‘I really don’t separate them’

By Aaron Wherry - Friday, January 27, 2012 at 9:50 AM - 0 Comments

Bev Oda defends CIDA’s partnerships with the private sector.

“I think if we can increase the capacity of any country to become a global trading partner, if they’ve got products Canadians need, we can import them and, if Canada has products they would like, Canada can export them.”

And Oda says she wants to see more partnerships between aid agencies and companies to help deliver Canadian aid around the world. “Our government is very much looking to increase its relationships with the private sector,” she said, adding that she would like to see such relationships between NGOs and corporations in manufacturing, agriculture and tourism, in addition to the extractive industry.

Bev Oda’s goat, and Dion’s new role in Scotland

By Mitchel Raphael - Monday, December 5, 2011 at 9:40 AM - 0 Comments

Photograph by Mitchel Raphael

The goat Bev Oda left behind

Attendees at World Vision Canada’s reception at the Fairmont Château Laurier included Liberal MP Mark Eyking and his wife, Pam Eyking, who have sponsored an 11-year-old boy named Claude, in Rwanda, through the organization for 10 years. They’ve sent him many things over that time, including a shirt six years ago that he still wears. Another long-wearing item of clothing was the brown Ultrasuede jacket from the ’80s that Mark Eyking wore to the reception. The MP is one of seven brothers and jokes they had one suit they kept passing around. Bev Oda, minister of international co-operation, spoke passionately about World Vision’s work. She recalled a visit to Tanzania where she was given a goat as a thank-you present. She told her staffer to get going on the paperwork needed to get the goat home to Canada—letting the staffer sweat it out for 30 minutes before saying she was kidding. The goat stayed in Tanzania.

Abercrombie and Iran

When Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak was in Ottawa, he had meetings with Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird. The ministers discussed the hot topic of Iran, while Israeli security personnel asked Hill interns if there was an Abercrombie & Fitch in Ottawa. There is not.

Continue…

World Vision Canada, MPs and Rick Campanelli

By Mitchel Raphael - Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 2:56 PM - 0 Comments

World Vision Canada’s held a reception at the Fairmont Château Laurier .

Entertainment Tonight Canada's Rick Campanelli (left), a World Vision Canada ambassador, with LIberal MP Mark Eyking (right) and wife Pam Eyking (centre).

Campanelli with Dave Toycen, World Vision Canada President and CEO.

Bev Oda, Minister of International Cooperation, (left), and Campanelli.

Rogers Communications turns 50

By Mitchel Raphael - Tuesday, October 25, 2011 at 9:05 AM - 3 Comments

Rogers Communications  celebrated their 50th anniversary in Ottawa at the Metropolitain Brasserie.

(Left to right) Rogers president and CEO Nadir Mohamed and Rogers Vice Chairman Phil Lind.

(Left to right) U.S. Ambassador David Jacobson and Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird.

Liberal MP Justin Trudeau.

Loretta Rogers.

Continue…

Brad Trost goes rogue

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 at 2:37 PM - 44 Comments

The Conservative backbencher describes his conversations with the Prime Minister’s Office in regards to funding for Planned Parenthood, accuses CIDA staff of leaking to the media, mocks the government’s position and vows to take an “aggressive” stance going forward.

The battle over the IPPF continues. Pro-Life politicians have been taught a lesson. The government only responds to Pro-Life issues and concerns when we take an aggressive stance. We will apply this lesson. 

Funding Planned Parenthood, but not abortion

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, September 22, 2011 at 1:14 PM - 18 Comments

A few months ago, Conservative MP Brad Trost was boasting that the government had “defunded” Planned Parenthood. But after more than a year of public waffling, the CBC reports that the government is about to approve funding for the group.

International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda has decided to approve a proposal by the International Planned Parenthood Federation to provide sex education and contraception in five developing countries…

The proposal gets around the thorny issue of abortion by asking for money for sex education and contraception services, and does not include abortion services. The funding is worth $6 million over three years for Planned Parenthood to work in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Mali, Sudan and Tanzania, where abortions are illegal except in cases where the mother’s life is at risk.

