banks during the crisis is through a $69-billion CMHC program whereby the housing agency took mortgages off the balance sheets of big Canadian banks. In contrast with other support facilities, all of the funds granted by the CMHC were through selling assets (in this case mortgages) to the housing agency. They were not funds that had to be paid back.
The CMHC has provided the aggregate total of how much was given out, but has yet to release specifics on which banks sold how much to them, and when, the CCPA says.
When asked for comment in reaction to the CCPA report, the Canadian Bankers Association noted that the $69 billion that Canada's big banks sold into the CMHC program is in fact only 55 per cent of what was allocated for the program.
"Many of the mortgages were already insured and therefore, created no additional risk for the government," the CBA noted in an email to CBC News. The CMHC estimates that by the time the program is wound up, it will have generated $2.5 billion in profit as those mortgages are paid off, the bankers' group noted.
Calling the CCPA report "completely baseless," Department of Finance spokesperson Chisholm Pothier noted that the mortgage program has already generated more than $1.2 billion in net revenues for the CMHC's coffers.
But Canadian lenders also dipped into a program set up by the U.S. Federal Reserve aimed at providing cash to keep American banks afloat. CIBC and BMO took almost $3 billion each out of the fund, RBC and TD took out $8 billion and Scotiabank drew down almost $12 billion, the CCPA report found.
That data came from the U.S. Federal Reserve, which released it publicly. But Macdonald's analysis found that Canadian banks got a comparable amount — $41 billion — from Bank of Canada facilities, an agency that has been far less transparent in sharing information.
"Despite Access to Information requests for the data, the Bank of Canada refuses to release it," the CCPA report states.
"The federal government claims it was offering the banks 'liquidity support,' but it looks an awful lot like a bailout to me," says Macdonald. "Whatever you call it, Canadian government aid for the country's biggest banks was far more indispensable than the official line would suggest.
"The support for Canadian banks was much more substantial than Canadians were led to believe," Macdonald said.
The Canadian Bankers Association disputes the notion that the funds in question were any sort of bailout, arguing they were routine transactions aimed at keeping the financial system liquid.
"These funding measures were put in place to ensure that credit was available to lend to businesses and consumers to help the economy through the recession," the CBA said. "These funding measures were not put in place because banks were in financial difficulty."
Since the start of the recession, the CBA notes 436 U.S. banks have failed. No Canadian financial institution went under, but Canada's banking sector was hit by an overall crisis of confidence in the banking sector that caused some of the banks' normal lending sources to dry up, the CBA says.
Canadian banks get about two-thirds of their funding from consumer and business deposits, but the other third comes from credit markets.
"It was these markets that were seizing up. Funding was less available," the CBA says. "Canadian banks continued to lend and increased their lending after some non-bank lenders pulled out of the Canadian market."
While some of the funding came from government sources such as the Bank of Canada, the bankers' association points out that the central bank itself says Canadian banks needed less official central bank liquidity support than their foreign counterparts.
"The credit was extended at competitive interest rates to protect taxpayers," Pothier said. "Financial institutions accepting this credit paid interest on the loans."
To show the scale of the funding, the CCPA report contrasted the total value of the support Canadian banks took against the bank's total value at the time. Under that comparison, CIBC received $21 billion in support — almost 1.5 times the value of the company at the time. BMO maxed out at $17 billion or 118 per cent, Scotiabank peaked at $25 billion or 100 per cent of its value, while TD and RBC maxed out at $26 billion and $25 billion — good enough for 69 and 63 per cent, respectively, of the total value of those companies at the time.
"It would have been cheaper to buy every single share in these companies," Macdonald said.
But the CBA disputes those numbers too, saying comparing a bank's value to the level with which it participated in a liquidity program aimed at boosting confidence in the market is "an apples to oranges comparison as the two factors are not at all related."
"The Oxford dictionary defines bailout as 'financial assistance to a failing business or economy to save it from collapse," the Canadian Bankers Association noted.
"That definitely was not the case here: not one bank in Canada was in danger of going bankrupt or required the government to buy an equity stake under taxpayer-funded bailouts."
From: Erik Andersen
Date: Sat, Jan 11, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Subject: Fwd: Our interview
To:
No worries, thanks.I imagine you are very busy but if have a little quiet time I recommend the the book by Yanis Varoufakis titled "Adults in the Room". His description of the financial chaos in 2008 helps your understanding the fragility we now are sensing. Cheers ErikHello ErikI'm very sorry for the late reply, I have been extremely busy. Feel free to share this. It was a great episode for me as I learned a lot from you.All the best,Peyman
https://youtu.be/YaYz9MXTJCg?
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Liberal leadership hopeful Clark says she would scrap carbon tax, denies having been Conservative
Former B.C. premier says she’s ‘seriously thinking about’ running
Christy Clark 'seriously thinking about' Liberal leadership runFormer B.C. premier Christy Clark says she would scrap the federal carbon tax if she becomes the next Liberal leader and prime minister — and is denying that she was ever a member of the Conservative Party.
Clark told CBC Radio's The House that she is "seriously thinking about" running to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and would end one of his key environmental policies if she is successful in winning the leadership.
"I don't think we should keep the carbon tax that the federal government has. I think that the Trudeau carbon tax isn't working," she told host Catherine Cullen in an interview airing Saturday.
Clark's comments come after Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre billed the former premier as "carbon tax Clark" and the "carbon tax queen" during a press conference on Thursday.
Clark kept the B.C. carbon tax in place that was implemented by her predecessor, Gordon Campbell, in 2008. While the tax was initially meant to increase over time, Clark's government froze the price at $30 per tonne in 2012 after she took over leadership. The current federal levy is $80 a tonne and set to increase to $95 in April.
Christy Clark says federal carbon tax should be scrapped"A carbon tax isn't the only answer to fighting climate change. There is a whole range of other tools in the toolbox and we would be committing to figuring out which tools we want to put to work, but also with a mind to making sure that they aren't things that will hold people back, that will hurt our economy," Clark told Cullen.
Clark denies ever being a Conservative, despite past comments
The former B.C. premier also denied ever having been a member of the federal Conservatives, even though she previously endorsed former Quebec premier and Progressive Conservative cabinet minister Jean Charest's bid for that party's leadership in 2022.
Clark told Cullen that she endorsed Charest because she didn't want Poilievre to win, but that she never formally signed up with the party to vote for him.
