MP Greg Fergus becomes the latest Liberal caught violating ethics rules - ""I am quite concerned that someone with the breadth of experience of Mr. Fergus would fail to recognize the possibility of a contravention," he said. Trudeau has had a troubled relationship with the Conflict of Interest Act since coming to office. In 2016, he was found guilty of breaching the act when he vacationed on a private island owned by the Aga Khan. During the SNC-Lavalin scandal, Dion's office found that Trudeau broke the act by pressuring then-justice minister and attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to get her to grant a deferred prosecution agreement to the Quebec-based engineering firm. In 2018, Trudeau accepted two pairs of leather-covered sunglasses made by Fellow Earthlings eyewear, based in rural P.E.I., which retailed for between $300 and $500. Trudeau was fined $100 for failing to report the gift."
Group launches private prosecution against Trudeau over Roxham Road - "A prominent Quebec author and historian at the head of a Quebec activist group has initiated a private criminal prosecution against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, claiming the prime minister has encouraged illegal immigration into Canada, in violation of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Frédéric Bastien, president of Justice pour le Quebec, alleges that Trudeau made comments that encouraged illegal crossings into Canada at the infamous Roxham Road border point between New York State and Quebec... Bastien made reference to a widely publicized tweet by Trudeau in 2017 in which the prime minister said Canadians will welcome “those fleeing persecution, terror and war”... Bastien also pointed to comments made by Trudeau in 2022 suggesting that closing the irregular crossing at Roxham Road would not stop the arrival of asylum-seekers and that migrants would simply “cross elsewhere.” Bastien said Trudeau is “not a normal citizen” voicing his opinion or using his freedom of expression, and that his public declarations had real-life consequences such as encouraging people to cross into Canada at Roxham Road. “No one is above the law,” said Bastien of Trudeau. “It’s a matter of justice”... a record number of 150,000 asylum seekers entered Canada since Trudeau’s 2017 tweet. Of that number, 91,000 entered through Roxham Road... 60 per cent of Quebecers wanted Roxham Road closed. Bastien said a poll commissioned by his own group, Justice pour le Québec (Justice for Quebec), found that 68 per cent of Quebecers strongly or moderately agree with that position."
Canada must control its borders: ex-deputy PM on STCA - "One of the people responsible for the Safe Third Country Agreement between Canada and the United States says reducing the number of migrants coming into Canada at irregular crossings isn’t just a question of renegotiating or scrapping the deal, but rather the focus should be on the federal government being able to better control the border... John Manley — a former deputy prime minister who served under Jean Chretien and one of the signatories of the Safe Third Country Agreement in 2002 — told CTV’s Question Period host Vassy Kapelos, in an interview airing Sunday, he doesn’t think the crux of the problem is whether or not the deal should be modernized or renegotiated. “I think there's a separate issue there, which is Canada's ability to control its own borders,” Manley said. “I know it's simplistic to say to just block Roxham Road, and the government's right to say, ‘well we do that and they'll just come in somewhere else’. Possibly true.” “But fundamental to the nation's sovereignty is the ability to control our borders,” he added."
Trudeau faces criticism and grumbling inside the Liberal caucus | Toronto Sun - "It’s not normal to see Liberals speaking out against their own government or against fellow Liberals. Some have even criticized the prime minister or his decisions... When Trudeau appointed Amira Elghawaby as a special representative to combat Islamophobia, two cabinet ministers were critical of the appointment. Elghawaby’s comments on Quebec, including claims of widespread bigotry and racism, were called “hurtful” by Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez, while Industry Minister Francois Phillipe Champagne called them “worrying.” Can you imagine all of this dissension in the Liberal ranks even a few years ago? “The prime minister is your brand,” former minister Jody Wilson-Raybould quoted a senior PMO staffer saying in her book, Indian in the Cabinet. In the early days of the Trudeau government, many MPs owed their election to Trudeau and his brand. Now the Trudeau brand may be dragging down the Liberal brand. At the least, it’s not what it once was. The Liberals won 184 seats with 39% of the popular vote in 2015, but in the 2021 election, they won 160 seats with just 32% of the popular vote. Trudeau may be noticing that he has trouble in the ranks because Liberal sources say he’s changing. He’s not a PM known for lengthy meetings with ministers to discuss important files, that’s left up to other people. Stephane Dion famously went more than a year without having a single meeting with Trudeau while he was foreign affairs minister. Now though, there are whispers of Trudeau not only holding meetings with ministers but asking them for input, for advice. A year ago, Trudeau seemed bored with his job, perhaps ready to step down and let someone else take over. The last several months, though, have seen him energized and determined to take on Pierre Poilievre in pitched political battle. The question is whether his party will let him, or if the restlessness in the ranks has grown to the point that they want him gone."
