Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Observing two months of SNC-Lavalin scandal has become a tiresome, soul-destroying trek. Make no mistake; this is a full-blown scandal of the sort that destroys governments, political careers and political parties. There is ample evidence that the Prime Minister’s Office engaged in a campaign of coercion and threats to convince the Attorney General to intervene in our independent justice system and give Lavalin an escape from criminal proceedings. When the Attorney General appeared before the Justice Committee and gave evidence of pressure put on her, Michel Wernick and Gerald Butts were called to testify that the Attorney General misinterpreted their efforts and did not understand their intent. Their efforts were aimed at diminishing the Attorney General’s character. The Attorney General countered by producing further evidence to support her testimony which included the recording of a telephone conversation with Michael Wernick. Liberals leapt on the record...

Gerald Butts Gives Justice Committee Notes, Texts About SNC-Lavalin Canadian Press ~~ Huff Post ~~ 03/31/2019 OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's former principal secretary Gerald Butts says he has provided notes and text messages to the House of Commons justice committee in response to evidence filed last week by former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould on the ongoing SNC-Lavalin controversy. In a tweet published today, Butts says he has handed over notes and texts between himself and Wilson-Raybould after having reviewed the materials she submitted last week. CLICK HERE to read full story Why should we care what Gerald Butts has to say? He was a paid clerk in the Prime Minister’s office (PMO) prior to quitting when the Lavalin scandal heated up. He is appointed, not elected and unaccountable to the public. He does the bidding of his employer and is essentially a carrier of water not craftsmen of policy and direc...

Jody Wilson-Raybould remained in caucus after being demoted – until Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the mistake of telling the media that her continued presence in Cabinet, indicated she had not been under pressure from the PMO. She resigned the following day . Wilson-Raybould made a credible presentation to the Commons Justice Committee but avoided revealing all of the evidence she had at hand. Her intent was not to destroy, however, Wernick and Butts followed her presentation and intimated that she was overreacting -- or misunderstood the communications. Wilson-Raybould retaliated with clear evidence of her original assertions, including a voice recording of a conversation she had with . If Wernick and Butts had not attempted a character assassination, the recording would probably not ever have surfaced. Rumours that Wilson-Raybould wrote a 60-page missive to Trudeau asking that Winnipeg Judge Joyal be appointed to the Supreme Court, not just as a j...

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals say, “ everyone has had their say now, time to move on .”    I however, disagree, and I say this because they haven’t.   The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Many of the players in the SNC Lavalin scandal have not been called on to speak and they are still hiding. Also, Jody Wilson-Raybould (Liberal MP for Vancouver -  Granville) has said everything about what she is allowed to address, but she is still muzzled on some topics. Regardless, her introduction of a taped recording between herself and Michael Wernick is incredibly damning proof of the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) interfering in our judicial system. Jody Wilson-Raybould has tried to play nice, to correct the Liberal course, but the gloves are off now ... and she has all the evidence. Secondly .... even if everything was said, we can’t move on until the consequences are done....

In a 17-minute tape release of a conversation Jody Wilson-Raybould had with Privy Council Clerk Michael Wernick, there was absolutely NO DOUBT as to her feelings about being interfered with ... and what she thought of it. On the tape she can be clearly heard stating: “ The principle or integrity of how we act and how we respond to the tools we have available and what we should and shouldn’t do ... I don’t think anyone respects this ... it’s not that they’re not lawful, the perception and what will happen will be deemed political interference from day one when people were talking about ‘why are we entering in to, putting in a DPA ( Deferred Prosecution Agreemen t) regime in place’ ... everybody knows it was because of SNC ... whether that’s true or not, that’s what people will think ” The news broke early this morning and at 8:15am Friday, CBC Katie Simpson was on Twitter with the following comment: BREAKING: Submissions made to the Justice Committee indicat...

Defence lawyers receive heavily censored memo to Trudeau about Mark Norman's case. Murray Brewster ~~ CBC News ~~ Mar 28, 2019 A 60-page memo about Vice-Admiral Mark Norman's breach of trust case — written by the country's top federal bureaucrat to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — has been delivered to Norman's lawyers with its contents almost completely blacked out. Norman's defence team isn't happy with the redaction and plans to fight it in court. The Department of Justice claims the document is subject to solicitor-client privilege and cannot be completely disclosed. Marie Henein, Norman's lead counsel, has alleged political interference in the prosecution of the former head of the navy. Norman is accused of leaking cabinet secrets related to a $668 million shipbuilding deal CLICK HERE to read the full story : What the heck is going on? Media reports last week alleged that Jody Wilson-Ra...

Crown waited 2 years to charge federal procurement official with links to Mark Norman case .   Crown accuses Matthew Matchett and Vice-Admiral Mark Norman of separately leaking cabinet secrets Murray Brewster ~~ CBC News ~~ Mar 19, 2019 A federal procurement official charged with breach of trust was told by the RCMP roughly two years ago that he also was a suspect in the same investigation into the alleged leaking of cabinet secrets which had ensnared . Matthew Matchett's lawyer, Matthew Day, revealed that fact in court Tuesday as a date for a preliminary hearing was set in an Ontario Court of Justice. Marchett was charged with one count of breach of trust on Feb. 13, while Norman, the former commander of the navy, also faces one count of breach of trust and was charged in April 2018. Day tore a strip off the Crown saying his client has yet to see all of the evidence gathered against him despite the time it ...

Wilson-Raybould directive to Justice Department staff raises alarm ... instructed Justice Department lawyers not to aggressively fight claims brought by Indigenous groups against the federal government By Brian Giesbrecht ~~ Frontier Centre for Public Policy ~~ March 20, 2019 Since former Justice minister and attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould’s dramatic testimony before a committee of the House of Commons, followed by the testimony of Gerald Butts and Michael Wernick, much attention has been paid to SNC-Lavalin and the questionable behaviour of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Mostly missed were the last words of Privy Council clerk Michael Wernick’s prepared opening statement to the same Justice committee. ... Wernick’s surprising disclosure raises immediate concern with respect to the recent Restoule treaties annuities case in Ontario. That case ended in a decision that will, if not upset on appeal, eventually cost taxpayers billions of dollars. ...

Michael Wernick to step down as clerk of Privy Council, cites lack of 'mutual trust' with opposition.   Wernick writes: 'The clerk (must) be seen by all political parties as an impartial arbiter' Catharine Tunney ~~ CBC News ~~ Mar 18, 2019 In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announcing his retirement, Wernick wrote that "recent events have led me to conclude that I cannot serve as clerk of the Privy Council and secretary to cabinet during the upcoming election campaign." CLICK HERE for the full story :  This arrogant, condescending, dishonest piece of elitist ego is not an asset to the civil service, government or Canada. Wernick is correct – the Clerk of the Privy council must be neutral, non-political and trusted by all parties and Members of Parliament – and report to the Governor General, not to the Prime Minister. Constitution Sections 9 and 11 are clear: