CSIS May Have Revised Michael Chan Warrant After Bill Blair’s Office Questioned Approval: Document Analysis
“Imperative is upon the Commission to provide a conclusion to this mystery, and the answer should be obvious”: Conservative Lawyer points to Vanweenan List
OTTAWA, Canada — In the unfolding examination of the delayed approval of a national security warrant targeting Liberal Party fundraiser Michael Chan, new insights have emerged from The Bureau’s detailed analysis of final submissions to the Hogue Commission and newly available documents.
These developments raise questions about whether former CSIS Director David Vigneault “may have pulled back the warrant to make an edit” after initial concerns were raised by then-Public Safety Minister Bill Blair’s office regarding the warrant’s explosive content. The potential involvement of a list of senior Liberals who could be impacted by CSIS’s surveillance of Chan adds a layer of mystery to the case, which, according to a former CSIS senior officer previously cited by The Bureau, should be investigated by the RCMP for potential obstruction of justice concerns.
Submissions from several lawyers participating in the Hogue Commission have reiterated the unprecedented nature of a delay of at least 54 days within Minister Blair’s office. They suggest that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s administration may have stalled the warrant concerning Chan for partisan reasons and potentially even to protect a Trudeau cabinet minister.
Michael Chan has strongly denied any wrongdoing and submitted to Commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue his concern that CSIS will not “confirm that nothing of concern was found in its electronic surveillance of Mr. Chan.”
Prominent lawyer Sujit Choudhry, representing NDP MP Jenny Kwan, underscored the gravity of these deviations in his November 18 final submission to Commissioner Hogue, focusing on the so-called Vanweenan list of individuals that could have been in communication with Chan.
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