"I never got a membership and I never got a ballot," she said.
"I came out and I supported Jean Charest and the reason I did this is simple: I thought it was vitally important that we stopped Pierre Poilievre."
A spokesperson for the Conservative Party refuted Clark's claims, saying they have records of Clark's membership from the 2022 leadership race.
"Christy Clark purchased a Conservative Party membership through Jean Charest's leadership campaign. That membership is no longer active," Sarah Fischer, the party's director of communications, said in an email.
Christy Clark denies having been Conservative party memberWhen asked about Fischer's statement, Clark pushed back and insisted she had never been a member.
"Why don't they come out and show my membership or my ballot? They never sent me any of those — although I wouldn't put it past them to manufacture one of them," Clark told Cullen.
Following Clark's interview on The House, the Conservative Party provided a screenshot of a membership database that suggests Clark had membership from June 2022 to June 2023.
Clark's comments to CBC News also contradict what she had said during the time of the Conservative leadership contest.
In an August 2022 interview with the Conservative Journal of Canada, Clark explicitly said she was joining the Conservative Party to support Charest.
Pierre
Poilievre handily won the Conservative leadership contest in 2022.
Clark endorsed Jean Charest, left, during that leadership contest. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)
"I'm joining the party so I can support Mr. Charest and what I think he can bring to the national dialogue," said Clark when asked if she would be getting involved with the federal Conservatives.
Clark also told The Canadian Press in 2022 that she had received a ballot and was looking forward to voting in the leadership race.
The Vancouver Sun and The Hill Times also reported in 2022 that Clark had signed up with the Conservatives to vote in the leadership contest.
"I said I wanted to support [Charest]. I said I would join the party. At the end of the day I never did," Clark told The House.
The Liberal Party revealed Thursday night that it will be announcing its new leader on March 9.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Kristen Everson
Christy Clark and Jonathan Wilkinson considering leadership bids | Power & Politics
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398 Comments
The National Telegraph Legal Fund
The National Telegraph as an up-and-coming independent news site reports on insider political scandals and corruption which puts us at risk of lawsuits from members of the political establishment.
The National Telegraph co-operator Wyatt Claypool has been fighting a lawsuit against a billionaire political insider for an article published by a guest writer which talked about Erin O'Toole and the person who filed the defamation lawsuit against Wyatt and TNT.
Wyatt has been retaining former Alberta Justice Minister Jonathan Denis at Guardian Law to fight the defamation lawsuit. So far, Wyatt and TNT have been winning, filing around a dozen pieces of evidence to back up the claims of the published article, while the complainant in the case has filed only four pieces of "evidence" none of which shows any statements TNT published were defamatory or inaccurate. Based on the success so far Wyatt would like to push to win the case.
Up to this point Wyatt has paid over $15,000 in legal fees for this one case, but back in late 2020 and early 2021 paid another $5,000 to defend against another O'Toole-related lawsuit. This lawsuit thankfully has seemingly been resolved as the person who filed against TNT and TNT co-operator Daniel Bordman has not filed anything since TNT filed its statement of defense more than 2 years ago.
But due to the high costs incurred by Wyatt, we are looking to raise money in order to lighten the burden. The National Telegraph has never operated as a website that requires payment to read our articles or watch our videos, and we wish to keep it that way. But because we don't make money upfront on the website we are having to ask for donations in order to help us pay for the costs of publishing quality investigative journalism on topics other publications would not touch.
Please consider donating today!
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https://calgarysignalhillconservative.ca/our-candidate/David G. L. McKenzie, K.C.
David McKenzie has more than 30 years of experience as a lawyer, foreign service officer, corporate director, and community volunteer.
As a lawyer with Wilson Laycraft, David practices in the areas of commercial transactions and corporate finance. He has extensive experience as a corporate director having served on corporate boards in the areas of commercial property development, oil & gas industry services, residential care homes, and real property management. David is also a Co-Founder and former Chief Compliance Officer for an Exempt Market Dealer and Co-Founder and Director of a mortgage investment corporation. David was appointed King’s Counsel in 2019.
Early in his working career, David left private practice to work as a Foreign Service Officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, providing counsel on trade law in Ottawa and acting as Commercial Secretary in the Canadian Embassy in Venezuela.
David has been heavily involved in conservative politics for many years – including 9 as a Director of the Calgary Signal Hill Conservative Association (4 of which he served as President), and many years on the Calgary-West and Calgary-Bow UCP Constituency Associations. He has chaired and acted as legal counsel for various nomination and election campaigns and acted as Chief Returning Officer for several election processes over the course of his time in politics. He is a widely respected volunteer, frequently entrusted with leadership roles within the conservative movement.
David has also lent his time and expertise in a volunteer capacity to many worthy community causes. He currently serves on the board of Connect Charter School. He has also served on the boards of the Children’s Cottage Society, the Calgary Multicultural Centre and on the Calgary United Way fundraising cabinet. When he hasn’t been in the board room, David has been at the rink or on the pitch, coaching his children’s hockey and soccer teams.
David is proud father to 2 adult children and has lived in the Signal Hill riding for more than 20 years.
We welcome your thoughts and suggestions on how conservatives can build a stronger Canada together.
Telephone: 403-744-5436
Email: info@calgarysignalhillconservative.ca
Mail:
Calgary Signal Hill Conservative Association
PO Box 74124 RPO Strathcona
Calgary, AB, T3H 3B6
David G.L. McKenzie, K.C.
David practices in several business law areas. He advises small and mid-sized enterprises in the areas of public and private corporate finance, business and asset acquisitions and dispositions, commercial transactions, contracts and commercial obligations, exempt market securities offerings, bank financings, secured lending and foreclosure on secured debt. David advises a number of large clients in the areas of commercial leasing, land development, real property and construction law.
David has business experience in the exempt securities market, including having acted as a co-founder and the Chief Compliance Officer for an Exempt Market Dealer, and was a co-founder of a currently operating mortgage investment corporation. In addition, David is a Director and Officer of a number or private corporations in the areas of the oil & gas industry services, residential health care provision, real estate development and real property management.
David articled with a major national law firm and initially practised in commercial litigation. After 3 years of practice. he joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade as a Foreign Service Officer, practising law in the Trade Law Division in Ottawa and acting as a Commercial Secretary in the Canadian Embassy in Venezuela, focusing on the petroleum sector. David returned to private legal practice in Calgary in 2000 and has practised with 3 firms prior to joining Wilson Laycraft.