The Commons: Humble brag

By Erica Alini - Friday, June 10, 2011 at 11:14 PM - 18 Comments

Across the street and behind a metal barricade, a young man in a bike helmet, holding a pink sign that read “contempt,” was yelling at Conservative delegates as they filed into the giant glass orb that is the Ottawa convention centre. He yelled about the G8 and the $50 million. He yelled about Bev Oda. He yelled about the defeated candidates now in the Senate. He yelled the word “mockery” more than a few times. Most of the delegates ignored him. Some smiled and laughed and waved.

The man in the bike helmet was eventually joined by about 300 others waving various signs for various reasons. “Beat Back The Tory Attack On Reproductive Justice,” read one. “Whither Joe Clark,” read another. The noisy gathering eventually settled on a simple enough chant: “Hey Har-per! You! Suck!” Later there was something about no one being illegal or some such sentiment. Somewhere in the middle of it all was apparently the rogue Senate page.

Inside the orb, the proceedings were running rather late. Eventually, about a half hour behind schedule, Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney and Senator Pamela Wallin turned up to play host. After throwing to “floor reporters” Mike Duffy and Jacques Demers from interviews with various members of the crowd, Mr. Blaney and Ms. Wallin got around to expounding on how fondly they regarded Stephen Harper. Continue…

This year's models

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, May 18, 2011 at 10:43 AM - 65 Comments

Welcome to live coverage of this morning’s cabinet shuffle, wherein we find out which backbenchers we have to pretend to take more seriously for the next little while.

There’s been a steady stream of Conservatives arriving at Rideau Hall and the Prime Minister is due shortly. So far we seem only to know for sure that John Baird will be the next Foreign Affairs Minister. Presumably he will be counted on to bluster away opposition criticism of the government’s international endeavours, charm foreign officials and periodically convene breathless news conferences to report the latest breathtaking developments in our make-believe war with Russia. Presumably he’ll do fine. His image problem notwithstanding.

10:45am. Our Andrew Coyne is already deeply disappointed with all of this. Follow his Twitter feed this morning to watch his head explode repeatedly.

10:52am. The Prime Minister has now arrived. The swearing in is to commence in about 20 minutes.

11:04am. CTV reports a 39-member ministry, which equals an all-time high mark. Welcome to the new era of smaller government.

11:07am. Peter Van Loan apparently goes back to House leader. Welcome to the new era of non-partisan Harper governance. Continue…

Week Four

By Aaron Wherry - Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 5:56 PM - 28 Comments

This is the week that was. Week One of the campaign was recounted here. Week Two was recounted here. Week Three was recounted here.

Michael Ignatieff explained how democracy works. Stephen Harper refused to agree and rejected the question of compromise. Ned Franks clarified the situation. Brad Wall felt it necessary to impart his own wisdom. John Duffy wondered if Mr. Harper remembered Mackenzie King.

Mr. Ignatieff addressed Edmonton and heard the concerns of British Columbians. Mr. Harper spoke to the faithful in Campbell River.

Jack Layton talked to Peter Mansbridge. Michael Ignatieff talked to Nardwuar and chatted with me. And then took to the Easter airwaves. Continue…

'The government's parameters'

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, April 21, 2011 at 10:48 AM - 87 Comments

The Conservative party has issued a statement from Bev Oda.

The Canada-led Muskoka Initiative, introduced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper is about making a difference in the lives of the world’s most vulnerable people.

Our goal is simple and straightforward:  saving the lives of mothers, newborns and children in developing countries.  We will do this by expanding life-saving services and programs such as better nutrition, treatment and prevention of diseases, proper medication, clean water and sanitation.

Canada’s generous contribution is part of a $7.3 billion overall commitment announced by G-8 leaders in Muskoka last June.  Eighty per cent of the Canadian contribution will flow to sub-Saharan Africa which has the greatest incidence of maternal and child mortality.  If Planned Parenthood submits an application that falls within the government’s parameters for the G8 Muskoka Initiative, there will be funding.

Under the leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper our Conservative government is focused on issues that matter to Canadians such as completing our economic recovery and providing Canadians greater financial security and a stable government.

Paul’s read is that this confirms Brad Trost’s version. My read is that it sidesteps the question of the funding application that Planned Parenthood submitted nearly two years ago and that the government was, at least as recently as last night, “still reviewing.”

