Which part of the Bible covers jet fighter procurement?

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, February 9, 2012 at 4:27 PM - 0 Comments

Julian Fantino, the associate minister of defence, responding this afternoon to questions from the NDP.

Mr. Speaker, that premise is absolutely false. The member opposite is referring to a failed NDP candidate who wrote this report, critical of everything that is holy and decent about this government’s efforts to provide our military men and women with the resources that…

The report referred to was authored by Michael Byers (a former NDP candidate) and Stewart Webb.

You remain free to move about the House

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, February 9, 2012 at 1:55 PM - 0 Comments

Private Members’ Bill C-306, which would have forced MPs to run in a by-election before switching party allegiance, was defeated last night by a count 181-91.

The vote broke along party lines—New Democrats voting in favour; Conservatives, Liberals, the four Bloc MPs and Elizabeth May voting against—save for three exceptions. Conservative MPs James Bezan, Blake Richards and Brad Trost voted in favour.

The Commons: Starring Vic Toews as Kurt Russell

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 6:54 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. After offering a general appeal for clarity from the government—”What is happening on your side?” she begged—Nycole Turmel narrowed her complaint to a specific article of speech. In this case, a conjunction.

“Yesterday, the Minister of Public Safety said ‘information obtained by torture is always discounted. However…’ What does he mean by ‘however?’ she asked. “There is no ‘however.’ There is no ‘but.’ Torture is either condoned or it is not. Which is it? No ‘however.’ No ‘if.’ No ‘but.’ ”

Rising as today’s stand-in prime minister, Peter MacKay offered a perfectly straightforward response that entirely avoided the question. “But! But!” the New Democrat side mocked. “But! But!”

Ms. Turmel tried again, this time en français. Mr. MacKay did likewise. “Mais!” the New Democrats chirped. “Mais!”

Switching to English and stepping forward, the Defence Minister attempted to put this all in perspective. Or possibly to read aloud from a script he’d recently submitted to television producers. Continue…

Touché

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 9:06 AM - 0 Comments

Under questioning again yesterday about the purchase of F-35 fighter jets, Julian Fantino offered the following in response to the NDP’s Christine Moore.

The one thing that should be stated in the House is for NDP members to state categorically that they do not support our military, that they do not support our men and women, that they do not support our airmen and women. That is really the theme here.

After QP, Ms. Moore rose on a point of order.

Mr. Speaker, during question period, in response to my question, the Associate Minister of National Defence said that I do not care about the well-being of the Canadian armed forces. I would like to inform the minister that I served in the Canadian armed forces for three years and I can honestly say that I care a great deal. I would like to offer him the opportunity to withdraw his comments.

Ms. Moore apparently served as a physician assistant.

The Commons: The government’s tortured answers on torture

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 6:30 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. In an obvious attempt to find common ground with his Conservative counterparts, Jack Harris appealed to the ideals of the free market.

“As long as there is a market for information derived from torture,” he posited, “torture will exist.”

Mr. Harris’ concern this day was the government’s quiet decision to allow for the use of information potentially obtained through torture. This after publicly renouncing the suggestion that it was operating under any such policy.

“Why,” the NDP critic wondered, “is the government getting Canada into the torture business?” Continue…

Ask a simple question

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 1:33 PM - 0 Comments

The NDP persisted yesterday in asking straightforward questions of the government.

Will the Conservatives change the eligibility age for old age security? Will the age increase from 65 to 67, yes or no?

Will the eligibility age for OAS benefits increase from 65 to 67? Yes or no? When will this measure go into effect?

Bob Rae then added one of his own.

I would like to ask the government today if it could at least make a commitment that none of these changes that it is talking about will take place until after 2015, so, at the very least, Canadians will have an opportunity to vote on the changes being imposed on them by the government.

In response, Diane Finley offered only that “anyone who is young enough, like myself, or people younger than I, will have time to adjust their plans for their own retirement.” Ms. Finley is presently 54 years old. She turns 55 in October.

Iraq v. Iran

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 8:30 AM - 0 Comments

In his chat with Postmedia last week, the Prime Minister was directly asked about how the justifications for war in Iraq compare to the justifications for war with Iran.

Postmedia: In 2003, you supported the invasion of Iraq based on stopping them getting weapons of mass destruction. Does the same logic apply with Iran?

Harper: In fairness, the two cases are not exactly similar — I think there was more to the case in Iraq than simply the threat of weapons of mass destruction. But that said, obviously the intelligence was flawed in that case and there was considerable debate around that at the time. I don’t think there’s much debate today among informed people about Iran’s intentions and Iran’s systematic progress toward attaining nuclear weapons.

