Thoughts on BC Politics and More

On a drizzly Monday evening in June, more than 800 Liberal Party donors mingled with 14 cabinet ministers, eight secretaries of state and the prime minister at the Canadian War Museum, enjoying hors d'oeuvres and views of the Ottawa River. The annual Laurier Club Summer Reception and Garden Party is an exclusive event for Liberal supporters who donate the legal maximum of $1,750 to the federal party each year. It is a must-go not just for politicians, but also those hoping to influence them. An IJF analysis has found that dozens of registered lobbyists attended this year’s event, gaining access to cabinet ministers without triggering federal lobbying disclosure rules.   That’s despite the long-standing Liberal pledge to ensure “registered Lobbyists don’t attend ticketed events where they’re registered to lobby the relevant special guest" ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

Just two days after the Liberals won the federal election, executives from companies linked to the new prime minister’s former employer, Brookfield Asset Management, began asking for his help. On April 30, two oil and gas companies owned by Brookfield joined 36 others in signing an open letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney. The group urged him to speed up resource development by easing regulations and fast-tracking approvals ... CLICK HERE for the full story

‘Political grandmaster’ Frank Iacobucci is at the center of SNC Lavalin, Kinder Morgan scandals  The Buffalo Chronicle ~~ March 11, 2019 Frank Iacobucci  is one of the most influential lawyer-lobbyists in all of Canada.  He has been at the crux of the nation’s political, legal, and business communities well before he retired his post as a Supreme Court Justice in 2004. Today he is a partner at  Torys , Bay Street’s whitest-shoe law firm, and is the most statured attorney in the firm’s indigenous law practice. Conservative, Liberal, NDP, PMO, Trans Mountain Pipeline, Suddenly, this week, nearly everyone in Ottawa wants him to testify before the House of Commons’ justice committee regarding his involvement in the SNC Lavalin scandal, following widespread rumors that it was Iacobucci who first insisted that Jody Wilson Raybould be removed as Attorney General.  Iacobucci led SNC-Lavalin ’ s efforts to secure a ‘Deferred Prosecution Ag...

Reading accounts of alleged attempts to interfere with criminal charges against SNC-Lavalin, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s denials of ‘giving any orders’ to the Solicitor General, I could not help but recall Trudeau’s denials following news of his family holiday stay at the Aga Khan’s private island. Trudeau saw no difficulty in accepting a free vacation from a lobbyist who received substantial funding from the government, claiming that family friendship trumped all ethical concerns. The ethics commissioner disagreed . Trudeau has little sense of ethical impropriety. He does business with others as if he has no governance obligations to remain neutral, or to be responsible to the public. 79 meetings with senior government officials and SNC-Lavalin on one issue? Why are lobbyists given apparent open access to government, when members of the public and legitimate public groups can’t get a foot in the door? Why is this heavy-handed influ...