'I take responsibility,' Trudeau says in wake of damning report on SNC-Lavalin ethics violation

[OnlinePoker]

Source: CBC News

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he accepts full responsibility after Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion found he violated the Conflict of Interest Act by trying to influence then-justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould and get her to overrule a decision to not grant a deferred prosecution agreement to Quebec-based engineering firm SNC-Lavalin.

In his report released Wednesday, Dion wrote, "The evidence showed there were many ways in which Mr. Trudeau, either directly or through the actions of those under his direction, sought to influence the attorney general."

"The prime minister, directly and through his senior officials, used various means to exert influence over Ms. Wilson‑Raybould. The authority of the prime minister and his office was used to circumvent, undermine and ultimately attempt to discredit the decision of the director of public prosecutions as well as the authority of Ms. Wilson‑Raybould as the Crown's chief law officer," Dion said.

Dion found Trudeau contravened Section 9 of the Conflict of Interest Act through a series of "flagrant attempts to influence" Wilson‑Raybould to reach an agreement with SNC-Lavalin to avoid criminal prosecution. That section of the code prohibits any official responsible for high level decision-making in government from seeking to influence the decision of another person to "improperly further another person's private interests."

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-snc-ethics-commissioner-violated-code-1.5246551

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Not a good thing to have hanging over him going into this autumn's mandatory federal election.

[True Dough]

1. He really screwed up

Flat out lied to the country about how much pressure he put on the Justice Minister/Attorney General.

The Liberal Party would have been wise to have tossed Trudeau out during the scandal. It's only a few months until the election now. Seemingly too little time to select a new leader but Trudeau is definitely damaged goods with two separate incidents of ethics violations on his record.

The only saving grace for him is that the Conservative leader is a complete dud. Andrew Scheer doesn't excite many voters at all.

[applegrove]

2. I think it was Scheer who stated no other PM has ever been found to have violated the ethic

rules, convieniently leaving out that they are a decade old and didn't exist for any other PM but Harper who didn't violate ethics officially but did try an take "peace, order and good government" out of the canadian motto which is "peace, order and good government".

[True Dough]

3. I wouldn't take any statements from Scheer very seriously

His credibility doesn't amount to much.

Trudeau, sadly, showed such promise entering office. Accomplished a fair deal but has shot himself in the foot with the the SNC Lavalin scandal being officially confirmed as a scandal.

Hopefully Singh or May get a major boost from this. Maybe if they combined forces they could be a real alternative for the left.

[applegrove]

4. Meh! I think some people get that countries in the West are all moving to fines for corruption

in order to not destroy corporations. I think most canadians get it. Now everyone sees Jody Wilson-Raybould as the one full of integrity and she deserves that but do you want truth or power? Yuval Noah Harari says they are not the same thing. Trudeau can repack it all to be a story about how he'll do anything to help canadian business get ahead while insuring they pay a penalty for any bad action. She'll have a nice start to a leadership race. I think Trudeau will win this election. He has the best stories about canada. The conservatives ones are always full of lies:
“He is now the only PM in history to be found guilty of breaking federal ethics law not once, but twice.” ****off Scheer.

https://www.nationalobserver.com/2018/01/25/news/baloney-meter-trudeaus-ethics-breach-first-canadian-history

[True Dough]

5. Most Canadians I know don't want a "leader" who promoted "doing politics differently"

and now has to "repack" his false narrative. My DU screen name was a tribute to him as I was enchanted by his inspiring words and approach when he came to power but power corrupted him within a single term. He doesn't deserve a second.

Citizens shouldn't be forced to choose between truth and power.

And we shouldn't hail fines for fraudulent and shady corporations as a step forward. It's a means of letting unscrupulous CEOs off the hook with a minor slap on the wrist (I would have expected the Conservatives to bring in such legislation). Some corporations are so unethical that they need to be dismantled. The void would be filled by competition. If SNC Lavalin went belly up, other architectural and engineering firms would pick up the slack and take on those who lost jobs. Trudeau just didn't want that to happen in his riding, at any cost.

Remember, the West has also allowed corporations to run amok and create such extreme wealth inequality. The one per-centers are laughing all the way to the bank. Canada could benefit from the equivalent of Elizabeth Warren at 24 Sussex Drive, not Justin Trudeau.