For the sake of comparison, here is how Mr. Harper justified the invasion of Iraq in his famously plagiarized speech to the House in 2003. Continue…

The Commons: When photo ops go wrong

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, February 6, 2012 at 7:40 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. “Louder!” called a voice, possibly from the Conservative side of the House.

Peter Julian, already speaking at a certain volume, attempted to oblige, punctuating his question with exclamation points.

“When(!) is the government going to show leadership? When is it going to work on a jobs plan so that Canadians(!) can get back to work?

The subject here was the recent closure of Electro-Motive Diesel in London, Ontario—a closure notable not only for the 450 individuals it put out of work, but because the plant was once selected as an ideal scene to demonstrate the Prime Minister’s economic stewardship. And so a silly picture of Mr. Harper pretending to conduct a train is now a symbol of some kind. And so Mr. Julian was yelling this afternoon in the general direction of the Finance Minister. Continue…

Who gets to pay tribute to Vaclav Havel

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, February 6, 2012 at 3:39 PM - 0 Comments

In November, Elizabeth May was twice denied the House’s consent to mark Remembrance Day. This afternoon she was apparently denied an opportunity to join the Conservatives, New Democrats and Liberals in honouring Vaclav Havel. Justin Trudeau is unimpressed.

Conservatives just refused to let party leader @ElizabethMay rise to pay tribute to Vaclav Havel. He was a champion of free speech. #irony

Update 5:23pm. Here is the video (such as it is) of the incident. Citing an anonymous MP, Ms. May says Government House leader Peter Van Loan was one of those who spoke up to deny her consent. I emailed Mr. Van Loan’s office to ask if he had indeed spoken up. In response, I received only a copy of text of the standing order that applies in such situations. I restated my original question and will update this post if or when I hear back.

Update 7:03pm. Still waiting to hear back from Mr. Van Loan’s office. In the meantime, here is the statement Ms. May says she would have delivered. Continue…

‘Don’t accept any law that says some human beings are not human beings’

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, February 6, 2012 at 12:37 PM - 0 Comments

In keeping with his campaign to start a national discussion, Conservative MP Stephen Woodworth has tabled a motion that would see a special committee of Parliament created to study Section 223(1) of the Criminal Code, which defines when a human being becomes a human being. Justice Minister Rob Nicholson has already responded with a two-sentence statement.

“Private Members motions are considered in accordance with the rules of Parliament. The Prime Minister has been very clear, our Government will not reopen this debate.”

Below, the prepared text of Mr. Woodworth’s remarks this morning to reporters. Continue…

Ask a simple question

By Aaron Wherry - Friday, February 3, 2012 at 8:38 AM - 0 Comments

Here are four of the first five questions asked by the NDP yesterday afternoon.

Will he rise in his seat and say to the country that the age of eligibility for OAS will not be raised to age 67, yes or no?

Will he raise OAS eligibility to 67 years, yes or no?

There is enough money for tax gifts for large corporations, but now seniors will have to wait until the age of 67 to get their $540 a month? Yes or no?

Is the eligibility age going to increase to 67, yes or no?

None of those questions received straight answers. The House did though spend the day discussing the pension system and Old Age Security—starting here, resuming here. For whatever it might foretell or explain, Diane Finley’s speech on behalf of the government is here.

The Finance Minister seems intent on doing something. A poll conducted by Ipsos Reid found 74% disapproved of raising the eligibility age to 67.

The Commons: Good help is hard to find

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, February 2, 2012 at 5:26 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. Seated almost directly across the aisle from his opposition critic, Jason Kenney shook his head as the NDP’s Don Davies read the indictment.

“Mr. Speaker, just last month the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism told Canadians how solemn he thought our citizenship ceremonies are, and they are indeed serious occasions,” Mr. Davies recalled. “Now, however, we learn that his office is fine just faking it. It was his office that arranged to have employees pose as fake new citizens in a made-up ceremony for a misleading news conference. Can the minister explain why he forced government employees to pose as fake new citizens and mislead Canadians?”

However fake the display, Mr. Kenney was quite sure his responsibility had been overstated here.

“Mr. Speaker, that is completely untrue. The only misleading going on is coming from that member,” the Immigration Minister scolded. “Every year CIC officials do a good job organizing special citizenship and reaffirmation ceremonies across the country including sometimes in studio televised ceremonies to raise the profile of citizenship. Today, I became aware that one small reaffirmation ceremony last year had logistical problems that were poorly dealt with—”

The opposition side descended into laughter and even a little desk thumping (it being hard, one supposes, to slap one’s knee when seated at a desk). Continue…

‘The science is clear’

By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, February 2, 2012 at 4:25 PM - 0 Comments

Picking up where questions on Monday and Tuesday had failed to receive a straightforward answer, Megan Leslie tried again this afternoon to clarify Joe Oliver’s views on climate change. Here’s how that went.

