Beyond The Commons

 Beyond The Commons

Aaron Wherry covers all the goings-on in and around Parliament Hill. Follow Aaron on Twitter: @aaronwherry

Categories: Beyond The Commons, Capital Read

‘Under the guise’

by Aaron Wherry on Thursday, December 1, 2011 1:12pm - 33 Comments

After it was reported in September that he had been airlifted out of a fishing trip by a Canadian Forces helicopter, Defence Minister Peter MacKay was called to explain his actions in the House of Commons. His first response came to a question from Liberal MP Scott Simms.

Mr. Speaker, with respect to the question from the honourable member, I was in fact in Gander in July of 2010, on a personal visit with friends for which I paid. Three days into the visit I participated in a search and rescue demonstration with 103 Squadron of 9 Wing Gander. I shortened my stay by a day to take part in that demonstration and later flew on to do government business in Ontario.

The NDP’s Jack Harris asked the minister next and Mr. MacKay restated his version of events.

Mr. Speaker, I think I just explained that I shortened a personal visit to take part in a search and rescue demonstration in Gander.

Now the Star has obtained emails that detail the preparation, planning and internal concerns around that pick-up.

When word of MacKay’s flight first leaked out, his excuse was that a military airlift would combine the minister’s need to attend to government business with the air force’s long-standing offer to conduct a search-and-rescue demonstration. But there is no mention in the records obtained by the Star that MacKay wished to take up any offer to see the highly trained crews at work. It is not until the next day, Wednesday July 7, that the orders go out that “this mission will be under the guise of … SAR (training).”

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  • gtrplyr055

    Gotcha! More misremembering from Harper’s Truthiness Ministry.

  • Anonymous

    I am personally shocked that a Minister of this government would misrepresent his actions in this way. Just shocked. 

    • Anonymous

      Nonsense. He was being swallowed by a fish. Search and Rescue.

      No story here. Just a big fish-story. Move on. Slow news day, etc.

  • Al O’Wishes

    So basically, Air Show MacKay didn’t want to wake up early so he got his people to take an active SAR craft out of service, put the crew at risk (not to mention the public at large!) at great expense, just so that he could jet off to a re-announcement of something that was already announced several times before. He then lied about it, lied again, then lied again.

    Yet I find nothing shocking about this. I feel I should be surprised at the level of contempt and arrogance, and angry at the blatant lies, but it’s Peter MacKay. I expect this level of idiotic behavior from this frat-boy [expletive deleted]. Quite frankly, the only thing that surprises me is that he didn’t film a lame apology with a borrowed dog and crocodile tears when he was caught.

    Unless that’s what he’ll be doing this weekend?

    • Anonymous

      He’s shameless – he is repeating his same b.s. story in the house. 

  • Anonymous

    What?  A Conservative cabinet minister fibbing to the House?  How novel!

  • neuroticdog

    hollinm, this is yet more brazen prevarication from the government you leap to defend at every opportunity. What’s the rationalization for this one? Just more groundless b!tching from the opposition? You would be inarticulate with rage if anybody but the Cons pulled stunts like this.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_4465WSJ36YDGXAJZUXDNIM64M4 Dan

    All of you are missing the most important point.  Mr. MacKay was able to make it back to his riding  in time to defend his title as champion of lobster banding at the Pictou Carnival.

    If he hadn’t used a SAR helicopter, and then a government jet twice, someone else would have won that title.  Possibly even a Communist.   

    Think about that for a moment.  A Commie… taking the Pictou lobster banding title… from our Defence Minister.  

    Now think about how that would have hurt our fragile economic recovery!

    So please give Mr. MacKay a break on this one. He did it for all of us.

    • OriginalEmily1

      Okay, that one cracked me up….nearly spewed my coffee.  LOL

    • Anonymous

      Gad, sir you’re right! There’s always a good reason behind seemingly dreadful circumstances…

    • Anonymous

      Your application for a communications post at the highest levels of the federal government is duly received, and will be expedited, as you have demonstrated outstanding qualifications.

    • Anonymous

      So the Russians are not only flying into our airspace, they’ve infilftrated the lobster banding circuit?  I guess he couldn’t tell us about this because it’s operational.  Dam Ruskies!

    • Anonymous

      How’s the new job with the Olympic committee going, Dimitri?

  • Anonymous

    this is the Harper “small g “government s version of openness, accountability, integrity and ethics. NOT!

  • RubenTimes

    These guys are well trained from birth they can stand up to any truth thrown their way.

    Impressive in a scumbag kinda way. 

    • grenwood3

      yes its remarkable about their ‘thick skin’ ! 

    • grenwood3

      and their thick skin extends into the realm of civility which is a strange phenomeon on the hill. As the late James Travers (who Harper praised ) said the Conservatives have taken incivility to the greatest heights given that the Liberals and N.D.P. were also guilty. But this is the problem now the Cons are saying the Liberals did it to rationalise why they do it. 

  • kcm2

    Just you wait to we get our F35s…they’ll be picking PMac up off some icefloe so’s he can make it back to the house to tell em there’s no sign of the Russkies coming just yet…but he’s keeping an eye peeled for em.

    • neuroticdog

      Why would he need to visit an ice floe to get an update on the Rooshins’ whereabouts, when he could just text Sarah Palin? She can see ‘em from her house.