Practice Areas
• Corporate and Commercial Transactions
• Real Property, Commercial Leasing, Foreclosure
• Securities and Finance
• Natural Resources
Community & Professional Involvement
David is an enthusiastic community volunteer. He is a Director and Past-President of the Children's Cottage Society of Calgary, a Director of Connect Charter School and is active in federal and provincial party politics. David has previously been President and a Director of the Calgary Multicultural Centre, a Member of the United Way Cabinet, a Past Instructor of the Alberta Bar Admission Course and a youth hockey and soccer coach. In 2017 David received the Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers, an Honour awarded by the Governor General of Canada.
Professional Affiliations
• Member of the Law Society of Alberta
• Member of the Calgary Bar Association
Year of Call:
Alberta - 1993
Appointed Queen's Counsel in 2020
Education
Bachelor of Laws - University of Saskatchewan, 1992
Bachelor of Administration - University of Regina, 1991
Contact
Direct Line: (403) 294-5727
dmckenzie@wilcraft.com
Assistant: Tuesday Frosini
(403) 294-5721
tfrosini@wilcraft.com
Ron Liepert
Overview
- Political Affiliation:
- Conservative
- Constituency:
- Calgary Signal Hill
- Province / Territory:
- Alberta
- Preferred Language:
- English
Contact Details
Website
Hill Office
House of Commons *
Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada
K1A 0A6
Telephone: 613-992-3066
Fax: 613-992-3256
* Mail may be sent postage-free to any member of Parliament.
Constituency Office
Main office - Calgary
2216-8561 - 8A Avenue SW
Calgary, Alberta
T3H 0V5
Fax: 403-292-6670
Government Service Impacts During Public Service Strike
As you are no doubt aware, 155,000 members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) have been on strike since last Wednesday.
The intent of this page is to provide you with some factual information on the impacts to various Government of Canada services affected by the strike – which has been provided to Members of Parliament by Service Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
- CPP, OAS, and EI payments will continue to be processed as usual by Service Canada. New applications to any of these programs will likely experience additional processing delays.
- Canada Child Benefit (CCB), GST Credit, and Carbon Tax rebates will continue to be processed by the CRA. New applications to any of these programs will likely experience additional processing delays.
- Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) applications (including permanent residency, travel visa, etc.) continue to be processed, however there will be additional delays.
- Service Canada offices offering in person assistance are operating with reduced personnel and with some service limitations during the strike. Click here for a list of offices and the most updated information.
- Passport Applications will only be processed if the applicant demonstrates that the passport is needed because of risk of financial hardship, travel being needed for employment, medical treatments, or bereavement. I would suggest, if you do not fit the above criteria, to wait until after the strike concludes before applying for or renewing your passport.
- Government of Canada’s central call centre – 1-800-O-Canada – will continue to operate, however, expect longer wait times.
- CRA’s Individual Tax enquiries line will continue to operate with fewer agents.
- CRA’s Business Tax enquiries line, Debt Management line and the online chat tool will be closed for the duration of the strike.
- Tax returns filed via paper and mailed to CRA will not be opened until the strike concludes.
Ordinarily, my office can support constituents who are seeking resolution to files with the CRA, IRCC or with Service Canada when processing timeframes have been exceeded. During the strike, these departments have indicated that processing timeframes cannot be honoured, therefore, I ask that unless your situation falls under the criteria as outlined, you refrain from requesting intervention on your file until this situation has been settled.
Federal Liberals to announce new leader on March 9
Liberal Party national council has set a $350,000 entry fee
Liberals will choose their next leader — and Canada's next prime minister — on March 9, the party said in a media release on Thursday night.
After a frenzy of formal and informal meetings this week following Justin Trudeau's decision to step down as prime minister, the Liberal Party's national council decided on the date Thursday night.
The party is also setting the entry fee for potential candidates at $350,000, sources said — a significant jump from the $75,000 fee set by the party for the previous leadership race.
Candidates will have to declare their intention to run and pay the entry fee by Jan. 23. People can register with the party to vote in the leadership race up until Jan. 27.
Changes to who can vote
The party is limiting who can vote to Canadian citizens and permanent residents who are at least 14 years old.
Previously, non-Canadian residents were allowed to vote in Liberal Party riding nomination and leadership contests, which have been called a "gateway" for foreign interference. A growing contingent of Liberal MPs have urged the party executive to heed those warnings.
A number of cabinet insiders — including Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and Employment Minister Steven MacKinnon — have said they are considering running for the top job, but said they want to see the rules first.
The party executive did not say if cabinet ministers would have to vacate their portfolios if they want to run for the top job.
Former central banker Mark Carney has also said he's interested. Former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, former B.C. premier Christy Clark and House Leader Karina Gould are said to be gathering supporters, too.
Prior to Thursday's meeting, Ottawa MP Chandra Arya and former Montreal MP Frank Baylis both said they will be running.
Whoever is chosen to take over for Trudeau, they will have a tight timeline before the House of Commons returns.
Gov. Gen. Mary Simon has prorogued Parliament until March 24, giving the new prime minister only a few weeks to make the transition.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Laurence Martin
Transport Minister Anita Anand won't run for Liberal leadership, won't seek re-election
Anand says she's 'deeply honoured' to serve as Oakville MP, member of cabinet
Transport Minister Anita Anand announced Saturday afternoon she will not run in the Liberal Party's ongoing leadership contest to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, nor will she seek re-election when Canadians next go to the polls.
Anand said in a statement posted to social media she has been "deeply honoured and humbled to serve as Oakville's Member of Parliament and as member of cabinet."
"In these roles, I have given all I have to keep Canada safe, strong, and free," Anand said. "I entered public life because I wanted to make a meaningful contribution to my community and country, a goal instilled in me by my parents, who immigrated to Canada before I was born."
Anand also said she will continue to "execute my roles as a public office holder until the next election."
The Oakville, Ont., MP has held several cabinet portfolios since she was elected in 2019. Anand was first minister of public services and procurement, then became the second woman ever to serve as minister of national defence.
In one of her first acts as minister of defence, Anand transferred the investigation and prosecution of sexual misconduct cases within the Canadian forces into the civilian justice system — a move that came as the military reeled from several sexual misconduct investigations.
Anand was shuffled into a new position in 2023 and became president of the Treasury Board — a move she argued was not a demotion because she would have a central role in reining in the federal government's spending.