Trudeau knows there’s trouble on the horizon - "A potential recession, mild or full blown, will give Conservatives ammunition to callback some sass from the last campaign when Trudeau asked a reporter for forgiveness, “if I don’t think about monetary policy.” Macklem’s prognosis, and the Bank of Canada’s decision to pause interest rate hikes, puts pressure on the Liberals to slow government spending. It will be a hard trick to pull off. A new health deal with provinces and territories is anticipated soon, plus Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland has promised a budget decked with measures in response to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, so that Canada isn’t left scrounging for crumbs in a global energy investment race."
Former chief electoral officer calls for independent inquiry into Chinese interference in Canadian elections - The Globe and Mail - "Former chief electoral officer Jean-Pierre Kingsley is calling for an independent inquiry into China’s sophisticated strategy to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Mr. Kingsley, who served in the post from 1990 to 2007, said it is disturbing that CSIS documents reveal Chinese strategy to influence Canada’s 2021 election and illegal methods to help favoured candidates in the two most recent campaigns. “The reason why this is important is that the legitimacy of government is what is at stake,” Mr. Kingsley told The Globe and Mail Thursday. “We have to trust that the electoral process is not being tampered with by a foreign government.” “We must do everything we can to protect the integrity of our electoral system,” he said. “We need to find out what has transpired. I favour an independent inquiry because this is what will satisfy Canadians. It is not a minor issue.” Mr. Kingsley said an independent inquiry would also determine whether the Canadian Security Intelligence Service turned over its intelligence on China’s illegal interference to the Commissioner of Canada Elections Caroline J. Simard to investigate. Her office said it is not allowed to reveal if anyone brought forward allegations to investigate. CSIS does not discuss its investigations... Mr. Trudeau has played down China’s meddling, saying this foreign interference did not affect the outcome of both elections. However, Mr. Kingsley said: “The point is we do not know what impact [China] had and therefore we cannot say they had no impact. That is why it is important to find out which campaigns were affected.” The CSIS documents show that the former Chinese consul-general in Vancouver bragged in late 2021 about how she helped defeat two Conservative MPs. One of them was Conservative Kenny Chiu, an outspoken critic of Beijing... Walied Soliman, who served as the co-chair of the 2021 Conservative election campaign, said the SITE task force did not take his party’s concerns about foreign interference seriously. Former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole has alleged that the party lost up to nine seats in that election because of Chinese interference. Earlier this week, Mr. Trudeau criticized opposition parties for raising concerns about China’s interference. He warned that they risked eroding faith in past elections, saying this would play into the hands of foreign governments who are “trying to undermine people’s confidence in democracy itself.” Mr. Trudeau has said that the leaks of CSIS documents need to be investigated. And on Thursday, he asserted that “there are so many inaccuracies in those leaks.” He did not say what was inaccurate in the reporting, which was based on the CSIS documents... NDP House Leader Peter Julian said the New Democrats would support an inquiry but want to see if the existing committee investigation will work. “The reports of foreign interference must be addressed so Canadians can have confidence in our elections. We would support an inquiry,” he said. “But we also think Canadians can’t wait that long for answers. That’s why we want a full committee investigation, and we believe that any evidence of election law breaking – like rebating the non-refundable parts of donations – should be turned over to Elections Canada for investigation.”"