Megan Leslie: Monsieur le Président, hier j’ai donné un break au ministre des Ressources naturelles afin qu’il prenne le temps de penser à ses réponses. On ne sait toujours pas si le ministre se range dans le camp des radicaux qui nient l’existence des changements climatiques ou s’il accepte le fait que la science explique les changements climatiques. Alors, qu’en est-il? Est-ce que le ministre croit à la science des changements climatiques, oui ou non?

Joe Oliver: Mr. Speaker, the member opposite gave me a break because I was not here. The science is clear that human beings cause global warming. Our government has shown its support with investments of over $10 billion to support a cleaner environment and fight climate change through innovation. What I do not believe in is the NDPs ideologically driven Luddite battle against thousands of jobs in Canada. Does the NDP want to deny Canadian families jobs and a secure future, yes or no?

Continue…

The Commons: The Russians are coming for our pensions

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, February 1, 2012 at 5:52 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. “Oui ou non?” Nycole Turmel demanded. “Oui ou non?”

Will the Prime Minister be cutting Old Age Security benefits, she asked, yes or no? Will the age of eligibility be raised to 67, she wondered, yes or no?

“We want an answer,” she concluded.

In response, the Prime Minister had two answers. “Mr. Speaker, I was very clear. This government will not cut benefits for our seniors. I am very clear,” he declared. “At the same time, we will protect the system for generations to come.”

After jetting off to Switzerland and standing proudly before the global elite and bragging of his stewardship and boasting of “major transformations” to come, the Prime Minister seems suddenly shy. It is as if,  having scaled the rhetorical heights, he was suddenly reminded why he generally avoids high places. And so now he is attempting to stall, perhaps even soothe, with a sleight of hand. Continue…

Boisvenu on convicted murderers: give them a rope

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, February 1, 2012 at 1:14 PM - 0 Comments

Senator Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu has some ideas on reducing prison expenses.

“Basically, every killer should (have) the right to his own rope in his cell. They can decide whether to live,” Sen. Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu told reporters Wednesday.

A victims’ rights advocate and now a senator, Boisvenu also says the death penalty should be considered in certain cases when there’s no hope of rehabilitation. He says limited use of capital punishment could save money. He cited the case of the Shafias — the Montrealers who were convicted this week of killing four female family members. Boisvenu estimates that it will cost Canadian taxpayers $10 million to keep them locked up.

In the case of the Shafias, Mr. Boisvenu apparently said “returning them to their country might be a tougher sentence than to keep them here, where our prisons are a lot more comfortable.”

Update 3:46pm. A statement (en francais) from Mr. Boisvenu. Continue…

The first rule of party discipline

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, February 1, 2012 at 10:30 AM - 0 Comments

The Star-Phoenix seems to be having some trouble finding anyone in the Harper government or Conservative party to respond to Brad Trost’s comments.

Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar MP Kelly Block, who serves as Saskatchewan caucus chair, would “not have any comments,” one of her staff said Tuesday. Block’s staff member referred questions to the government whip, Conservative MP Gordon O’Connor. “It’s jam-packed. I’ll see if there’s anything we can do,” an official in O’Connor’s office said Tuesday morning, but did not call back.

A spokesperson in Harper’s office took a message Tuesday, but no one returned the call. Messages to the media line at the Conservative Party of Canada’s office in Ottawa went unreturned Monday afternoon and Tuesday.

Mr. Trost expands on his concerns in an interview with the Star. The Star-Phoenix editorial board cheers him on.

The debate’s not over

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, February 1, 2012 at 8:30 AM - 0 Comments

The Conservatives have moved to limit the pension debate as it pertains to the government’s own legislation, but the House will now spend Thursday debating the following NDP motion.

That this House rejects calls by the Prime Minister to balance the Conservative deficit on the backs of Canada’s seniors by means such as raising the age of eligibility for Old Age Security and calls on the government to make the reduction and eventual elimination of seniors’ poverty a cornerstone of the next budget.

Separately, Liberal backbencher Sean Casey has tabled a private members’ motion that the Liberals figure will come up for debate in March. Continue…

The Commons: The case of actions v. words

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 6:33 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. “Mr. Speaker, once again, I think the government has been repeatedly clear when it comes to retirement income, such as old age security,” the Prime Minister clarified.

And on that note, his second sentence. ”We have no intention,” he said, “of changing any benefits.”

