Roundup: Hussen nets yet another self-inflicted wound

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This government continues its habit of own-goals and an inability to communicate their way out of a wet paper bag, and in this week’s episode, we find Ahmed Hussen not properly addressing the fact that the government apparently didn’t properly vet a supposed “anti-racism training” contractor, and lo, he turned out to have a history of making antisemitic comments over social media. But in his statement, Hussen a) doesn’t name the individual, and b) doesn’t say what “working to rectify the matter” means. Have they terminated the contract? Are they going to report on why due diligence was not done? Is there going to be some kind of accountability to be had for this colossal cock-up? Because from this kind of bland statement, I’m not seeing responsibility, accountability, or a recognition that this wasn’t being taken seriously enough in the first place.

To pour gasoline on this self-inflicted fire is the fact that this just gives ammunition to Pierre Poilievre and other Conservatives, who while consorting with far-right extremists, insist that it’s the Liberals who are the real racists because Justin Trudeau did Blackface. In fact, Poilievre did just that over the weekend. And the Liberals keep giving him the ammunition to do so, because they don’t seem to have enough adult supervision in what they’re doing. This is a problem that they can’t seem to get a handle on, seven years later. I’m not saying any of the other parties will be any better, but wow. It’s not really an encouraging sign about government capacity in this country.

https://twitter.com/davidakin/status/1561126969097555969

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 179:

More Ukrainian drones have been in the airspace over Russian-occupied Crimea, which some analysts stay is showing the weakness of Russia’s position there. Ukraine also made airstrikes over the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol, near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. Russia forces have been shelling the southern city of Voznesensk, while intensifying combat around Bakhmut in the country’s east. In related news, a suspected car bomb killed the daughter of one of Putin’s closest advisors, but nobody has claimed responsibility, though this will likely ratchet up tensions in the conflict.

Good reads:

  • Novavax still hasn’t produced any vaccines at the new NRC facility in Montreal because these things have a longer timeline than they initially promised.
  • The CBC delves into the issue of privatising healthcare, and why it may not be a solution to ease pressure based on how it works in other countries.
  • The UK has cut off thousands of its pensioners in Canada for reasons that don’t add up, and refuse to pro-rate them without an agreement Canada has offered to enter.
  • Questions are circulating about the post-leadership days for the Conservatives, as a lot of staff has fled for Queen’s Park, and some MPs won’t want to stay on.
  • Chantal Hébert notes the Conservative leadership candidates’ antipathy to climate policies, and why that is increasingly a losing proposition to most voters.
  • Jason Markusoff reminds us that leadership campaigns are about the motivated base, not the general public, as the UCP campaign demonstrates utterly.
  • My weekend column points out why Doug Ford’s plan to “stabilize” the healthcare system in Ontario is deeply unserious from the very start.

Odds and ends:

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One thought on “Roundup: Hussen nets yet another self-inflicted wound”

  1. This is bothsidesism. What the activist said was unequivocally wrong but Hussen didn’t hire him; it was an arm’s length agency given leeway to make its own decisions, so it would appear that the oversight in whatever department that was supposed to report to the minister fell asleep at the switch.

    The difference is Hussen apologized and made a commitment to rooting this stuff out, and that no one seriously believes the Liberals *actively court* these people. Just like Trudeau’s yearbook: he was forgiven because it was off brand and because the Liberals don’t engage in deliberate and willful outreach to the worst elements of society. The same will happen with Hussen. Neither he nor anyone else in the Liberal party makes it a point to assemble *racists who want to overthrow the government* as the core of their, dare I say it, deplorable base.

    For the LPC, it’s an error. For the CPC, just like the GOP, it’s a feature rather than a bug.

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