I saw someone claim that he was a former official, not a current one, so he doesn't know anything
Canada needs an inquiry into Chinese election interference: ex-spymaster - "Canada needs a public inquiry into allegations of Chinese election interference, Canada former spymaster says. Speaking in an interview with The West Block‘s Mercedes Stephenson, airing Sunday, Richard Fadden, the former head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and former national security advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said he “can’t see any compelling reason not to” hold a public inquiry. “I think in this case, the allegations are so serious they need to be looked into,” Fadden told Stephenson. “I think a public inquiry is really the route to go.”"
Pressure mounts on Trudeau to call inquiry into foreign political meddling - "“Some form of non-partisan deep look has to happen here,” Gerald Butts, Trudeau’s former principal secretary, told Global News... Artur Wilczynski – a former senior official at the Communications Security Establishment (CSE), Canada’s electronic espionage agency – echoed Fadden’s call for an independent inquiry... Liberal MP Jennifer O’Connell accused Conservative MPs of deploying “Trump-type tactics” by asking questions about foreign interference."
Ironic, given that Trump haters kept alleging foreign interference got him elected
Former Trudeau advisers call for public inquiry into China’s election interference - The Globe and Mail - "Two former advisers to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as well as the leader of the New Democrats, say that a non-partisan public inquiry into Chinese state-directed interference into the 2019 and 2021 federal elections is warranted... Gerald Butts, who was Mr. Trudeau’s principal secretary until he resigned during the SNC-Lavalin affair in 2019, said Sunday that he too thinks a non-partisan inquiry is necessary, to look at the broad spectrum of foreign interference and not just China’s activities... New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh said he is troubled by reports from The Globe and Global News, citing highly classified CSIS documents, outlining the extent of Chinese interference operations in the 2019 and 2021 elections... Mr. Trudeau said he was satisfied with the examination of Chinese interference operations now being conducted by the Commons committee on procedure and House affairs, but Mr. Fadden said its work will be hampered because of partisanship and lack of access to secret intelligence reports... Mr. Fadden, who also served as national-security adviser to Stephen Harper, said a judge should be appointed to head an inquiry and be given access to all unredacted intelligence, as well as subpoena powers to call cabinet ministers and senior officials. He said that could even include calling the Prime Minister to testify on what he knew about China’s activities: “This is a democracy and nobody should be immune,” he said... Conservatives on the procedure and House affairs committee have complained that the Liberals and NDP blocked a motion on Tuesday to call Mr. Trudeau’s chief of staff, Katie Telford. The motion by Conservative MP Michael Cooper would also have allowed the Commons Law Clerk, who has a security clearance, to review all the classified CSIS reports and redact information that could be injurious to national security... China spread falsehoods on social media and provided undeclared cash donations in the 2021 election. The documents also lay out how Beijing directed Chinese students studying in Canada to work as campaign volunteers, and illegally returned portions of donations so donors were not out of pocket after claiming a tax receipt."
