Roundup: Farewells and self-awareness

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With 54 MPs not running again in the next election, we’re hearing a lot of teary farewells, and a number of them talking about their regrets for all kinds of things, particularly about some of the nastiness and the more toxic aspects of their career in politics. It’s more of what we saw in the Samara Canada series of exit interviews with MPs from previous parliaments, which culminated in the book Tragedy in the Commons, where MPs all bemoaned how terrible it was, and how the parties controlled everything, and how everyone else was nasty and partisan (but not them – even when you pointed to examples where they were engaging in that behaviour). What strikes me is that pretty much no MP you’ll speak to will take any responsibility for their own actions, whether it’s boorish partisan behaviour, letting the leader’s office dictate to them, or as is now commonplace, dutifully reading the scripts that are placed in front of them with no critical capacity to say no, I won’t demean myself in this way. (The obvious exception to all of this is Irwin Cotler, who has been a pretty exemplary class act throughout his time as a parliamentarian, but for pretty much everyone else this applies). When we listen to MPs get all teary and expressing their regrets, we should start asking them why they didn’t do something differently. And that’s really it – we elect MPs directly under our electoral system, and that empowers them to be the masters of their own destiny within the Commons (with the obvious exception of whips on things like confidence votes). They don’t need the Reform Act for things to change – they just need to take responsibility for their own behaviour and act like grown-ups. Sadly, the vast majority don’t and then blame everyone else, which is a sad state of affairs.

Good reads:

  • The Duffy Trial completed Act Two, with even the judge getting snappish, and won’t be back until August, where Nigel Wright will be first up on the stand.
  • A Senate study on CBSA wants all foreign nationals documented upon entry, and more civilian oversight of the agency.
  • The government is hosting a big showcase for the delivery of new Cyclone helicopters today, but they may not have powerful enough engines. Of course.
  • While Senator Meredith’s case is being referred to the ethics officer and his colleagues demand he step down, those who have vetted Senate appointments say it’s harder than it looks (though I’m not sure this PM was very thorough).
  • Justin Trudeau is taking aim at Mulcair’s “centralising” approach (while his full Q&A with Postmedia is here).
  • The Canadian Press’ Baloney Meter™ tests the notion that a CPP expansion would be a payroll tax.
  • Kate Heartfield disputes the concerns about “merit” in a gender-parity cabinet.

Odds and ends:

A dispute over travel expenses within the CRTC is turning ugly.

Senator Johnson has repaid her flagged expenses despite her legitimate disagreements with the AG and the fact that she had a very good case for arbitration.

“John schools” operating under the new prostitution laws are running in partnership with the Salvation Army for $550 per attendee.