Canada is immersed in an unprecedented political scandal. No Prime Minister has ever been found guilty of violating ethics laws until Justin Trudeau offended twice. The second time, he violated prosecutorial independence and may even have committed a crime. A similarly disgraced elected official or public servant would have voluntarily resigned immediately or been summarily fired.
Trudeau’s defence, unsupported by economic analysis, is that he was protecting jobs, implying he is also entitled to break the rules to protect his partisan interests and a powerful corporation charged with fraud and corruption. However, a foundational principle that distinguishes Canada’s democracy from a dictatorship like China, which Trudeau so admires, is that the ruling elite cannot run roughshod over the rule of law and decide whom to prosecute (Vice-Admiral Norman) or who receives a get out of jail card (SNC-Lavalin)
We were reminded of that distinction when China arbitrarily arrested Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor in retaliation for the lawful detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou pursuant to an extradition request from the U.S.
Commentators differ about whether Trudeau obstructed justice by interfering in the criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin. However, there appears to be a solid basis for the RCMP to launch an investigation.
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See Also:
(1) Liberal party membership forms distributed at pro-Beijing rally against Hong Kong protests
(2) Trans Mountain mobilizes workforce to start pipeline expansion, expects completion by mid-2022
(3) Trudeau talked the talk, but he’s failed miserably in the walk
(4) Trudeau springs a nasty surprise on many Canadian employers