  • Anonymous

    Another good example. This government never stops wasting taxpayers’ money.  I just read in Le Devoir that Minister Moore expects to spend 70 million dollars for the celebrations of the War of 1812 – 70 million dollars !!!

    http://www.ledevoir.com/politique/canada/337360/la-facture-des-celebrations-de-la-guerre-de-1812-gonfle-a-70-millions

    That’s nearly what it cost France to hold both the G8 and the G20 this year (59 million euros) while of course the Harper Government spent 10 times more than France to hold the same two events.

    Now 70 millions for the War of 1812.   How large a debt are the Conservatives planning to leave behind? 

  • wilson

    off topic; why is Coyne leaving Macleans and going back to the National Post?

    • Anonymous

      My expectation, at least from his initial comment there, is that they offered to pay him a bunch more.

      Probably doesn’t hurt that he knows he’ll only have to deal with conservative forum posters there, so his arguments won’t be ripped apart quite so quickly.

      • Calvin

        Yeah, that`s gotta be it Thwim.
        He was just too intimidated here—what with your brilliance and all.

        • Anonymous

          Oh I’d hardly take credit myself. Often his arguments were already shredded by the time I read his article.

  • Blacktopold

    Com’on! I remember under the Liberals that a steady stream of senior politicos, generals, foreigner (including Eisenhower, Curtis Lemay, Prince Philip ad nauseum were flown by the RCAF into the special fising camp at Eagle River in Labrador (Atlantic Salmon.)   An old adage – RHP, or rank hath priveleges. The camp was staffed by RCAF survival technicians.

    • grenwood3

      if the Liberals did it does it make it right for the Conservatives?

    • Anonymous

      Sorry – MacKay says it was a personal trip that he paid for himself – no entertaining of visiting dignataries.  The whole thing was cricket except for the ride out. 

  • UlamON

    McKay should resign! The man is a proven liar.

  • Steve T.

    Slimy piece of fuking horsesh1t, fall on your sword, but before you do…. use that sword to run Harper through…. than you could be a hero at the las moment…. best idea yet as far as your concerned….

    Fuking as$-monkey sh1t-eating clown;

    Why does it bother NO canadians that our politicians keep prision-bitching us out…..for money and power, no less…!! I for one have a far too sore as$ to care about how this pr1cks ‘feels’ for being targetted for his stupidity…

    Harper is deconstructing Canada, and lying every step of the way, because what real Canadian would truly allow that to occur? You see, the Harper regime thinks of Canadians like frogs in a pot of water over a fire… if they just throw us in the boiling water we might jump out, and we’ll definitely be angry… BUT if they place us in a pot of cold water and bring it up slowly to a boil, we will sit there and get cooked…

    Are we gonna let these double talking, deceitful, anarchists cook Canada and Canadians? So far Canadians are allowing it…. OPEN UP YOUR EYES.

    • Anonymous

      A number of reasons. First, nobody likes feeling foolish. So for many, it’s easier to put their fingers in their ears and close their eyes rather than confront the fact of who/what they voted for.

      Second, most Canadians are decent people with a sense of shame.  Because of this, it’s difficult for them to believe that someone could act this shamelessly. So as long as the CPC puts out some plausible excuse for the behavior, regardless of its truth, it’s simply easier for Canadians to believe the excuse rather than confront the idea that these people have that little moral character.

      Third, the only people voting on the CPC last election were die-hard conservatives. For pretty much everybody else, the election was more an outlashing of public sentiment toward the Liberals.  That’s why paper NDP candidates received more votes than solid Liberal candidates.  People won’t be judging the CPC performance record until the next election — because there’s nothing they can do about it until then anyway.  (That said, the CPC may well win another election anyway because the right wing simply has no other options right now, and the left is being split at least 3 ways — I do so wish that the Green Party had kept Jim Harris, but unfortunately with May actually being in parliament now, the odds of a fiscally conservative eco-friendly party are pretty much shot.)

  • Selena61

    Borrowing a page from US Sen. John Kyle (R. Goldman-Sachs) the Honorable Minister said that his statement in the House “was not meant to be truthful”.

  • Eleanor Clitheroe

    Surprise, surprise!!! Harper defends proven-to-be liar McKay! What a pieces of human garbage; makes sense that they would guard each other, being liars, criminals, and brooding tyrants.

    Here’s a good example of how things SHOULD HAVE WENT: Anyone remember ELEANOR CLITHEROE, disgraced former Hydro One CEO, who back in 2002 used a Hydro One helicopter to ferry her from her cottage to a board meeting… she was fired, stripped of her pension and was made to pay reparations… she fought in court and LOST. Harper has destroyed THAT judicial system like the expert fascist tyrant he is, so don’t expect a repeat of useful justice…

    McKay and Harper are just as wrong as she was to mix personal and professional and they must pay. What is worse than the actual transgression is the fact that it trends with the generally contemptuous conservative modus operandi, and that makes my stomach shrink to think of every evil deed the morally bankrupt harper regime perpetrates that we DON’T know about for each evil revelation that comes to the public eye…

    STOP HARPER.

    • Jesus

      Interesting point… i wonder if the hypocrisy burns her at her cross… the fact that it was conservatives that decided to clip her angel wings in court trimming her pension and forcing her out of big business and into the non judgmental arms of the lord (so no she’s a registered tax free panhandler and visionary kook.

      If there even is a God Elly, I would suspect that he is constructing a special place in hell for criminal, conservative hypocrites like, Harper, Clement, Oda, Guergis, McKay, and Harpers hand chosen team of criminally insane court justices and assistants including but not limited to, David Near, Norman Sabourin, Lori Douglas, Richard Boivin.

      I bet this really stings ole god hugger Elly, that god would abandon righteous people like her and side with evil the likes of the Harper regime.

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