She currently serves in two positions as minister of transport and internal trade. Anand received the latter portfolio after Trudeau shuffled his cabinet at the end of December.
In her statement, Anand said while her time in public office "has been challenging, it has been tremendously fulfilling to deliver results for Canadians by working collaboratively."
"I sincerely thank Prime Minister Trudeau for welcoming me on the Liberal team as a Member of Parliament and for entrusting me with key cabinet portfolios," Anand said.
Prime
Minister Justin Trudeau embraces Anand during a cabinet swearing-in
ceremony at Rideau Hall, in Ottawa in October 2021. Anand became the
second woman ever to serve as minister of national defence. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)
The leadership contenders so far
Anand is the latest Liberal cabinet minister to confirm she is not running to replace Trudeau as leader of the party. On Friday, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly confirmed she would also not run in the leadership contest.
Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc has confirmed he won't run in the contest either — despite some Liberals' attempts to get him to reconsider the decision.
The only confirmed candidates thus far are former Liberal MP Frank Baylis and current Liberal MP Chandra Arya, who announced his candidacy on Thursday.
But other expected heavy hitters are still in the mix, including former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney. He's expected to formally announce his bid to replace Trudeau late next week, a source close to his campaign told CBC News.
Joly says she's not running for Liberal leadershipThe source, who spoke on the condition they not be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said Carney has more than 30 MPs backing him. The source suggested he picked up support after LeBlanc closed the door on leadership earlier this week.
One of Carney's chief opponents is expected to be former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, who has not yet formally announced she'll run.
A number of cabinet insiders — including Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and Employment Minister Steven MacKinnon — have said they are considering running for the top job.
House Leader Karina Gould is also said to be gathering supporters for a campaign.
Former B.C. premier Christy Clark told CBC Radio's The House she is "seriously thinking about" running to replace Trudeau and would end one of his key environmental policies, the carbon tax, if she is successful in winning the leadership.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Catharine Tunney
Liberal MP vying to be next prime minister dismisses importance of French language
Chandra Arya, first sitting MP to launch leadership campaign, has vowed to dump monarchy if elected
Ottawa MP Chandra Arya — who announced on Thursday that he would be running to replace Justin Trudeau as the next Liberal leader and prime minister — says he doesn't speak French and doesn't believe it will matter to French-speaking Canadians.
During an interview on CBC News Network's Power & Politics on Thursday, host David Cochrane asked Arya about his French ability.
"How's your French?" Cochrane asked near the end of the interview.
"Nope," Arya immediately replied.
When asked if his lack of French could hinder his ability to reach out to French-speaking Canadians and Quebecers, Arya quickly dismissed those concerns.
"Whether [it's] Quebecers or English Canadians — it's not the language that matters, it's what is delivered to them," he said.
"But the language matters very much in Quebec," Cochrane suggested. Arya disagreed.
"No. At the end of the day, Quebecers see who delivers what," he said.
Liberal leadership hopeful says he doesn't speak FrenchArya is the first Liberal caucus member to declare their intention to run to replace Trudeau.
In a statement released earlier on Thursday, Arya said he wants to make "Canada a sovereign republic," which would require replacing the monarchy as the head of state.
"It's time for Canada to take full control of its destiny," he wrote in a statement.
In his interview with Power & Politics, Arya said his commitment to get rid of the monarchy would resonate with Quebecers.
"One of the things that matters to Quebecers [is] ... being a sovereign republic, and which prime minister has ever talked about that?" he said.
Arya said he also wants to "lead a small, more efficient government with a cabinet selected on merit and not on [diversity, equity and inclusion] quotas."
"We are facing significant structural problems that haven't been seen for generations, and solving them will require tough choices," he said.
His multi-page announcement includes a list of policy proposals, including increasing the retirement age by two years in 2040, introducing a citizenship-based tax system and recognizing Palestine as a state.
Arya was first elected by Nepean voters in 2015 and has been a backbench MP ever since.
He hasn't always been in line with the government's policies. In 2023, he sponsored a petition calling on the Liberals to reconsider plans to introduce a foreign agent registry in response to serious allegations of foreign interference in Canadian politics. The registry legislation has since passed, but it's not yet up and running.
His ties to India have raised eyebrows amid worsening diplomatic relations.
Last summer, Arya travelled to India and met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A statement from Global Affairs Canada at the time said Arya "travelled to India on his own initiative and was not representing the Government of Canada."
His August 2024 visit came nearly a year after Trudeau accused "agents of the Indian government" of carrying out the fatal shooting of a Canadian Sikh leader.
Speaking to Power & Politics on Thursday, Arya said he "absolutely" supported the government's foreign agent registry.
Arya also defended his meeting with Modi, saying he has met with a number of foreign leaders in the past.
"We still have diplomatic relations there. Tell me, what is the issue ... if an MP meets the prime minister of India?" he told Cochrane.
"There's nothing there," he said.
MP Chandra Arya says he's running to replace Trudeau and become PMLiberal executives meeting
The list of people lining up to replace Trudeau continues to shift as top Liberal brass meet on Thursday to consider their next move. Many potential candidates say they want to know the rules of the campaign before committing.
After a frenzy of formal and informal meetings this week following Trudeau's decision to step down, the Liberal Party's national council will gather to try to hammer out how to run a race to find the next party leader — and Canada's next prime minister — against a ticking clock.
As an executive member, Trudeau will be in attendance, sources told Radio-Canada.
While many MPs got their way by getting Trudeau out the door, his decision to wait until early January gives the party little runway to write the rules for a campaign, hold a leadership contest and then pivot to an increasingly inevitable spring election.
Arya joins businessman and former MP Frank Baylis on the list of people who have said they publicly plan to run.
A number of cabinet insiders said they are reflecting. Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and Employment Minister Steven MacKinnon have all said they are considering a run.
Former central banker Mark Carney has also said he's interested. Former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, former B.C. premier Christy Clark and House Leader Karina Gould are said to be gathering supporters, too.
Some Liberal MPs want LeBlanc to reconsider leadershipOn Wednesday, Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc said he would not seek the top job, saying he's better placed to focus on Canada's relationship with the U.S.
Some MPs are still urging him to run. But in a statement on Thursday, LeBlanc reiterated that he's out of the running.