'Still reviewing'

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, April 21, 2011 at 9:08 AM - 127 Comments

Conservative incumbent Brad Trost boasts that anti-abortion advocates convinced the government to defund Planned Parenthood.

The Prime Minister’s Office says it can’t comment on specific applications. A spokesman for International Cooperation Minister Bev Oda says Planned Parenthood’s application is still being reviewed.

That application was submitted in June 2009.

For the rather long history of this government’s dancing around the question of Planned Parenthood, see here.

Bev Oda’s ‘rough time’ and the PM’s racy songs

By Mitchel Raphael - Monday, April 18, 2011 at 9:50 AM - 4 Comments

Photographs by Mitchel Raphael

You have to love those seniors

Bev Oda has three campaign offices in her large Ontario riding of Durham. The one in Port Perry is right across from the only McDonald’s in town. As one volunteer noted, everyone in town sees it because it is right by the drive-through. It’s almost as good a location as the one Oda had during the last campaign when her office was right across from the liquor store.

Port Perry recently had a Tartan Day parade, which Oda marched in. She wore an RCMP tartan she picked up at the Wee Tartan Shop, a store in town that specializes in British goods. The owner of the shop, Stewart Bennett, is the person who organized the parade; he’s also often the person who sings the national anthem at Oda’s fundraisers. While looking around in the shop before the festivities, Oda spotted a DVD trivia game for the British TV show Coronation Street and considered picking one up for the Prime Minister because, she says, he’s a big fan of the show. The store also sells pickled garlic, which Oda buys as gifts for people, though she herself isn’t a big fan of it. She often gets Defence Minister Peter MacKay Nova Scotia scarves from the shop “because he keeps losing them.”

Like most MPs, during the election, Oda’s duties as minister of international co-operation are curtailed, with the exception of dealing with international catastrophes such as earthquakes or hurricanes. On the campaign trail, people are clearly aware of the big “not” scandal. (Says one Oda supporter: “This a seniors’ community so they have nothing to do but read.”) But no one ever says anything directly to the minister. It’s more along the lines of: “You’ve had a rough time, eh?” Maybe that’s because everyone is also well aware of all the things Oda has brought to the riding, including fixing up the waterfront in Port Perry.

While campaigning at an event put on by Durham Farm Connections, Oda spent time with the farmer working the alpaca section. When Oda inquired about the animals for her own farmland, she was told she would have to get at least two because they are herd animals. “Do they spit?” she asked. She was assured they could be trained.

There aren’t many visible minorities in the riding. Oda, who is Japanese Canadian, lives in the town of Orono where she counts “the people who run the Chinese restaurant and the guy at the convenience store” and herself as the “multicultural centre.”

‘Dirty Picture’ in Ajax

Stephen Harper has attempted to run a risk-free campaign, but his soundtrack is a little out there. First there was the photo op with 10-year-old Maria Aragon singing Lady Gaga’s gay-bi-transgendered anthem Born This Way. Then, during a rally in Ajax, Ont., one of the songs pumping up the room before Harper came in was Taio Cruz and Ke$ha’s Dirty Picture club anthem, which includes the lyrics: “So take a dirty picture for me / Take a dirty picture / Just take a dirty picture.”

When the lights went out for May

Just as Green Leader Elizabeth May was about to launch her party’s platform at the Centre for Social Innovation in Toronto, the TV crews’ lights went out. “Thanks for observing Earth Minute,” joked May, not missing a beat as people went to check the breaker switch. She then filled time by talking about her very first press conference, when she was four and was used as a “prop” by her activist mother.

They all scream for…

It’s not often hundreds of people flock to an MP. But Toronto NDP candidate Olivia Chow recently had them eating out of her hand. She was helping give out free mini ice cream cones to promote the Big Chill, an ice cream parlour in the city’s hip Little Italy. Too bad she couldn’t have any herself. Chow happens to be lactose intolerant so settled for mango sherbet, “the colour of the NDP,” the MP astutely added.

On the campaign trail with Bev Oda

By Mitchel Raphael - Friday, April 15, 2011 at 11:41 PM - 14 Comments

Minister of International Cooperation Bev Oda checked out the Tartan Day parade in Port Perry, Ontario. Before she started the parade she went to the The Wee Tartan Shop.