Trudeau rules out public inquiry into Chinese electoral interference - The Globe and Mail - "Justin Trudeau is ruling out a public inquiry to examine China’s interference in Canada’s democracy and once again insisted that Beijing-directed influence activities did not affect the outcome of the 2019 and 2021 elections... Mr. Trudeau sidestepped questions Friday on whether he would declassify CSIS documents that show the extent of a broad strategy by China to interfere in the two elections. Highly classified CSIS reports viewed by The Globe outline how China backed the re-election of the Trudeau Liberals – but only to another minority government – and worked to defeat Conservative politicians considered to be unfriendly to Beijing. The Globe reported that the CSIS documents show how China spread falsehoods on social media and provided undeclared cash donations in the 2021 election. The documents also outline how Beijing directed Chinese students studying in Canada to work as campaign volunteers, and illegally returned portions of donations so donors were not out of pocket after claiming a tax receipt. Conservative MP Michael Cooper, who sits on the Commons committee on procedure and House affairs, which is investigating Chinese interference, said MPs can’t get to the bottom of this without seeing the CSIS documents. He asserted that Liberal and NDP MPs colluded on Tuesday to deny a Conservative motion to have the independent House of Commons Law Clerk view the documents and redact sensitive information... Since The Globe’s revelations last Friday, Mr. Trudeau’s reactions have shifted. At first, he encouraged CSIS to hunt down the whistleblowers. Then, he said that there was no secret to what China was up to in the past two elections. He also accused the opposition parties of playing partisan politics and helping to undermine Canadians’ faith in the electoral process. “It is astonishing the Prime Minister would downplay interference by the [Chinese Communist Party] on the basis that it didn’t affect the overall outcome of the elections. The fact is what we have is a sophisticated campaign targeted to help the Liberals win and to defeat certain Conservative candidates and then-sitting members of Parliament who were defeated”... CSIS reports in 2021 said the Chinese state is targeting all levels of government from municipal to provincial to federal. They said China is targeting political staffers because “staffers control schedules and often act as gatekeepers” for MPs, “thereby placing them in positions where they can deceptively control and influence the activities of elected officials in ways that support [People’s Republic of China] interests.” The reports said the Chinese Communist Party, which rules the country as an authoritarian state, “often leverages non-transparent” methods to exert influence in Canada, “at times using clandestine, deceptive and threatening tools.” A Feb. 18, 2020, CSIS intelligence report assessed that at least 11 candidates in the 2019 election were the target of foreign interference. It said the 11, along with 13 members of their staffs, had direct connections to a “known or suspected malign actor.” The report says these candidates had at least one direct connection to a person of interest in CSIS’s investigation of Chinese foreign interference. The report said the service’s understanding of China’s foreign-interference network in the GTA is based on more than a decade of observation. It said the network is centred on individuals within the Chinese consulate in Toronto, leaders of local community organizations, staff of targeted candidates and elected officials and political candidates themselves. CSIS warned that “absent real disincentives,” such as a foreign-agent registry or indictments of foreign-interference actors, China’s “foreign interference targeting Canada is expected to continue and increase over time.”"
Comments (surprisingly, on reddit): "Weekly reminder that Trudeau sued the Speaker of the House for looking into the Winnipeg Lab, then dissolved Parliament a few weeks later"
"Lol. CSIS members are willing to risk losing their jobs and face jail time to warn Canadians about this government. Don't worry though, there's no need for an inquiry. Trudeau already decided there's nothing to see."
"Russian election interference boosting the Conservatives? Can't investigate it fast enough. Chinese election interference boosting the Liberals? Nothing to see here."