"I have been deeply touched by the colleagues who have asked me to reconsider my decision not to run for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada. But as I have expressed clearly to many of them, I do not intend to reconsider," he said.
MPs call to change rules around who can vote
Liberal MPs who gathered in Ottawa on Wednesday for a national caucus meeting said they were keen to learn what governing rules the executive will set out, including whether cabinet ministers will have to vacate their portfolios if they want to run and what the party will do to confront foreign interference threats.
Currently, non-Canadian residents are allowed to vote in Liberal Party riding nomination and leadership contests, which have been called a "gateway" for foreign interference.
Liberal ministers and MPs discuss vision for new leaderA growing contingent of MPs urged the party executive to heed those warnings. There are other details the party will need to sort out, such as the entrance fee amount and when the ballots will be counted.
Toronto-area MP Rob Oliphant said he'd like to see a leader in place by the first weekend in March.
"I think we can do it and it be fast," he said on his way into Wednesday's hours-long caucus meeting.
Ottawa-area MP Yasir Naqvi stressed that while the planning is hastened, integrity needs to be upheld.
"We need to make sure that the process is credible, that the process is fair and transparent," he said. "We need to ensure that Canadians have confidence in the process."
Whoever wins the Liberal race will become Canada's next prime minister, although based on the party's polling, it could be a short-lived time in office.
According to the CBC's Poll Tracker, the Conservatives have opened a 24-point lead over the Liberals.
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130 Comments
From: Minister of Finance / Ministre des Finances <minister-ministre@fin.gc.ca>
Date: Thu, Jan 9, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Subject: Automatic reply: The plot thickens
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
The
Department of Finance acknowledges receipt of your electronic
correspondence. Please be assured that we appreciate receiving your
comments.
Le ministère des Finances Canada accuse réception de votre courriel. Nous vous assurons que vos commentaires sont les bienvenus.
From: Ministerial Correspondence Unit - Justice Canada <mcu@justice.gc.ca>
Date: Thu, Jan 9, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Subject: Automatic Reply
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
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From: Premier <PREMIER@novascotia.ca>
Date: Thu, Jan 9, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Subject: Thank you for your email
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
Thank you for contacting the Office of the Premier. This is an automatic confirmation that your message has been received.
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- To book health services, get secure access to your own health records, or find the right care option for you, please download the YourHealthNS app or visit: https://yourhealthns.ca/
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care-grant - For more information about the new Nova Scotia School Lunch Program and to order an affordable, nutritious lunch for your public school student, please visit: https://nslunch.ca/
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For the most up-to-date information from the Government of Nova Scotia, please visit: https://novascotia.ca/.
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From: Office of the Premier <scott.moe@gov.sk.ca>
Date: Thu, Jan 9, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Subject: Thank you for your email
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
This is to acknowledge that your email has been received by the Office of the Premier.
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From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Jan 9, 2025 at 12:42 AM
Subject: The plot thickens
To: pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, Katie.Telford <Katie.Telford@pmo-cpm.gc.ca>, mcu <mcu@justice.gc.ca>, robert.gauvin <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>, robert.mckee <robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, Robert. Jones <Robert.Jones@cbc.ca>, <ps.ministerofpublicsafety-ministredelasecuritepublique.sp@ps-sp.gc.ca>, fin.minfinance-financemin.fin <fin.minfinance-financemin.fin@canada.ca>, prontoman1 <prontoman1@protonmail.com>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>, premier <premier@gov.ab.ca>, premier <premier@gov.yk.ca>, Susan.Holt <Susan.Holt@gnb.ca>, premier <premier@leg.gov.mb.ca>, premier <premier@gov.pe.ca>, Office of the Premier <scott.moe@gov.sk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nl.ca>, premier <premier@gov.bc.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nt.ca>, PREMIER <PREMIER@gov.ns.ca>, ragingdissident <ragingdissident@protonmail.com>, <DerekRants9595@gmail.com>, <peyman.askari@prilyx.com>, Jason Lavigne <jason@yellowhead.vote>, Sean.Casey <Sean.Casey@parl.gc.ca>, Wayne.Long <Wayne.Long@parl.gc.ca>, Sean.Fraser <Sean.Fraser@parl.gc.ca>, <PACP@parl.gc.ca>, <ahuras@postmedia.com>, <allana@radioabl.ca>, <higgins.john@radioabl.ca>, pierre.poilievre <pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca>, rob.moore <rob.moore@parl.gc.ca>, jake.stewart <jake.stewart@parl.gc.ca>, Richard.Bragdon <Richard.Bragdon@parl.gc.ca>, <vicki.hogarth@chco.tv>, andrea.anderson-mason <andrea.anderson-mason@gnb.ca>, <jason.gaudet@town.stgeorge.nb.ca>, <bhenderson@townofstandrews.ca>, kris.austin <kris.austin@gnb.ca>, John.Williamson <John.Williamson@parl.gc.ca>, <robertfisher@stcroixcourier.ca>, <John.nater@parl.gc.ca>, <kelly.mccauley@parl.gc.ca>, <Iqra.Khalid@parl.gc.ca>, Nathaniel.Erskine-Smith <Nathaniel.Erskine-Smith@parl.gc.ca>, <francis.drouin@parl.gc.ca>, <valerie.bradford@parl.gc.ca>, <Jean.Yip@parl.gc.ca>, <nathalie.sinclair-desgagne@parl.gc.ca>, Richard.Cannings <Richard.Cannings@parl.gc.ca>, jagmeet.singh <jagmeet.singh@parl.gc.ca>
Cc: info@christyclark.com <info@christyclark.com>
Justin Trudeau's resignation puts spotlight on former B.C. premier Christy Clark
Clark has in the past voiced interest in leading federal Liberal Party
Prime
Minister Justin Trudeau shakes hands with Christy Clark, then B.C.
premier, during a 2017 meeting in Vancouver. (Jonathan Hayward/The
Canadian Press)Justin Trudeau's resignation has put former B.C. premier Christy Clark squarely back in the political spotlight.
Clark publicly expressed interest in leading the federal Liberal Party in October 2024 but noted at the time the job was not open. Now, of course, following Trudeau's announcement on Monday morning, it is.
On social media Monday, Clark posted messages in French and English, thanking Trudeau and wishing him well:
"As a lifelong Liberal I look forward to joining tens of thousands of Canadians to choose our next leader," she said. "This is the biggest opportunity in over a decade that we've had to grow our Party and welcome new Liberals — including Canadians concerned about the future of our country — let's seize it," she said.