[applegrove]

6. If you live in an only truth world it would be chaotic. Human societies

work because of shared constructs and conventions that are fictions. Religion, nation states, liberal democracy, kleptotocracies, the law, feelings, all are made up. We have one side of the political spectrum using the tools of sociopaths regularly and on the other side a PM who is pretty honest. Trudeau's stories are indeed truthfull in their ends about growing the middle class and saving the environment. The right's are not. The conservatives are not for liberal democracy. We have got to grow up and be a bit more sophisticated. And not die of purity when it comes to politics. And not vote for conservatives who lie every single time they open their mouths.

[True Dough]

7. You're setting a low bar, applegrove

If Donald Trump was the one to introduce "deferred prosecution agreements" and was then found to be repeatedly influencing his Attorney General to go that route instead of exposing a corrupt corporation at trial, we'd all be outraged -- especially if that corporation was headquartered in his constituency. But you want to give Justin a pass.

You're also painting a picture where voters must choose between a lying but well-meaning Trudeau or an evil Scheer. There are two other viable parties in the mix. If enough of the electorate wants to send a message that Canadians won't stand for second-rate governance, then the NDP and Greens will surge. One can only hope.

[applegrove]

8. The US has defeered prosecution agreements. Look at the banksters

after the subprime meltdown. They paid fines. We live in that world. That is reality. The other reality is Kenny started the notion of alberta sessesion this year and then blamed the liberals for it. Fuck that shit.

[True Dough]

9. I know the U.S. has DPAs

and your example of the bankers dodging prosecution is exactly the point I'm making. The system is being gamed to further advantage the ultra-rich. It's disgusting! And Trudeau is showing himself to be in the pockets of the corporate elite.

As for Kenney (or Doug Ford), you'll never find me rushing to defend them or anyone of their ilk.

Go Singh. Go May. That's a fresh start, one Canada needs. The Liberals could have offered that if they'd dumped Justin months ago but they chose to fall in line behind him. Their mistake.

[applegrove]

10. He is the PM for all canadians. That's why i like him and not the conservatives or the NDP.

Greens i would vote for if they had a chance.

[True Dough]

11. Greens would have a chance

if only more people didn't feel they have to settle for a snake in sheep's clothing.

[applegrove]

12. Trudeau is not a snake. You've just revealed yourself.

[True Dough]

13. I don't mind calling a snake a snake

He's the one who revealed himself. You're willfully blind to it.

[applegrove]

14. I want to live in a liberal democracy. I will vote for Trudeau.

[True Dough]

15. It's a sad situation that he's still on the ballot

He publicly claims Globe and Mail's story on SNC Lavalin scandal is false.

Then he lies again by insisting he did not attempt to influence JWR.

He refuses to apologize because he says he didn't do anything wrong.

Drums out two widely-respected MPs -- both women, one Indigenous -- because they hold him to account.

Then when confronted with his wrongdoing by the Ethics Commissioner's report, he says he takes full responsibility and has to learn from his mistakes.

They're not mistakes. They're deliberate underhanded moves covered by lies, lies that are now exposed.

That's not a leader.

[applegrove]

16. I belive the SNC Lavalin story implied there were negotiations involving SNC Lavalin

which proved to be wrong or something. He didn't drum them out of the party at first. He wanted them to stay. It was weeks a a recording later that he cut ties with them.

[True Dough]

17. Yes, a recording that clearly revealed privy council Michael Wernick

was doing Trudeau's bidding in attempting to pressure JWR. She was backed into a corner with the constant badgering when the nation's top politician had NO BUSINESS sticking his nose in a judicial matter. You'd prefer to live in a country where the Prime Minister arbitrarily decides legal matters based on his own best interest?

The conflict of interest report is damning.

[applegrove]

18. No the original globe and mail story was wrong about goings on between

SNC Lavalin and the PMO. They were wrong about meetings. Way to skate.

[True Dough]

19. Even if the Globe and Mail article wasn't 100% accurate, you're dodging all of the other points

You're holding the G&M to a MUCH higher standard than you are your Prime Minister. For shame.

[applegrove]

20. I'm just nocking down your point that Trudeau lied when he said the story was wrong.

I never said the Glock n Spiel should stop publishing. That they were no longer a good newspaper.

