CRTC hits Alberta’s Wildrose Party with $90,000 fine for robocalls in 2011, 2012
Alberta’s Opposition Wildrose Party says it has paid a $90,000 penalty imposed by federal regulators for violating automated phone call rules.
Trudeau’s Liberals hit historic highs as senate scandal has ‘drastic effect’ on Tories: poll
With the Conservatives ensnarled in the biggest political scandal in their seven years in government, a new poll suggests Justin Trudeau’s Liberals are en route to winning a massive majority in the next election.
Rob Ford’s chief of staff out of office as ‘crack video’ scandal swirls
The chief of staff to embattled Mayor Rob Ford was escorted by security from city hall premises Thursday as allegations the mayor had been caught on videotape smoking crack cocaine continued to swirl.
Furious David Christopherson stood and invoked original sin. “Mr. Speaker, on February 17, the Prime Minister answered in the House that: ‘All senators conform to the residency requirements,’ ” the NDP deputy recalled.
Read MoreNew Democrat Craig Scott had a question for the sparsely populated government front bench Thursday during question period. Did it agree with the prime minister that his former chief of staff, Nigel Wright, “was trying to do the right thing”…
Read MoreA bizarre drugs scandal distracts voters from the prime minister’s problems. AS FAMILIES fired up their barbecues to celebrate the Victoria Day long weekend from May 18th-20th, a double helping of juicy political scandal was…
Read MoreConservative Senator David Tkachuk is the chair of the Senate’s internal economy committee and a member of that committee’s steering committee—the two committees involved in the investigation of Senator Mike Duffy’s expenses.
Read MoreThe opposition parties are pushing the government to explain who was behind the decision to edit an original Senate committee report on Senator Mike Duffy’s expenses, and why.
Read MoreThe Prime Minister’s Office contacted two leading Conservatives on the committee overseeing an audit of Sen. Mike Duffy’s expenses, the chairman of the Senate’s internal economy said Thursday. But Sen. David Tkachuk said he was “never directed to do anything” by the PMO.
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Stephen Harper still has time to win back voters from an unconvincing Justin Trudeau
John Ivison — The wave of incredulity that has greeted the Prime Minister’s version of events surrounding the Duffy affair suggests trouble ahead for Conservative hopes of re-election.
What’s going to happen next in the Senate expense scandal? Likely nothing
Andrew Coyne — One part of the media frenzy over the Duffsterbucks affair, if we’re being honest, is that it’s exciting. We’re starved for legitimate scandals in Canada, so when one comes along it’s only natural that everyone gets a little giddy.
Loss of Nigel Wright compounds Stephen Harper’s isolation
Chantal Hébert — Even for a political loner such as Stephen Harper, life at the top is becoming dangerously lonely. Some of that isolation has been on evidence this week as Harper loyalists were hastily conscripted to step into the fray…
Serial breaches of trust will doom the Harper machine
Lawrence Martin — The soft treatment accorded Senator Mike Duffy begins to make more sense with recent revelations. Duffy billed Tory campaigns while campaigning for the party in the 2011 elections. He did this, according to reports, while also receiving…
Harper has now said he knew nothing of Duffy’s $90K. He’s probably telling the truth
John Ivison — It was more mea than culpa but Stephen Harper finally expressed some contrition for the scandal that has engulfed his government. Speaking in Lima, Peru, Mr. Harper said Wednesday he is “very sorry this has occurred … I’m sorry…
Mike Duffy: the man who killed the Senate
Bob Hepburn — Back in 2007, Stephen Harper delivered a formal speech to the Australian Parliament in which he praised that country for its elected Senate. But Harper surprised his Australian hosts when he suggested the Canadian Senate should be…
Stephen Harper keeps his distance from distracting Senate scandal, focuses on the economy
Tom Walkom — Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the Senate scandal is a distraction. He says the real issue is the economy. Let us take him at his word and see what he is doing about this thing called the economy.
Harper’s a realist, and that’s too bad
Gerry Nicholls — All this hubbub surrounding the seemingly never ending Mike Duffy scandal reminds me of a debate I had a few years ago with Prime Minister Stephen Harper. OK, strictly speaking, it wasn’t actually a debate.
PM abdicates responsibility in Duffy fiasco
Robert Asselin — The conventional wisdom in Ottawa these days is that the Mike Duffy story is emblematic of an arrogant, tired government that after more than eight years in power has lost touch with ordinary Canadians.
The Folly of Pipelines in Paradise
Frances Russell — It’s a testament to how barking mad the frenetic pursuit of oil has become that anyone would even contemplate putting pipelines and oil tankers through not just one of the last most beautiful places on the planet, but one of the last most beautiful…
George Jonas — My colleague Andrew Coyne sees no evidence that Senator and former broadcaster Mike Duffy, Canada’s own Falstaff on per diem, was hard up for money. The implication is that if Duffy wasn’t hard up, compassion couldn’t have been Nigel Wright’s…
Read MoreJames Bowden — Responsible Government means that Ministers of the Crown take responsibility for all acts of the Crown and that the Governor acts on, and apart from exceptional circumstances, in accordance with the advice of Ministers. The Ministry must also retain…
Read MoreHugh Segal — Recent reports of a Senate Committee and an outside auditing firm regarding the questionable expense claims of certain senators have resulted in the departure from caucus of three Conservatives and one Liberal senator. The validity…
Read MoreToronto Sun — Mayor Rob Ford needs to say: “I did not smoke crack and if there’s a video that I did, it’s a fabrication.” He needs to say it if he’s going to continue to be mayor in anything more than name.
Read MoreAlan Shanoff — Newspaper has taken a calculated risk in rushing to publish details of allegedly damning video. The most puzzling thing about the video purporting to show Rob Ford smoking crack and the Toronto Star’s coverage thereof is Ford’s apparent…
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The Mix