Clark was premier from 2011-2017 and leader of the B.C. Liberal Party, which was never affiliated with the federal Liberals.
She is one of many names being floated as a potential candidate to replace Trudeau as the federal party's new leader.
Distance from Trudeau an asset
More than a few pundits have noted that given Trudeau's deep unpopularity, the Liberal Party might do well to choose an outsider not closely affiliated with the prime minister — such as Clark or former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney.
"I think the interesting names of Mark Carney and Christy Clark are flying around, not surprisingly, because they don't have that tie to Trudeau like some of the other candidates do," said Sanjay Jeram, senior political science lecturer at Simon Fraser University.
The president of the Conservative Party of B.C. said while Clark is a long shot for leader, she is well positioned to distance herself from Trudeau's reputation and record.
"Who knows? A lot can change in politics in a couple of days so maybe she'll move up and be a contender," said Aisha Estey.
Estey believes Trudeau's resignation could lead to a federal election as early as April instead of the fixed date of Oct. 20.
"It's a very interesting time. Conservatives, we want an election now. We don't think the country should be put through a leadership race for the Liberal Party, but this, hopefully, will speed up the process," she said on CBC's The Early Edition.
Throwback: When Christy Clark's B.C. Liberal government was toppled in 2017Clark resigned from provincial politics in 2017 after the John Horgan-led B.C. NDP signed a confidence and supply agreement with the B.C. Green Party to defeat Clark's minority government.
Her website says she is currently a "sought-after Canadian keynote speaker at events across the country and internationally and serves as advisor to some of Canada's leading organizations."
Reaction to Trudeau's announcement he is stepping down came from all political corners in B.C.
Former Vancouver Granville MP Jody Wilson-Raybould, who had an acrimonious falling out with Trudeau after serving as his justice minister and attorney general, said on social media, "We can finally turn the page."
"Well, the PM did not sound like he wanted to go [and] was sadly not too gracious, but he is going. I thank him for his service," she wrote. "...we must keep focus on building a stronger Canada in an increasingly volatile [and] uncertain world."
Wilson-Raybould resigned from cabinet and was expelled from caucus over what came to be known as the SNC-Lavalin affair.
B.C. Premier David Eby said in a statement, "While we didn't always agree, I want to thank Justin Trudeau for serving as Prime Minister during some very difficult times our country has faced.
"British Columbians have benefited from several initiatives started under Justin Trudeau, including the federal government's decision to partner with B.C. on lowering the cost of child care," said Eby.
Opposition B.C. Conservative leader John Rustad posted that Eby "has lost his number one political ally today with Trudeau's resignation."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
@CBCLarsen
Karin Larsen is a former Olympian and award winning sports broadcaster who covers news and sports for CBC Vancouver.
David Amos
Christy Clark could give PP many sleepless nights even after the election
Walter Vrbetic
Reply to David Amos
Dreamy fantasies?
David Amos
Reply to Walter Vrbetic
Nope Everybody knows she is a Conservative Hence she could fight fire with fire so to speak
speak
John Lydon
Reply to David Amos
PP's better half might have something to say about that.
David Amos
Reply to John Lydon
How so?
John Lydon
Reply to David Amos Sleepless nights .... wink wink
Walter Vrbetic
Whatever happened to Progressive Conservatives of yore...
I wax nostalgic at times.
Michael Tree Scott
Reply to Walter Vrbetic
They are now Regressive
Walter Vrbetic
Reply to Michael Tree Scott
No, they no longer exist.
David Amos
Reply to Walter Vrbetic
They went the way of the Dodo Bird long ago
Denis van humbeck
Reply to Walter Vrbetic
Mulroney was never progressive.
David Amos
Reply to Denis van humbeck
Joe Clark was the last Progressive Conservative PM
Walter Vrbetic
Reply to Denis van humbeck
Didn't he and Reagan develop a program to address acid rain? How times change.
Michael Tree Scott
Reply to Walter Vrbetic
Now they all deny climate change.
Walter Vrbetic
Reply to Michael Tree Scott
They once believed in science...
Michael Tree Scott
Reply to Walter Vrbetic
Yep. Now it's just social media rage farming.
Canadians challenge Prime Minister’s decision to prorogue Parliament: “no reasonable justification”
TORONTO: The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms is providing lawyers on an urgent basis to two Canadians, David MacKinnon and Aris Lavranos, seeking a Federal Court declaration that Prime Minister Trudeau’s recent prorogation of Parliament is unreasonable and must be set aside.
When Parliament is prorogued, the parliamentary session is terminated, and all parliamentary activity, including work on bills and in committees, immediately stops.
Among its many grounds arguing that Trudeau’s decision to advise the Governor General to exercise her prerogative power to prorogue Parliament to March 24, 2025, this application argues that the decision to prorogue Parliament was “incorrect, unreasonable or both.” The court application, filed today, contends that the Prime Minister’s decision to prorogue “was not made in furtherance of Parliamentary business or the business of government, but in service of the interests of the LPC [Liberal Party of Canada].”
At his news conference yesterday, on January 6, 2025, the Prime Minister’s stated justification for the prorogation was (1) to “reset” Parliament and (2) to permit the Liberal Party of Canada time to select a new party leader. No explanation was provided as to why Parliament could not recess instead. No explanation was provided as to why Members of Parliaments could not immediately exercise their right to vote on a motion of non-confidence in the government. A majority of MPs have now repeatedly promised to do just that, which would trigger an election and provide the needed “reset” in a democratic and legitimate way.
No explanation was provided as to why a prorogation of almost three months is needed. No explanation was provided as to why the Liberal Party of Canada ought to be entitled to such a lengthy prorogation simply so it can hold an internal leadership race.
This Federal Court application includes language taken from a decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, which ruled in 2019 that then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson had prorogued Parliament unlawfully, as a means of avoiding Parliamentary scrutiny over the government’s “Brexit” negotiations concerning the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union.
The application contends, among other things, that “in all of the circumstances surrounding it, the [prorogation] has the effect of frustrating or preventing, without reasonable justification, the ability of Parliament to carry out its constitutional functions as a legislature and as the body responsible for the supervision of the executive, particularly insofar as it relates to Parliament’s ability to deal quickly and decisively with especially pressing issues, such as the situation caused by President-Elect Trump’s stated intention to impose a 25% tariff on all goods entering the United States from Canada.”
