Category: Justin Trudeau

Liberal MPs look to protect Katie Telford

The slow grind of the story of alleged interference by Beijing’s communist government in Canadian elections continued this week.

The Prime Minister announced that he will appoint a special rapporteur to investigate these claims. This has placated few outside of Liberal partisans and a small group within the national media. Most everyone else is calling for a public inquiry or a judicial review.

Conservatives have been trying to get PROC – the Parlimentary committee for Procedure and House Affairs – to compel Trudeau’s Chief of Staff to testify. Katie Telford, according to some knowledgeable observers, would have been briefed by CSIS had Canada’s intelligence agency sought to inform the government about domestic electoral interference by a hostile foreign power. It is reported that CSIS briefed the government on China’s actions on two previous occasions.

The Liberals on the committee are employing stalling tactics, such as filibustering and even not showing up to meetings, to prevent the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff and longest running senior advisor from testifying before the committee.

For their part, Liberals seem to complain that it is unusual for staff to testify before Parliamentary committees. This is true and usually held as a courtesy by all parties. Indeed, as they argue, it is the politicians who accountable for the actions of their staff that act on their behalf. However, Telford has testified before committee during two previous occasions. Further, if she was briefed on foreign interference, she is a key witness that can provide insight on the government’s response.

She also wouldn’t be the first PMO Chief of Staff to testify before committee. All three Prime Ministerial Chiefs of Staff in the Harper government (Ian Brodie, Guy Giorno, and Nigel Wright) testified before various Parliamentary committees as I noted in 2019.

Telford could be of service to her government by testifying about whether she was briefed by CSIS. The Prime Minister maintains that he was not briefed on Liberal election candidates receiving funds from China. If so, this is concerning as this is what the supposed CSIS leaks allege. The Prime Minister is either wilfully ignorant about this affair, dangerously incompetent, or the allegations themselves are entirely work of fiction.

It would serve Canadians to find out one way or the other.

When did Justin Trudeau know about the WE partnership?

Something in the PM’s official itinerary may have put Justin Trudeau’s testimony on the WE scandal in question.

Justin Trudeau testified before the House Standing Committee on Finance yesterday. Trudeau and his Chief of Staff Katie Telford helped committee members contruct a timeline for the conception, execution, and shelving of the Canada Student Service Grant — the program the Trudeau government was set to deploy in partnership with the WE group and the Kielburgers.

I outlined key dates of timeline in my newsletter this morning (subscribe below!)

Here is a concise summary of those dates:

April 22nd – Government of Canada announces the Canada Summer Service Grant

May 4th – Sophie Gregoire Trudeau launches new podcast with the wife of Craig Kielburger, Leysa Cerswell Kielburger.

May 5th – The COVID cabinet committee considers and approves of the program and the partnership with the WE group. WE and its organization were able to start charging eligible expenses to the government of Canada on this date.

May 8th – Justin Trudeau says he found out about the WE affiliation with the CSSG and ‘pushed back’ given that his family had been closely involved with WE. (Trudeau told the committee he knew his family was receiving money from WE but didn’t know how much)

May 22nd – The cabinet approves the CSSG-WE group scheme.

June 23rd – The WE group and the Government of Canada sign the contribution agreement (sole-source contract). The contract covers expenses back to May 5th.

June 25th – Government makes the partnership public.

Let’s take a look at Justin Trudeau’s itinerary.

According to the Prime Minister’s own itinerary, on May 5th he was scheduled to attend the COVID committee. We know that the cabinet committee met on this date and approved the WE partnership according to the Trudeau/Telford testimony. Is this the cabinet committee or the general House of Commons committee? UPDATE: we’ve been informed that this refers to the House committee.

Bill Morneau sits on the COVID cabinet committee. WE paid for two of his trips to Africa and the Amazon. He should have been aware of the appearence of a conflict of interest before approving the WE partnership on May 5th.

Bill Morneau testifies before the Standing Committee on Finance (FINA)

The question remains, did Justin Trudeau know about the WE group partnership before May 8th when he said he pushed back? The cabinet committee approved the partnership on May 5th and presumably would not have if Trudeau was having doubts about the ‘appearence’ of conflict of interest as he testified. Did he have doubts on May 8th or sooner? When did he know about the proposed WE partnership?

Regardless, those doubts seem to be moot anyway as the whole of cabinet approved the Government of Canada/WE group partnership on June 23rd. Trudeau/Telford say that the decision was ‘binary’: help the students and get into bed with WE, or let students go without.

Will Justin Trudeau be recalled to committee? Will committee members be satisfied with Justin Trudeau’s testimony on the WE scandal?

Katie Telford testifies on the WE scandal before the Standing Committee on Finance (FINA)