Trudeau calls questions about election interference by China racist | Toronto Sun - "Justin Trudeau said Monday that asking questions about MPs being influenced by China is racist and that security agencies don’t get to decide who runs in elections... “In a free democracy, it is not up to unelected security officials to dictate to political parties who can or cannot run,” Trudeau said when asked directly about the claims. That’s true, but after spending months telling Canadians we can be sure that our elections are safe due to the work of Canada’s security and intelligence agencies, it’s odd that Trudeau would attack them. When pressed again on this issue, a reporter looking for a clear answer was told it’s racist to ask. “One of the things we’ve seen, unfortunately, over the past years is a rise in anti-Asian racism linked to the pandemic and concerns being raised or arisen around people’s loyalties,” Trudeau said. “I want to make everyone understand fully. Han Dong is an outstanding member of our team, and suggestions that he is somehow not loyal to Canada should not be entertained.” Actually, those suggestions should be entertained, examined and decided based on facts. Trudeau himself says that we need to take the issue of China’s interference seriously, so he shouldn’t play the racism card. Consider this from Dong’s voting record. Earlier this month, 322 MPs from every party voted to support a motion from a Liberal MP declaring that “a genocide is currently being carried out by the People’s Republic of China against Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims” and calling for Canada to resettle 10,000 Uyghurs. One MP who wasn’t there was Han Dong, not that unusual until you realize that Dong was in his seat moments earlier, voting unanimously with the rest of the House to adopt Bill C-35 on childcare. The only MP to leave the chamber was Dong. His voting record on other issues related to China shows that he will vote on motions about China with the Liberals if the Liberal Party is voting against denouncing China but has been absent for several votes that could embarrass Beijing. Isn’t that worth questioning? To Trudeau the answer is no, to ask the question is racist, even though several MPs of Chinese descent have voted to condemn Beijing, including Liberal MPs. Dong, however, left the room. Trudeau wants us to believe that our security and intelligence services, and our bureaucrats, will keep the integrity of our elections safe. That is until leaks appear to come from CSIS at which point he attacks the agency, calling for them to stay in their lane and find the source of the leaks. He wants us to believe that the report on election integrity is all we need to see, even though it hasn’t been made public nearly 18 months after the election. Don’t worry though, retired public servant Morris Rosenberg is on the job and his report has been delivered to the PMO. Trudeau looked calm speaking about that report Monday. Maybe that’s because Rosenberg was head of the Trudeau Foundation from 2014 until 2018 at a time when foreign donations, especially from China, were flooding in."
We simply can’t trust Trudeau on China’s electoral interference - "63 per cent of Canadians approved of Trudeau in December 2015. Seven years later, that number had fallen to 43 per cent, with a clear majority disapproving of him and his performance. Many more Canadians now share the sentiments expressed by former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, who, after her bruising experience in the SNC Lavalin scandal, said she was mad at herself for being convinced Trudeau was a good and honest person, “when in truth, he would so casually lie to the public and think he could get away with it.” There have just been too many occasions when the prime minister has said one thing and events have subsequently proven him to have been economical with the truth. It would be shady but understandable if the mendacity was limited to broken promises on policy issues like electoral reform — a pledge the NDP says the Liberals made 1,800 times in the 2015 campaign, before abandoning it. But, on a number of occasions, voters have seen Trudeau personally assure them that there is nothing to see and to trust him, only to find out later that he was misleading them. At one time, Canadians assumed the best of their prime minister, even when his credibility was stacked up against someone as unimpeachable as the former vice-chief of the defence staff, Mark Norman. Trudeau twice assured Canadians that Norman’s case would end up before the courts, long before criminal charges for breach of trust were laid over the alleged leaking of sensitive information on the procurement of a supply ship, MV Asterix (that has incidentally now been in service for five years). The charges were dropped when the Crown admitted it couldn’t prove its case, with the only consequence being the ruin of a good man’s career. In the SNC Lavalin case, Trudeau again assured Canadians that he was right and the allegations — that he improperly influenced then justice minister Wilson-Raybould to intervene in a criminal case — were wrong. “The allegations reported in the (Globe and Mail) story are false,” he said. They weren’t, and the ethics commissioner, Mario Dion, found Trudeau guilty of using influence “tantamount to political direction.” The possible explanation for this recurring dissonance between the prime minister’s version and actual events might be found in his partial mea culpa over allegations he once groped a young female reporter at a music festival in B.C. when he was a teacher. “I respect the fact that someone might have experienced that differently,” he said."