“This prorogation stymies the publicly stated intent of a majority of MPs to bring a motion for non-confidence in the government and trigger an election. Prorogation serves the interests of the Liberal Party, but it does not further Parliamentary business or the business of government. It violates the constitutional principles of Parliamentary sovereignty and Parliamentary accountability,” stated lawyer James Manson. “We will invite the Court to conclude that the Prime Minister’s decision to advise the Governor General to prorogue Parliament was without reasonable justification.”
Applicant David MacKinnon feels strongly about this case. He stated, “This case concerns a living tree – our Constitution – and how that living tree withers without proper care. If we are to fight tyranny – for it is tyranny that confronts us – we must find the answer within the memory of our historical past. We call this memory ‘the common law.’ It is enshrined in the preamble of our constitution. The common law is the repository and guarantor of our justice and our wealth and happiness. Had we nurtured our living tree, and looked to our past, we would have read Lord Denning’s admonishment to the Attorney General of an earlier time: ‘Be ye never so high, the law is above you.’”
Thank you
From: Minister of Finance / Ministre des Finances <minister-ministre@fin.gc.ca>
Date: Wed, Jan 8, 2025 at 8:39 PM
Subject: Automatic reply: Fw: I stood in honour and integrity to the letter of the law
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
The
Department of Finance acknowledges receipt of your electronic
correspondence. Please be assured that we appreciate receiving your
comments.
Le ministère des Finances Canada accuse réception de votre courriel. Nous vous assurons que vos commentaires sont les bienvenus.
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Wed, Jan 8, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Subject: Fwd: Fw: I stood in honour and integrity to the letter of the law
To: <hkheir@charteradvocates.ca>, <jmanson@charteradvocates.ca>, pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, mcu <mcu@justice.gc.ca>, Dana-lee Melfi <dana_lee_ca@hotmail.com>, <ps.ministerofpublicsafety-
From: Dana-lee Melfi <dana_lee_ca@hotmail.com>
Date: Tue, Aug 20, 2024 at 1:27 AM
Subject: Fw: I stood in honour and integrity to the letter of the law
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Sent: August 13, 2024 2:05 PM
To: VirtualCrownOttawa@
Subject: I stood in honour and integrity to the letter of the law
because I have faith in humanity to correct course for patriotism to the County & City to which I was born, it could represent any citizen not just Canadian 
, not to the left or right, to many reasons to list atm
to remind us of TIME, what our forefathers were trying to preserve and have already fought for.
heart 
& determination 
Sent: August 10, 2024 2:18 PM
To: VirtualCrownOttawa@
Subject: Not even a notification of receipt?
 |
You can find the interactive documented path at ... ACCEPTABLE?
|
Sent: July 26, 2024 7:33 PM
To: VirtualCrownOttawa@
Subject: I wish to lay a complaint on all lawyers involved and the Crown respectively
Sent: February 7, 2024 10:49 AM
To: Dana-lee Melfi <dana_lee_ca@hotmail.com>; Monick Grenier <monick@grenierlaw.ca>; John Carpay <jcarpay@jccf.ca>
Subject: RE: R. v. Melfi
Mr. Melfi – I’ve received your lengthy reply, which I will not address in detail.
You apparently wish for JCCF to pay you some more money.
Please advise, once and for all, how much you believe you should be paid. I cannot respond further unless you tell me exactly how much money you believe is owing to you.
Note that my request should not be taken as an agreement that JCCF does actually owe you anything. I am simply trying to understand your position.
Thanks,
James Manson
647.977.5354 | jmanson@jccf.ca
From: Dana-lee Melfi <dana_lee_ca@hotmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 6, 2024 10:23 PM
To: James Manson <jmanson@jccf.ca>; Monick Grenier <monick@grenierlaw.ca>; John Carpay <jcarpay@jccf.ca>
Subject: Re: R. v. Melfi
Mr. Manson
Respectfully,
You have met me face to face as a representative of JCCF. You know very well I am a man.
This email you sent will serve as an example on the lack of attention to detail. I do not like to be insulted.
Many assertions you have made are untrue. I have never said that JCCF owes me money nor did I approve the media release.
As a matter of fact, I have only asked JCCF to honour their agreement and to pay Ms. Grenier.
In fact I disapproved the release unless it stated the facts that JCCF
and I had a disagreement as long as you followed the current contract
still in place.
Monick Grenier and I entered into a retainer, she advised me she secured
funding and JCCF was willing to cover the estimated costs of $25, 000
and placed this in our contract. (in the end, ended up to be less than ½ of the estimate) It says that you were notified and collaborated by your media manager with me after I signed the retainer.
If you remember, I disagreed
with the very first "Media release" because it was not true. (This was a
red flag for me right off the hop)
It showed that JCCF had not done Due Diligence in writing a true and accurate depiction of Dana-lee Melfi.
I tried and was given "no choice" to disagree with the second draft. I
let it go because I needed the help. JCCF has never represented
Peace-Man.
Also in your "Media release" Peace Man was used instead of the Peace-Man
purposely "miss branding" I feel for various reasons on searching.
I have operated to the best of my abilities within the retainer
agreement. I have tried to communicate with JCCF before I said anything
public. But, the public noticed when I was honest. Two public groups
came together and asked my permission to hold a fundraiser
for me and raised $1333 in a matter of a couple hours to give directly
to my lawyer in trust "if" JCCF did not honour what they had
advertised.
Throughout I maintained we are still in that agreement. The new retainer
after my consultation with Mr. Flury was deplorable and I never respond
until he asked several weeks later if I had made a decision. He lied in
an email and to me was not ethical enough
to trust. Charter Advocates is also a new company and I have not seen
the information to go with this only other option that materialized out
of thin air.
I have communicated with my lawyer that if JCCF does not honour their
agreement then I would pay her. This is still in dispute on whether JCCF
will pay full amount of their portion of the contract. I have asked
that the bill not be paid at this time and it
be sent to JCCF. This did not happen and the trust was used before Ms.
Grenier presented you with the bill. This will be delt with between my
lawyer and myself.
You say JCCF "ultimately
assisted". At what cost to me? I was slammed in social media for JCCF
"Peace Man from Ottawa protest represented by Justice Centre against
mischief charges". Then when you gave me ultimatums
and said you stopped support on Nov 7th I spoke in public about it.
