When it comes to the issue of sexual misconduct in the Canadian Forces, there seems to be an epidemic of a lack of self-awareness. This is demonstrated time and again within the ranks as officers are given inappropriate promotions (remember the head of personnel who had known sexual misconduct allegations), are protected by the top brass (General Jonathan Vance, the infamous golf game earlier in the year), and the issue with Major-General Peter Dawe being given the role of sorting through the various reports on reforming military culture after he was suspended for writing the glowing letter for someone under his command who had been convicted of sexual assault. Every time, this has to be pointed out to them and how inappropriate their actions continue to be.

But it’s not just the ranks that lack self-awareness – it’s also their political masters. During a media availability yesterday, both prime minister Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland also had harsh words for the military’s inability to exercise self-awareness on the sexual misconduct file – but they have a role to play there as well, because in a democracy like ours, the military answers to civilian control. In our particular system, that should be going through the Chief of Defence Staff to the Minister of National Defence – but the current minister, Harjit Sajjan, has made it clear that he is not exercising his responsibility for civilian control, and is not properly overseeing the CDS, or his top decisions. Part of this may be because he is former military (he was actually active when he was elected and needed to go through the discharge process so that the CDS could no longer outrank him), and is steeped in the culture and cannot adequately see the reality of what is going on, or why he needs to exercise civilian control. And no, I’m not sure it was any better under the previous government either, who also appointed a former general to Minister of Defence (Gordon O’Connor), and generally let the military run their own show – especially with procurement, which is why there were so many botched files, from the F-35 to joint supply ships.

@MeganhMackenzie is dead-on. The crisis in civilian control of the military is worse than I had thought as the civilians (PMJT, MND Sajjan) abdicate all responsibility.

— Steve Saideman (@smsaideman) October 7, 2021

We need to re-assert civilian control by means of a competent minister who doesn’t have a military background, and someone who can actually perform some managerial competence and keep the CDS on a tight leash. But that may depend on Trudeau having enough self-awareness of his own recognise that this is what needs to happen as he decides on how to shuffle his Cabinet, and I’m losing confidence that this could actually happen.

Good reads:

• Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland announced the formal vaccine mandate for federal civil servants, as well as for domestic air and rail travellers.
• Trudeau also apologised for travelling to Tofino on the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, calling it a “mistake” but offering no explanation.
• Super low interest rates could impact the federal government’s ability to issue long-term bonds.
• Maclean’s has a longread about the strange cluster of neurodegenerative disease that has appeared in eastern New Brunswick.
• The Hill Times talks to some defeated MPs and how they are coping with the loss.
• The Liberals have reclaimed one lost seat in Quebec after a judicial recount.
• An enthusiastic Conservative volunteer has been charged with triple homicide in Trinidad and Tobago, and the party has been distancing themselves ever since.
• The NDP held their first caucus meeting yesterday, and Jagmeet Singh have a speech that talked about holding Liberals to their promises.
• Annamie Paul’s assistant is disputing some of Elizabeth May’s claims, including that May offered her seat to Paul.
• Heather Scoffield considers the proposal by a group of senators to raise the GST until the debt-to-GDP ratio comes down, but sees another avenue for revenue.
• Althia Raj looks at how vaccine politics will continue as Parliament is recalled, as the Conservatives continue to refuse to disclose how many of their MPs are vaccinated.
• Colby Cosh calls out the unique America awfulness of rogue MPP Randy Hillier’s call for members of Queen’s Park to be literally tarred and feathered.

Odds and ends:

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