Roundup: Not offering excuses

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Justin Trudeau has been making the media rounds over the past few days, and some of the highlights of yesterday’s interviews were how he warned the now-former Italian prime minister that referendums were a bad idea because they give people a licence to lash out at institutions – and they did in that case, and said PM resigned. He also spoke about his “friendly-ish” phone conversation with Donald Trump, the inedible lunch served at a Paris climate conference event, and that he hasn’t yet decided if RCAF001 will be replaced anytime soon. And then there are the fundraising questions. His response was that he’s followed all of the rules, and that this hysteria (my word, not his) is largely a result of opposition and media frenzy than anything substantive. And he’s not really wrong.

And as if summoned, former advisor to Stephen Harper, Tom Flanagan, appeared in the Globe and Mail to remind everyone that these kinds of fundraisers are the exact same thing that Harper and company did when they were in office. The problem, of course, is that Trudeau promised not to have the “appearance” of conflict, but I always bring it back to defining what the appearance is, because I am still waiting for any evidence that would lead one to actually think there is an appearance of conflict and I remain unconvinced. Indeed, when the Globe came out with yesterday’s screaming headline that Liberal donors were invited to a dinner for the Chinese premier, I’m not seeing any evidence that they were invited solely because they were donors – indeed, most of the names highlighted seemed to be invited because they have business interests with China than there being proof of quid pro quo. And as someone else pointed out on Twitter, did anyone thought to compare how many of the people that Stephen Harper took on his trip to Israel were Conservative donors? Or do they not count because when Stephen Harper rode into power in 2006 on the white horse of accountability that he didn’t make the promise of “appearance” of conflict that is being generously interpreted? Have we not finished hoisting Trudeau on his own petard long enough, or do we need to go full Yellow Peril with all of the insinuations about Chinese connections, while continuing to poison the well when it comes to our faith in political institutions?

Good reads:

  • Bill Morneau says that he might have more money for home care and mental healthcare – if the provinces come to an agreement on Monday.
  • Patty Hajdu approved the renovation of a suite of offices to be with the rest of the department rather than with Canadian Heritage, and now there’s cheap outrage.
  • Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson’s term has been extended by six months while the government searches for a replacement.
  • The Canadian Forces are looking to overhaul their cyber defences.
  • It’s taking a long time to overhaul the military release system, in part because the previous government under-resourced it in an attempt to cut down on bureaucracy.
  • It looks like Shared Services Canada turned down lower-cost options for their single-page web portal project that has now gone off the rails.
  • Some executives involved with the Phoenix pay debacle are still getting performance bonuses, but apparently for other responsibilities.
  • The Canadian Press’ Baloney Meter™ looks at Christy Clark’s assertion that people in BC will pay higher carbon fees than those in other provinces.
  • Conservative leadership also-ran Rick Peterson says that other leadership candidates should reimburse taxpayers for missed votes.
  • Kevin O’Leary says that he would have voted for Donald Trump, that he’s not looking to demolish the CBC, and that he’ll step into the race when it narrows.
  • Susan Delacourt reads the political metaphors into Ottawa’s Year of Construction™.
  • Paul Wells warns that a government interested in “deliverology” is on the verge of looking like they’ve accomplished nothing.

Odds and ends:

While the Press Gallery is shrinking, the gender balance is starting to tip toward more women. More diversity remains an issue, however.

Prince Charles brought a group of Inuit leaders to Wales to learn how the principality revitalized their almost-extinct language.