Of course you still have Trudeau supporters claiming this is a nothingburger because you need to show ID to vote
As critics push Trudeau on China interference, Liberal MP says he has become ‘target’ | The Star - "Politicians including a Liberal MP and a senator say they fear allegations of Chinese interference in the 2019 federal election will lead to anti-Asian racism. But opposition critics, including some who say they have borne the brunt of such racism themselves, are accusing them of deflecting legitimate questions that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau must answer... after the 2019 election, senior officials had briefed Trudeau about a “vast campaign of foreign interference” allegedly waged by China’s consulate in Toronto... Dong said that he has not been accused of being under Chinese influence. He said he is also not aware of allegations against any other MPs he knows... In spring 2021, the Conservatives had objected to a suggestion Trudeau made that their questions about Chinese interference could wade into intolerance. At the time, they were pressing him on reports that scientists at Canada’s main infectious diseases laboratory in Winnipeg had been collaborating with Chinese military researchers. Former Tory MP Kenny Chiu, who was born in Hong Kong, had compared Trudeau’s response to the communist regime’s tactics of conflating dissent with anti-Chinese sentiment. In an interview this week, Chiu said that Dong’s argument follows the same logic, whether intentionally or not. “It’s just preposterous and ridiculous,” he said. Chiu pointed to allegations in Australia that China was supporting candidates who could replace politicians critical of Beijing, regardless of their ethnic backgrounds. “Why is Han Dong trying to portray that the 11 candidates are Chinese?” Chiu asked, saying the focus on their ethnicity is “not good.” “China is far more sophisticated than that,” he said. Chiu lost his seat in the 2021 election, during which he was the subject of a Chinese-language disinformation campaign that he suspects was linked to Beijing, although authorities have never confirmed this. NDP MP Jenny Kwan said the Liberals need to take the allegations of interference more seriously. “What has created a vacuum on the details of the information, in my view, is not the media but the prime minister himself,” the Vancouver MP said in an interview. Kwan, who was born in Hong Kong, said the allegations “go to the heart of our democratic system” and argued that Trudeau and his ministers have given contradictory statements about them. She noted that security officials have briefed Vancouver’s former mayor about possible Chinese influence in last fall’s municipal election. “The threat is real. Something is happening; we don’t know exactly what,” she said. “If the Liberals persist in hiding this information, they are not helping to clear the air.” And while Dong and Chiu said Canadians need to remember the difference between Canadians of Chinese origin and the communist regime, Kwan said the media and most Canadians already make that distinction... “We have a Liberal MP and a senator trying to redirect the focus of the issue to the media and their reporting,” she claimed. She was referring to comments last Thursday by B.C. Sen. Yuen Pau Woo, who called the Global News story “an egregious example of disinformation” — despite Trudeau’s national security adviser saying she didn’t know whether or not the reporting was accurate."
Criticising Chinese election interference is racist
Mackenzie Gray on Twitter - "Liberal MP Han Dong is alleged to have been helped by the Chinese consulate in Toronto during his 2019 nomination race, by bussing in seniors & students to vote for him, according to CSIS docs & sources CSIS asked the PM's senior staff to rescind Dong's nomination, per sources"
Justin Trudeau uses Donald Trump to denounce Pierre Poilievre | The Star - "It is noteworthy, in fact, how many times Liberals have evoked the ghost of Trump to denounce Poilievre this past week... The most obvious explanation for this Trump fixation can be found in recent polls, showing Conservatives ahead and Liberals trailing behind. The latest Abacus Data numbers, released this week, show Poilievre’s team maintaining an eight-point lead over Trudeau’s Liberals, and discontent with the country’s direction and desire for change at some of their highest points since Trudeau came to power in 2015."