Continue…

Newsmakers

By macleans.ca - Monday, March 28, 2011 at 5:17 PM - 0 Comments

Eric Miller/Reuters

Old hat, new hat trick

It was a typical week at the office for Montreal Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban. Last Thursday, he was hacked by an established NHL star, Vincent Lecavalier. On Friday he scored a goal against the New York Rangers and was challenged to a fight. On Saturday, he was disparaged on national TV by Don Cherry, and on Sunday he scored the first hat trick by a rookie defenceman in the 101-year history of les glorieux. The ebullient Subban is driving his opponents to distraction—not to mention a few prigs in the hockey media. But with each passing game, it’s becoming clearer that P.K.’s detractors will have to adjust to him rather than vice versa. As former Habs GM Bob Gainey put it: “Some of those people should just shut up and play against him.”

Hugo still boss

An autocrat’s work is never done. In between signing trade agreements with China, including a deal involving Venezuela’s state-run oil company, and an extended $4-billion line of credit for its capital of Caracas, Latin American strongman Hugo Chávez found time last week to accuse America of planning to sabotage his re-election bid in 2012, censure the West for its air strikes on Libya—and attack the boom in breast implants in his own country. He pointed the finger at doctors, who “convince some women that if they don’t have some big bosoms, they should feel bad.”

Continue…

Near miss

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, March 28, 2011 at 2:47 PM - 11 Comments

Not only does this reckless, unnecessary, opportunistic election imperil everything you hold dear, it also deprived Bev Oda her place in the history books.

A parliamentary committee reviewing whether she had misled the House of Commons over a decision to reject an international funding request was unable to adopt its report before Friday’s non-confidence motion vote brought down the government. ”Bev Oda missed becoming a footnote in history by about a millimetre,” said Liberal MP John McKay.

Mr. Speaker

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 1:51 PM - 64 Comments

When the government falls tomorrow afternoon and Parliament is subsequently dissolved, Peter Milliken‘s time as Speaker of the House of Commons will come to an end, Mr. Milliken having already decided that he will not seek reelection as the MP for Kingston and the Islands. First elected to the post in January 2001, he will retire as the longest-serving Speaker in the history of the House.

His tenure will be remembered as historic on a number of fronts, but his ruling last year on Afghan detainee documents and his rulings this year on statements made by International Cooperation Minister Bev Oda and the government’s refusal to turn over documents requested by the House will likely be of significant and lasting consequence. Amid much gnashing of teeth over the state of our parliamentary democracy, Mr. Milliken reasserted the power and preeminence of the House of Commons. As a legacy, a Speaker could not ask for much greater.

Choose carefully now, you hear?

By Scott Feschuk - Tuesday, March 22, 2011 at 9:10 AM - 32 Comments

Reuters; Getty; Rex Features; CP; Photo Illustration by Taylor Shute

As I write these wurds an electon seems iminent, which is why I’m crrying and cant seee to spel corecktlee. Five weeks of empty promises, apocalyptic rhetoric and Stephen Harper using every photo op to sing the chorus to All You Need is Love: where’s a nice absolute monarchy when you need one?

At this critical juncture, let’s take a closer look at where the parties stand.

Conservatives. They’re ahead. And they’re increasingly emboldened by the fact that none of their mistakes, gaffes, fibs, lies, ethical lapses or John Bairds seem to be cutting into their popularity. There’s speculation the Conservatives feel so bulletproof they may actually let Bev Oda talk.

Meanwhile, election preparations continue. New attack ads are being shot. The war room is being staffed. And Cheryl Gallant’s mouth is being escorted to an undisclosed location.

New Democrats. Jack Layton recently underwent surgery, but unless it was to implant some bionic charisma—or a cool robot arm so he can flash a politically unprecedented Tri-Thumbs Up—he and his party seem destined to remain stalled.

Despite token efforts to get with the times, the NDP hasn’t moved beyond believing that government should be doing something to help everyone do anything. And so most people continue to figure that if New Democrats ever got their hands on power, the federal treasury would overnight come to resemble the Vegas hotel room in The Hangover.