The stress and hardship for the actions of JCCF, it's lawyers, it's
clients and my defence has been deplorable to my reputation and still I
have offered in my last communication to chalk it up to a disagreement
if you honoured the agreement.
I see in todays communications several more red flags like the "R. v Melfi".
Also I will not be removing anything from public sphere and will speak openly as I wish on public matters.
To this day even as I respond JCCF, has a page up and still with a donation link in use with my image. (Attached, dated)
The new "media release" removed.
Listen, I have and am confident on my documentation to date. I did not ask for these problems as you suggest.
I held Ms. Grenier to her current retainer. She showed up and in the end
had no baring on "winning" as the Crown said nothing to that nature and
"withdrew".
I had told Ms. Grenier that I would never apply for Jordan and you miss printed this information based on what she told you I presume.
This is another part of your "Media Release" was untruthful and disappointing my lawyer did not follow that request.
"It was never a question that I would agree to put in a Jordan application and explained why in detail to Ms. Grenier"
I have remained quite clear. On the other hand it has been quite
difficult to get answers to my questions pertaining to my Contract with
both parties.
I may be direct, but I have never been rude as you suggest. I am not
grateful for the involvement of JCCF to this point , no sir.
I should have stayed with my lawyer and raised the money over this two
years myself or just pay it and cash my life insurance for a child I had
set up.
My communications are lengthy as to not miss pertinent information and not sorry you all "don't have time for this".
I wish it was not my concern as to why JCCF and my own lawyer have acted
in this manor. I will soon be under oath in testimony to disclose my
involvement with several entities. I wish it was going to go another
way. But I cannot stop nor hide the truth.
I stood for the security of the person and country and still am through
accountability with our Government, our Courts, our lawyers, Police,
HoC, DOJ, OIC, etc.
If you are scared of accountability, sorry this is not a feelings game.
Now would you like to know what I have come to learn about the
involvement into the legal cases following the "Freedom convoy" "The
protest at parliament hill Jan-Feb 2022? You will now have to wait for
the over 2000 page report being submitted. Information
on such things as JCCF lawyers possibly disregarded "privacy", "ethical
standards", "Professional Standards", "Contractual obligations", "False
advertisements" and the list goes on.
I showed proof to my lawyer of a JCCF contracted lawyer apparently
facilitating a social media room that disregarded clients conditions. I
found it to be a serious offence. Also the breach of my personal phone
number taken from my file from Eva and used for
personal gain. Asking me to help Tamara and nothing about my case. The
professional obligation was to question Eva on how and why she obtained
and used this information.
The professional obligation
after showing her proof of "Canada Freedom Rights Movement"
"Clandestine" group facilitated by Eva, Bethan and attended by Kieth
Wilson and other JCCF clients with conditions should have
been reported in Oct 22nd 2022 while she was still retained with JCCF.
The day I was invited it was called "Fight Club" "And you know what
happens if you talk about Fight Club!" as a reference to the movie where
death is the implied outcome. Very serious and the moment I was invited
felt worried. I documented over a month of communications
and documents shared in the "Media and Propaganda control room" with
PDF's to suit.
This room was used to "silence" me and will show that in the proof on
several peoples devices. I have all #'s and lots of meta data.
Again very serious concerns that I have asked for answers from both JCCF and Ms. Grenier.
Screen_Recording_20240117_
The professional standards and obligations not met. Any time I mentioned
this to JCCF and John Carpay directly it was ignored and even said to
be "not my problem". I hate to tell you, it is your problem now. I am
not interested in legal action at this time
and will let the authorities deal with it.
Why would JCCF support or represent a Corporation and individuals thereof that placed demands on a five eyes country?
Why would they use witnesses in trials that attest to being military
experts and not recognize the danger this posed to the public?
Why would these experts never asked any of these questions in the EA,
where the JCCF and Freedom Corp represented as the only citizens voice
at the EA inquiry? Then not ask the most important questions that
needed to be asked? "Misplays of the week CTV" is
totally correct for a change.
I do not worry about any of my actions to date as is all documented.
You fight for Constitutional Rights and Freedoms right?
I ask you one more time. Please pay your portion of the agreed contract in full as soon as possible.
Please understand I never asked JCCF to forward me any money. So a redundant statement at the end of your email for some reason.
I wish for a reply concerning your final choice in this matter promptly from all parties.
Thank you,
Dana-lee Melfi
Peace-Man
Dana_lee_ca@Hotmail.com
613-570-8990
I advise you, I will be sharing all communications with Law Society of
Manitoba, Law Society of Ontario in the near future as I told you and
Ms. Grenier previously. I am advised it may be shared with the Kings
Bench.
From: James Manson <jmanson@jccf.ca>
Sent: February 6, 2024 12:32 PM
To: Dana-lee Melfi <dana_lee_ca@hotmail.com>
Cc: Monick Grenier <monick@grenierlaw.ca>;
John Carpay <jcarpay@jccf.ca>
Subject: R. v. Melfi
Mr. Melfi:
Greetings. John Carpay has asked me to respond to your recent e-mail, dated February 2, 2024.
I have reviewed your e-mail. It appears that, among other things, you are advancing two grievances. First, you appear to take offence at a press release put out by JCCF in connection with the successful defence of your criminal case. This was even though my understanding is that the press release was approved by you and/or your counsel, Ms. Melfi, in advance of it going out.
Second, you appear to believe that JCCF owes you money, despite the fact that JCCF ultimately assisted you financially with your criminal defence. As you will agree, you were ultimately able to present your defence with the assistance of Ms. Grenier, who was the counsel that you insisted on having.
Mr. Melfi, I am not inclined to get into an argument with you. You have been successful in your criminal case, which is great news. I am glad that JCCF was able to render assistance to you. Frankly I don’t quite understand why you are not happy with the outcome.
At any rate, given that you appear to take issue with the press release, I can report that JCCF will be removing it now from its website. We will no longer be referring to you or your case. There will be no further publicity concerning you. Please also remove all reference to JCCF on your own website(s) and social media materials as well.
Secondly, please also understand that JCCF will not be forwarding you any money.
I wish you all the best in your future endeavours.
Best regards,
James Manson
Director of Legal Services
Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms
#253, 7620 Elbow Drive SW
Calgary, AB T2V 1K2
T/F:647.977.5354 | E: jmanson@jccf.ca
*Working in Toronto, Ontario
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