The streaming video from CBC News in Ottawa on Wednesday afternoon was a time of truth. There was absolutely no reason to disbelieve former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould. She was obviously under intense pressure in that job to take the well-traveled political road and save Quebec’s SNC-Lavalin from criminal prosecution. And they lied about it to Canadians. The prime minister lied. The clerk of the Privy Council lied. The prime minister’s principal secretary lied and must have resigned because of that lie.
But no laws where broken. Just hearts. It was a failure in trust. Nobody needed to prove that politicians lie. It was the political road so often taken. The prime minister’s principal secretary cannot take all the blame.
There must be consequences. Justin Trudeau lied to us. His is the most important position of trust in the country. He cannot continue in that position without redemption. He has few options:
His first option is to resign. And would that not leave us in a mess? There is barely time to pick a new liberal leader and have the federal election in October.
Another option is to have the writ dropped for the election immediately. At this time of year, it is the equivalent to an icy dip in a frozen lake. It might be cathartic.
Or Justin Trudeau can brazen it out. We already know he wants to be a poster boy for the environment and own a highly polluting bitumen pipeline too. He wallows in that hypocrisy like a pig in mud. His only saving grace is that his opponents have their own problems. He might be better than the alternatives. He will certainly deserve a strong vote in Quebec for his support for saving SNC-Lavalin. The company will probably just move to another country that understands bribery.
But it seems Justin Trudeau does deserve a spanking for lying to us. Considering the alternatives, I might just settle for some contrition.
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Copyright 2019 © Peter Lowry
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