In perpetual opposition, the only hard choice that New Democrat MPs ever need to make is whether to wear the suit that’s 12 years out of date or the one that’s 12 years out of date and brown.

Greens. I’ll be the one to ask it: what is the point of the Greens? I mean, they’re adorable and everything, but so are pandas—and pandas don’t give us a hard time about the light bulbs we choose.

Do the Greens exert influence on government? No. Do they take votes away from more popular parties on the left? Yes. Can anyone name a single Green candidate other than Elizabeth May? Other than Preachy McCompost, no.

Don’t get me wrong: the Greens are a lovely group of well-meaning people who forgot to brush their hair this morning. But their existence serves to undermine the political viability of the principles they believe in. They’d be better off as a movement, not a party. They could throw their financial support and volunteer efforts behind environment-minded candidates with a real shot at toppling Conservatives. As it stands, the Greens are planning a 2011 campaign that has zero impact—on both the environment and the election.

Liberals. This magazine put Michael Ignatieff on the cover last week and essentially depicted him as brain dead, testing as never before the theory that there’s no such thing as bad publicity. In defence of Maclean’s, the editors did NOT draw a pointy devil’s beard on his face or write “has cooties” alongside a big arrow pointing to his head. You’re welcome, Iggy.

Ignatieff could hardly have been surprised by the cover. Pretty much nothing’s gone right for him. He seems unable to shake the impression that he’s the Dean Wormer of Canadian politics, a stuffy tight-arse who is doomed to be served his comeuppance.

Using attack ads, the Conservatives have thoroughly diminished Ignatieff. But they still have money coming in, so it’s only a matter of time until they further erode the Liberal brand by badmouthing former party leaders: “Wilfrid Laurier claimed the 20th century would belong to Canada. But we finished third at best. LAURIER: A BIG FAT LIAR.”

Liberals have been held hostage by their unpopularity for so long now that they’ve come to accept it, even embrace it. They have upbeat answers for every dispiriting truth—strange, upbeat answers—Hey, look, we appear doomed to lose big in an election. So let’s have an election!

It’s odd: the less support the Liberals have, the more potential they believe they possess. It follows that only when they sink into the teens will they believe the conditions are right for a return to Liberal majority.

Still, you can’t blame them for wanting to take their shot now. Better the ass-kicking you fear than the daily wedgies you’ve come to know.

In the House's hands

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, March 21, 2011 at 1:11 PM - 15 Comments

Shortly after Question Period today, a report will be tabled from procedure and House affairs committee recommending that the government be found in contempt of Parliament for failing to turn over budgetary and financial information related to various pieces of crime legislation and the proposed purchase of 65 F-35 jets.

A separate finding of contempt against International Cooperation Minister Bev Oda is still to be decided, but it appears Ms. Oda may have the sympathy of Pat Martin working in her favour.

Is Parliament about to make a comeback?

By Andrew Coyne - Monday, March 21, 2011 at 10:00 AM - 82 Comments

Sean Kilpatrick/CP

On second thought . . .

Perhaps there’s a more hopeful way to look at what’s happening in Canadian politics, or at least in Parliament. Maybe all of the indignities Parliament has suffered of late—ministers lying to committees, governments refusing to produce essential documents, all the way back to prorogation and the coalition crisis, or indeed to Paul Martin’s abuse of the confidence convention in 2005—maybe these are, in a way, the good news.

Maybe, that is, we are seeing the first stirrings of a parliamentary rebirth. Maybe things have come to such a pass, maybe Parliament’s weakness has become so obvious, that Parliament now has no alternative but to stand and fight. Indeed, almost in spite of itself, that is what the opposition majority in Parliament has begun to do.

Last year’s historic ruling by the Speaker of the House of Commons in the matter of the Afghan prisoner documents was a watershed moment. Though constitutional scholars were vastly in agreement that Parliament’s powers to send for “persons and papers” was unconditional and unlimited, the issue was hardly uncontested—see the Justice Department lawyer’s letter claiming national security as an exception—nor had it been subjected to such a clear test in recent times. The Speaker’s ruling, unequivocal and unanswerable, will be studied not only in Canada, but in parliamentary systems around the world.

