Damning with faint praise

As reported here (Report on Business), Dale Orr of IHS Global Insight Canada says Jim Flaherty "is certainly the best person in the Conservative cabinet to be the finance minister."

But wait, before we hang up that particular banner, what does the rest of the article say?

"Mr. Flaherty and the Conservatives should have taken better precautions against a deficit, noting they cut some rainy-day cushions and drove program spending up 13.8 per cent in their first two years."

"...he went too far in partisan attacks on Ontario's Liberal government and suggested Canada's most populous province was the "last place to invest" for business."

"...hard to find an economist who supports the Conservatives' decision to forgo $11-billion of annual revenue and cut the goods and services tax by two points..."

"It will also be the first time Ottawa has slid into the red from a surplus since 1970-1971."

"saw him fumble the relationship with Bay Street over a bid to end the tax deductibility of interest from foreign expansions, and underperform in selling a controversial equalization deal to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland."

"...he was removed from steering roles on two key agenda-setting cabinet committees."

And he's the "best person in the Conservative cabinet" to get us through this mess? We are in deep trouble my friends.

You were elected ... we trust you.

With all the to-ing and fro-ing (ins-and-outs as it were – nudge, nudge, wink, wink) of l’affaire Bernier-Couillard, one key point has to be made. All those MPs who are screaming that a security check on Mlle Couillard should have been done, are conveniently overlooking the fact that none of their own spouses or significant others was ever subject to a security check.

According to CTV News, the ONLY check done on elected members of parliament (including Cabinet Ministers) is a police background check. That means they’re checked out only to determine if they have a criminal record or are facing financial difficulties that may be compromising. That’s it. Neither they nor any members of their families are investigated by the RCMP or CSIS as is the normal practice for any senior civil servants.

So there it is. The people who have access to, and in fact produce, some of the most sensitive secrets this country has, are not security vetted.

This is not new - it's always been that way - but perhaps it's time our elected representatives are held to the same standard as those they manage. Or those they would criticize.

So if I give you $20K and you give it right back, I can get how much of a rebate?

So here we go again, except it’s now surveys and polling.

If I understand this latest elections financing scheme by the CPC, it looks like this:

1. Riding X sends party headquarters $20,000, which is then recorded on their local riding books as an expense for surveys and polling.
2. Riding X then reports that $20,000 “expense” to Elections Canada, for which it then gets a $12,000 rebate from the taxpayer (60% rebate if they got 10% of the vote).
3. Party headquarters then sends the riding’s $20,000 back to them.
4. Net gain to party: $12,000.
5. Net loss to taxpayers: $12,000.

Multiply that by the 50 or so ridings that supposedly participated and we’re in the area of a half-million bucks that, if the allegations are correct, have been taken out of taxpayer’s pockets for the enrichment of the Conservative Party of Canada. And that’s without considering any taxpayer rebate that might have been paid to the national party for the same surveys and polling expenses.

While I personally will miss seeing Pierre Poilievre stumble and bumble his way around this particular minefield, Elections Canada needs to pull out all the stops to get to the bottom of all these election funding allegations as quickly as possible and either deal with it themselves or pass the file on to law enforcement and the courts for legal action. As long as the CPC remains under investigation, they will use whatever political spin and posturing they can to bring Elections Canada’s own judgement and impartiality into question. That cannot continue for long before the credibility of the very organization that is responsible for a fair and transparent elections process in this country becomes irreparably damaged itself.

But... But... But the Liberals were worse.

I recently had a discussion with an acquaintance of the True Blue variety (and I’m not referring to a Maple Leafs fan) and the subject of the ever-increasing litany of Conservative misdeeds, missteps, alleged illegalities, and outright lies came up. (Okay. I admit it. I, kind of gloatingly, happened to toss the old in-and-out scheme into what had previously been quite a nice conversation. Hoowee!)

The immediate response, right from the Cons own playbook, was, “Yeah, but the Liberals were worse.”

Okay. I’ll admit it. By some (but not all) measuring sticks, the Liberals were worse. But using that tired old attack approach misses the key point in all of this, which is the Harper Cons got elected in large part because of their promise to be more open and accountable. They set themselves up as Mr. Clean on steroids. Their new government was going to be better and cleaner and everything they did would not only be legal but pass the smell test. No exceptions.

They set the bar and now, 2 years or so later we have (partial list only):

- Watered-down Accountability Act.
- Lies on income trusts.
- The head of Public Works and Government Services – arguably one of the most influential cabinet posts – still held by an unelected Senator.
- Intentional sabotage of the House Committee process.
- NAFTA-gate, which has been quietly swept under the Conservative rug (must be getting crowded under there by now).
- The Cadman affair. Ditto.
- Sacking heads of independent bodies for independent thought.
- Jim Flaherty’s contracting practices.
- And now, the in-and-out scandal.

Sorry guys. You put yourselves up on that pedestal and swathed yourselves in white linen. If your nice white sheet is now mud-spattered, you need look no further than the gutter in which you choose to play. That’s not the fault of the Liberals or the NDP or the Bloc or the Greens or space aliens.

Remember, the first step towards a cure is to recognise that you've got a problem.