Clearly. At least so far as those with no short term memory could be concerned. For the rest of those listening, there was what the government had sent up Wai Young to say no more than 90 seconds earlier. ”We will implement any changes fairly,” the dutiful backbencher reassured the House with the last intervention before Question Period, “allowing lots of time for notice and time to adjust.”

So the government has no intention of making changes. But if—for whatever reason—it should be struck with such intent sometime between now and the tabling of this spring’s budget, you are to be assured that those changes will be implemented fairly. Indeed, even with these changes existing only in the theoretical, the government presently lacking even the intent to make them, Ms. Young managed today to congratulate her side for having had the courage to change. “In fact,” she reported, “the National Post gets it with its front page headline today, ‘Tories on the right side of pension reform.’ ”

Continue…

Yes or no?

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 4:19 PM - 0 Comments

Megan Leslie didn’t get an answer from Joe Oliver yesterday, so she asked him again this afternoon to clarify his understanding of climate change. And then she asked him again. And then she asked him again. Here’s how that went.

Megan Leslie: Surely the minister knows the basics of his file and he must know that hydrocarbons are a leading cause of climate change. So can the minister tell us if he agrees with the scientific link between hydrocarbons and climate change, yes or no?

Joe Oliver: Mr. Speaker, what I said yesterday, as the government’s policy, is that we will only approve projects that are safe for Canadians and for the environment. We are in favour of projects which will create jobs and economic activity and which will be nation builders for Canadians right across this country, from coast to coast to coast.

Continue…

‘You cannot trust these wolves’

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 2:05 PM - 0 Comments

After deigning to tolerate a day of discussion yesterday on its pooled pension legislation, the government side voted this morning to put a limit on debate. They did not though move quite fast enough to deny Bob Rae the opportunity to do as he does.

Brad Trost Maverick Watch

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 10:18 AM - 0 Comments

The Conservative backbencher deviates from the script.

In a recent commentary aired on News Talk 650 CKOM, Trost said other western democracies such as Britain and the United States are mature enough to have more vigorous debates within parties. “Contrast that to Canada, where party discipline is ironclad,” Trost said. “If everyone in a party thinks the same on every issue, not a lot of thinking is going on.”

… Trost said he admires politicians of all stripes who have voted according to their conscience or the will of residents in their ridings, rather than blindly following the national party line. “We need to have a cultural change. I think it would relax everybody,” Trost said. “The (party) whip needs to have less authority over members.”

At least for those who disagree with his views on abortion, Mr. Trust is becoming a fun test of democratic principles.

See previously: The meaning of Brad Trost

The Commons: Having it both ways

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, January 30, 2012 at 6:28 PM - 0 Comments

The Scene. For the benefit of the House, Nycole Turmel relayed what she’d taken from what the Prime Minister said last week when he was some 6,264 kilometres from here.

“Mr. Speaker, Canadians are bracing themselves for the deepest round of cuts since Paul Martin, cuts to services Canadians need, like the OAS and EI,” she offered.

Members of the government side audibly whined at this reference to the previous prime minister.

“These cuts will hurt people, hurt seniors, hurt jobs and hurt our communities,” Ms. Turmel continued. “When will the Prime Minister tell Canadians the bad news, on his next trip to Switzerland or somewhere else in the world?”

Last week, so far away from this place, the Prime Minister had been full of dramatic phrasing. “Major transformations,” he said. Demographics posed a “threat” to that which we “cherished.” The deep holes of Europe and the United States threatened to grow deeper. The very future of our society hung in the proverbial balance. Continue…

Do you believe?

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, January 30, 2012 at 4:37 PM - 0 Comments

Megan Leslie’s second question for the Natural Resources Minister this afternoon.

Mr. Speaker, we really do have a minister for the 19th century because the Minister of Natural Resources fails to understand the impact of Conservative inaction on jobs, on the environment and on future generations. Instead, he attacks people who actually care about the environment. It makes me wonder if the minister actually believes in climate change. Is the minister a believer or a denier?

Joe Oliver said—”since we are into theology”—that he wished to inform the House that he believed “no project in Canada should go ahead unless it is safe for Canadians and safe for the environment. He proceeded with his complaints about “radicals” who are “are opposed to any development of hydrocarbons,” none of which seemed to answer Ms. Leslie’s question.

See previously: Pop quiz

Back to business

By Aaron Wherry - Monday, January 30, 2012 at 9:30 AM - 0 Comments

The House of Commons reconvenes this morning at 11am. First to be debated is John Carmichael’s bill on displaying the Canadian flag and an hour later the House will move to the government’s legislation on pooled pension plans.

Third reading of the government’s bill to eliminate the long-gun registry was apparently scheduled to take place today, but the government has apparently opted to put that off.