Indeed, it has already served as precedent, invoked by the Speaker himself in last week’s ruling indicting the government yet again for withholding documents it should properly be providing to Parliament, this time with regard to the costs of its crime bills. Though ultimately it is up to Parliament itself to decide whether its privileges have been breached, the Speaker found there were sufficient grounds to send the matter to the Commons procedure and House affairs committee, which will decide whether to put it to a vote of the full House next week—as it will with regard to whether Bev Oda misled, intentionally or otherwise, a parliamentary committee.

Continue…

The week ahead

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, March 21, 2011 at 9:00 AM - 16 Comments

The 40th Parliament began with a moment of unprecedented democratic intrigue and may soon end similarly. The House returns this morning at 11 and there are various pieces in play, or potentially in play: a budget, a contempt finding against the Harper government, a contempt finding against International Cooperation Minister Bev Oda, a budget amendment, a motion of non-confidence and a vote on the government’s financial estimates.

Oh, and there’s a military campaign against Libya to be discussed.

Greg Weston has a comprehensive accounting of what may happen when.

The Commons: Confusion clarified and epitomized

By Aaron Wherry - Friday, March 18, 2011 at 6:14 PM - 62 Comments

By her own reckoning, Bev Oda was here to address “the confusion.” ”At the outset,” she said, “let me state that I take full responsibility for the confusion my initial answers created—and I apologize for that.”

Of course, this was not quite the “outset.” Depending on when one starts the clock on this matter, Ms. Oda’s present predicament could be said to date back months, perhaps more than a year. Indeed, were this really the “outset,” she would not have had to show up here this morning to read from a prepared statement that, when distributed to the reporters present, included 12 footnotes and three appendices.

“I’m here today,” she continued, “to explain to this committee, and to the public, why, initially, I did not understand how my answers were creating confusion.”

Here was a tribute to the qualified statement—a four-page monologue that could plausibly qualify as an experiment in post-modern poetry or at least a brilliant satire. ”There was no intention to mislead the committee members,” she said of  her appearance before the foreign affairs committee in December. “I now realize that from someone else’s perspective it was confusing … People listening to my answers might have thought that I signed the document and then after that someone added the word “not.” That didn’t occur to me because I knew that wasn’t what happened. At the time I did not see the confusion that my answer would cause, and I apologize for creating confusion.”

By way of conclusion, she offered a sentence so beautifully crafted that it should be immediately hammered onto a plaque and hung above the entrance to the House of Commons. Continue…

How a minister of the crown conveys her wishes

By Aaron Wherry - Friday, March 18, 2011 at 4:08 PM - 43 Comments

More on Bev Oda’s appearance at committee this morning in a bit, but the government side has apparently now turned over two documents to demonstrate that ungrammatical editing was not entirely uncommon within her department.

The constantly evolving nature of democracy

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, March 14, 2011 at 9:04 AM - 22 Comments

Stephen Harper, explaining Bev Oda’s situation. “Mr. Speaker, once again, the reality is that the minister took a decision that was contrary to the recommendations of her officials. In a democracy, the elected ministers are the ones who make decisions. That is what democracy means.”

Tom Lukiwski, explaining how the government failed to supply various documents requested by Parliament. “The information we had originally submitted to Parliament was on the advice of many of those within the public service who told us that this information should be able to satisfy the request … I suspect this is a situation where the public servants who were responsible for gathering the information were the ones who advised the ministers that the information that they’d provided was adequate and satisfactory.”

Twenty questions

By Aaron Wherry - Sunday, March 13, 2011 at 11:02 AM - 50 Comments

Tabatha Southey listens to Tom Lukiwski.

This week in the House, Tom Lukiwski, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Government House Leader, offered up a 20-Questions-rules defence of International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda. Ms. Oda’s failure to answer questions properly regarding the now-infamous “NOT” led House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken to rule that she may have misled the House.

“Specifically,” as Mr. Lukiwski explained it, the questions that should have been asked were, “Madam Minister, if you did not insert the word ‘not’ and you do not know who did, how did it happen? How did it occur?” If only the right question had been asked, you see, Ms. Oda would have been obliged to say “very clearly,” as no doubt she was dying to do …  “That would have answered everything right there, a pretty simple follow-up question,” Mr. Lukiwski chided. What? Is he going to have to explain the rules to I Spy next?