[True Dough]

24. The Globe and Mail broke the story

It was very early days. There were all kinds of facts and details yet to emerge. We went through an inquiry, for crying out loud. Too bad Trudeau wasn't forced to testify under oath. Would have been interesting to see if he would have lied then too.

Even though the Globe's story wasn't entirely on the mark, they did a public service by publishing it. And, in the end, it turns out they were much closer to the truth than Trudeau, who knew everything that happened behind the scenes.

[luvtheGWN]

26. A former Richard Needham reader, I see!

Time to get real about politics, folks. It's the art of compromise. Every damn politician does it. Saving thousands of Canadian jobs for a DPA is compromise.

The Mop and Pail was more than delighted (since its readership was on the wane) to produce a scandal. It supported an incompetent Attorney-General and once the news of her incompetence came out, she took her gavel and her closest MP friend and went home.

And now the Ethics Commissioner has made his statement, while everyone is ignoring the fact that no laws were broken.

Grow up! This is the world we live in and if you want something different, go to your local library and read a sweet little fairy tale.

[healthnut7]

27. Agree with you!

I'm sure the Conservatives were partying last night!! Kind of wonder what all crap Harper did when he was PM. We would never know because he had all his people so tight lipped they weren't even allowed to talk to the media.
All we have to do is look at what we know Harper did and Ford and Kenney are doing and it is scary, if they win.

[True Dough]

28. Happy reading!

https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/ethics-report-1.5247595

[applegrove]

29. When Trudeau says a half truth it is news. When the conservatives

do it it is a regular weekday.

[True Dough]

30. When you constantly have to compare a liar to the worst possible alternative

to make the liar sound more appealing, you're not saying much.

[applegrove]

31. You seem to really want me to give up on my PM. He's a politician. He lies.

But not often. Obama did about parts of the ACA. He lied about free trade too. Trudeau does not lie about trying to undo liberal democracy in canada. That is Harper (oh sorry I mean Scheer)'s bag. Trudeau is for liberal democracy. There are more than one candidate. That is why i bring other people up. Because it is a race. Which is a competition between one or more people. If Chrystia Freeland was running for the liberals i would vote for her. If she was running for the conservatives i would not. If she was running for the nomination of the Liberal Party against Trudeau i would vote for her. There are always more than one candidate. There is always more than one party. I have a relation with all of them. Everyone does. Sorry if that doesn't work for you.

[True Dough]

33. Well, it's progress

You're at least now admitting Trudeau is a liar. There's no disputing it really. The Ethics Commissioner's report made that clear.

It's really too bad the Liberals didn't insist on a leadership convention. There are much better alternatives within the party.

[applegrove]

34. 1/2 liar. To protech an important industry (think of all the hydro dams

SNC Lavalin will build around the world). That is ecologically better for the environment than cooking wood or charcoal fires or fossil fuels. And canada will reap the benefits of those jobs and that profit. Obama was not willing to tax the banksters with trials after the subprime meltdown. I'm good with Trudeau trying to do the same. Otherwise our corporations cannot compete.

[True Dough]

35. Obama didn't attempt to interfere with the judicial process

That's a big no-no. Imagine a prime minister who feels entitled to dictate how legal proceedings should be handled. That's a dangerous precedent and a slippery slope, whether it's purportedly to save jobs or not.

[applegrove]

36. Attorney generals decided not to prosecute banks.

https://theintercept.com/2016/07/12/eric-holders-longtime-excuse-for-not-prosecuting-banks-just-crashed-and-burned/

[True Dough]

37. That's not the same thing as a chief prosecutor deciding to prosecute

and having the leader of the country repeatedly try to get that decision reversed.

[applegrove]

38. Is it okay for a PM to move an attorney general he does not agree with to another portfolio?

[robbob]

21. I'll take something you'll never hear TRump say

for 2,000, Alex.

[Video Drone]

22. From Yesterday

Pay particular attention to 1:28-1:56. Do you see anything like that happening here under Trump? Didn't think so.

[Scarsdale]

23. Would Canada consider a trade,

tRump for Trudeau?

[True Dough]

25. No one would take it that far!

Trudeau is broken but Trump is a bumbling monster.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

32. FAKE NEWS!!! THE MEDIA IS BIASED!!! DON'T LISTEN! Oh wait.. CANADA! sorry N/t/