When you need to wave Trump around to fear monger in a different country, you know you're in trouble
Carson Jerema: Trudeau Liberals embrace crony capitalism, but call it 'innovation' policy - "As soon as the Americans passed the ludicrously named Inflation Reduction Act , the shameless begging in Canada for the the Liberals to bring in their own plan would make the most seasoned con artists wince. Everyone has their hand out, demanding their cut. Carmakers, universities, unions, oil and gas companies, renewable energy companies and anyone who believes lobbying Liberals is preferable to satisfying customers has dollar signs in their eyes. The Liberals are embracing the idea with equal parts enthusiasm and panic. A wiser government would recognize that just because the Americans want to spend enormous amounts of public money for little benefit, we are not obliged to follow. U.S. President Joe Biden’s US$370-billion (C$494-billion) climate change plan will distort the economy, make private firms less competitive and American life more expensive, as it sprays massive subsidies and tax credits in an attempt to speed up and expand production of solar panels, wind farms and electric vehicles. It is not clear that the act will accomplish any of its objectives, or have much of an impact on carbon emissions. One thing it certainly will not do, though, is reduce inflation. The act is, more than anything, a plan to bring swathes of the U.S. economy under the umbrella of the government. It’s a racket. If you think American pork-barrel politics was bad already, just wait. Yet there is a fear that U.S. subsidies will drive investment away from Canada. To compete, it is argued, Ottawa must spend billions in public funds or risk economic ruin. This is what the $15-billion Canada Growth Fund is supposedly intended to do and what Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland means by “muscular industrial policy.” Subsidizing companies or “innovation,” we are told, generates revenues and contributes to the economy. However, this completely ignores the fact that higher taxes are needed to cover these costs, and also ignores the reality that subsidies discourage companies from investing based on what is happening in their market and shields them from competition. These programs are inevitably politicized and favour companies that have oriented their business models entirely towards getting subsidies. All of which has a negative impact on growth... While “growth” may be the intended goal of such policies, these plans ultimately exist to provide a mechanism for distributing public money to favoured corporations and causes. During roundtable discussions last summer, industry groups, according to the Globe’s reporting, groaned at the government’s plan for the Canadian Innovation and Investment Agency. “I wasn’t overwhelmed at all” said one participant. “How is this going to differ in terms of its effectiveness? Others haven’t been so effective,” said another, in reference to any number of other similarly nondescript Liberal plans, such as the Canada Advanced Research Projects Agency, or the superclusters program... Industrial policy groupies always point to the creation of the internet, which the American military had some early involvement in developing. But, while the need for a decentralized network that could withstand a nuclear attack led to the first emails ever sent, the early internet is not what we use today. Almost all of the innovation, especially since the introduction of the World Wide Web, has come from non-government sources."
Rex Murphy: Goodness, gracious, Ottawa survived Jordan Peterson - "Congratulations are flooding in to one of the princes of the Trudeau cabinet, the majestically competent Alghabra, for his outstanding appointment of anti-monarchist (a column by Amira Elghawaby termed the monarchy “one of the most powerful symbols of racial oppression” and, as an added raising to the pudding call for the “removal of the Queen as Head of State”) as a Special Representative to combat Islamophobia. The appointment has been received with raptures all over with the slight exception of the government of Quebec, a mere hiccup of demurral. To explicate, that government takes exception to her published remark from 2019 that “unfortunately, the majority of Quebecers appear to be swayed not by the rule of law, but by anti-Muslim sentiment.” Ms. Elghawaby has attempted to clarity that assertion and on Friday clearly stated “I don’t believe that Quebecers are Islamophobic.” Passage of time and a government appointment are great educators... With this sterling appointment by Minister Alghabra may we hope for more Special Representatives...
-Special Representative to combat Pearson backlogs.
-Special Representative to keep track of dubious contracts to friends of ministers.
-Special Representative to untangle passport issuance.
-Special Representative to — finally — determine if Jagmeet Singh is Justin Trudeau’s main supporter or main critic. And to report immediately to Mr. Singh so that he may be clear on the matter.
-Special Representative for low-income Canadians suffering under carbon taxes for home heating and gasoline for their several years-old second hand cars.
-Special Representative to inquire into so-called anti-racist groups stirring up what they claim to be against.
-Special Representative to halt generous government funding by Heritage Canada of overt anti-Semites. Suggestion, a Mr. Marouf might be available.
-Special Representative to ask “Why in Hades” is PM Trudeau making it policy to deindustrialize Alberta?
-Special Representative to determine why the report on the Emergencies Act is shielded from the public for a full week, while the government gives it a preliminary go over.
-Special Representative to inquire into Chrystia Freeland’s position on the Board of the World Economic Forum while acting as Canada’s Finance Minister. To ask if this constitutes a double conflict of interest: whether Canada is getting less than her full attention, or whether it’s the WEF. One of the two, by definition, has to be suffering.
-Special Representative to monitor artificial moral panics instigated and encouraged by politicians for utterly divisive and partisan reasons."
