With Harper off at Newmarket doing pre-budget consultations, but with the news cycle being consumed by the Conservatives on the Senate Internal Economy committee’s reluctance to call that senior partner from Deloitte before them to testify, it was likely to be a day full of non sequiturs delivered by Paul Calandra. Thomas Mulcair started off by asking why the government asked their senators to block the appearance of Michael Runia before them. Paul Calandra responded that they learned that the audit was done without interference. When Mulcair pressed, Calandra immediately turned to the “You sat on a bribe allegation for 17 years!” talking point. Mulcair changed topics, and asked about the report that CSE was conducting intelligence during the G20 in Toronto. Rob Nicholson reminded him that CSE doesn’t have the authorisation to spy on Canadians. When Mulcair asked if they did it anyway, Nicholson reminded him that they couldn’t even ask allies to spy on Canadians. Mulcair tried to tie this in with the ClusterDuff allegations, but Nicholson reminded him that CSE has judicial oversight. Joyce Murray led off for the Liberals, and asked about the suicide of two soldiers connected CFB Shilo and asked what action the minister was taking to address the issue. Nicholson offered the families his condolences and assured her that the Canadian Forces were investigating. Ralph Goodale was up next, and returned to the issue of Runia and Gerstein being blocked from testifying at committee, but Calandra tried to insist that the Liberals defended those three suspended senators. Goodale demanded to know why Gerstein remained chair of the Senate a banking committee, but Calandra continued to insist that the Liberals fought against holding those senators to account.

Round two and Chris Charlton and Françoise Boivin tried again to ask if the PMO wanted their appearance at committee blocked (Clanadra: 17 years!), Ève Péclet brought up the different standards being applied between Wright and Gerstein (Calandra: Duffy claimed inappropriate expenses), Charlie Angus wondered if anyone at PMO has spoken to Gerstein post-convention to contain the damage (Calandra: 17 years!) and was Benjamin Perrin given authorisation by the PM to engage in negotiations (Calandra: Perrin is not under investigation), and Pat Martin asked about the volume of contracts being given to Deloitte and would the Government Operations committee investigate (Dusseault: We’ll see if the motion is in order). Geoff Regan asked if Joe Oliver has confidence in his chief of staff (Calandra: What about Goodale and Brison and the income trust investigation), Stéphane Dion asked if Shelly Glover had confidence in her own chief of staff (Calandra: What about your own benches?) and he returned to the blocked testimony of Runia (Calandra: You are always fighting for your own status quo). Peggy Nash asked about Jim Faherty’s pre-redacted hotel receipts (Saxton: No rules were broken and those were personal expenses not charged to taxpayers), Alexandre Boulerice tried to apply this to the budget (Saxton: No taxpayer money was spent), Rosane Doré Lefebvre and Randall Garrison asked about the lack of adequate minority programming in prisons (Blaney: our correctional services agents do great work!)

Round the saw questions on the approval of generic OxyContin, soldier suicides, more about the NSA allegations from a sovereignty standpoint, the suspension of development in the Ring of Fire in Northern Ontario, Bakken crude being carried across Canadian rails without being properly tested, the rate of First Nations child deaths in government care in Alberta, asking for the restoration of a local canal related to the War of 1812, and EI changes affecting Quebec.

Overall, it was back to particularly debased performances, and to make things worse, Paul Calandra was making backhanded allegations about Thomas Mulcair by equating Duffy’s illegitimate expenses to a supposition that Mulcair might be claiming per diems for his time spent in his residence at Stornoway if he listed his home in Montreal as his primary residence. If that was an accusation — and yes, Muclair has per diems listed in his expenses, but we don’t know for what —then he was certainly doing so under the protection of House privilege, which he certainly would appear to be abusing. Elizabeth May tried to raise a point of order that the government was not supposed dodge questions by asking questions of the opposition in return, but the Speaker declared that he wasn’t going to judge on the quality of answers and let it be. Oh, how desperately we need Westminster’s Speaker Bercow here in Canada…

Sartorially speaking, snaps go out to Candice Bergen for a black and grey patterned dress with an asymmetrical neckline, and to Blaine Calkins for a black suit with a light blue shirt and a pink and blue striped tie. Style citations go out to Bal Gosal for a grey suit with a shirt patterned with thin red stripes, and a maroon tie, and to Paulina Ayala for a tie-dyed tunic with a black suit.