WE really need to get rid of this guy
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Trudeau continues to embarrass Canada on world stage
Author of the article:Lorne Gunter
Published May 20, 2023 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Seriously, when are we Canadians going to stop letting our buffoon of a prime minister represent us on the international stage?
A man who is, at best, an intellectual lightweight on home soil, Justin Trudeau becomes a clown when he goes abroad.
Just look at his “manner legs” photo while shaking hands on Friday with Kim Jin-pyo, speaker of the Korean National Assembly.
During the standard photo op with Kim, Trudeau bizarrely spread his legs a metre or more apart.
He looks like a gymnast who badly missed his dismount.
His pose can only be described as embarrassing. Not as embarrassing as his family’s dress-up tour of India in 2018, but only because the Korea gaffe was short-lived. The Trudeau family costume party on the Ganges went on for days.
The prime minister’s office’s explanation of its boss’ behaviour only makes the incident more embarrassing.
According to PMO staffers, Trudeau adopted the splayed-legs position to lower himself (height-wise). Trudeau is 20 cm taller and didn’t want the gap to appear so obvious in photos.
Since when has that ever been a consideration?
It’s patronizing and insulting, like getting down on your knees to talk with a little person.
If the use of dark-coloured makeup by Caucasians is called blackface, what is Trudeau’s move called? “Asian legs?”
But let’s say for a moment that Trudeau was well-intentioned. Korean media seemed to give the PM some credit for trying not to humiliate Kim by towering over him. Can’t we at least accuse Trudeau of cluelessness for thinking his gesture wouldn’t appear in photos? That he could pull off the height-equalizing stunt and it wouldn’t show up in news reports? That there are never any full-height photos of world leaders, just waist-up ones?
In the end, even if all Trudeau was doing was trying to spare Kim some awkwardness, he only ended up underlining the pair’s height differential. Rather than making the disparity go away, Trudeau made it “the” story.
Most people might not have noticed a gladhand between a Canadian politician and the speaker of another nation’s parliament. Trudeau’s action has made sure everyone noticed. And not in a complimentary way.
I guess, at least we can be grateful Trudeau didn’t seek out a piano in the lobby of his Seoul hotel and start singing pop tunes, the way he drew unwanted attention to himself at his ultra-expensive London hotel the weekend before Queen Elizabeth’s funeral.
But Trudeau’s foreign policy failures go way beyond his propensity to shame our country while in foreign capitals. Trudeau, too, has all but destroyed what influence we had in foreign affairs with his weak, aimless positions, his preaching to other countries, his servile attitude towards Beijing and his apathy for our military, even peacekeeping.
If you think his economic policies are bad, just look at the way he’s dismissed internationally.
Remember the way Chinese President Xi Jinping threatened and scolded our prime minister for the world to see at last fall’s G20 conference in Bali? You don’t treat someone you respect or consider competent as though he was a bumbling schoolboy.
Indeed, it is Trudeau’s obsequiousness towards Beijing that is at the root of much of the decline in Canada’s foreign influence since 2015.
He let the Chinese Communists embarrass him during free trade talks. Even talking free trade with China, put the Americans (who are our largest customers) on guard about relations with us.
Trudeau’s coziness with China has caused our allies to stop sharing defence and intelligence with us.
And his unwillingness to send Canadians on UN peacekeeping missions cost our country a place on the UN Security Council.
While Trudeau boasted on the night he was elected eight years ago that “Canada is back” in international affairs, under him we have become more marginalized than ever.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Lorne Gunter
Published May 20, 2023 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Seriously, when are we Canadians going to stop letting our buffoon of a prime minister represent us on the international stage?
A man who is, at best, an intellectual lightweight on home soil, Justin Trudeau becomes a clown when he goes abroad.
Just look at his “manner legs” photo while shaking hands on Friday with Kim Jin-pyo, speaker of the Korean National Assembly.
During the standard photo op with Kim, Trudeau bizarrely spread his legs a metre or more apart.
He looks like a gymnast who badly missed his dismount.
His pose can only be described as embarrassing. Not as embarrassing as his family’s dress-up tour of India in 2018, but only because the Korea gaffe was short-lived. The Trudeau family costume party on the Ganges went on for days.
The prime minister’s office’s explanation of its boss’ behaviour only makes the incident more embarrassing.
According to PMO staffers, Trudeau adopted the splayed-legs position to lower himself (height-wise). Trudeau is 20 cm taller and didn’t want the gap to appear so obvious in photos.
Since when has that ever been a consideration?
It’s patronizing and insulting, like getting down on your knees to talk with a little person.
If the use of dark-coloured makeup by Caucasians is called blackface, what is Trudeau’s move called? “Asian legs?”
But let’s say for a moment that Trudeau was well-intentioned. Korean media seemed to give the PM some credit for trying not to humiliate Kim by towering over him. Can’t we at least accuse Trudeau of cluelessness for thinking his gesture wouldn’t appear in photos? That he could pull off the height-equalizing stunt and it wouldn’t show up in news reports? That there are never any full-height photos of world leaders, just waist-up ones?
In the end, even if all Trudeau was doing was trying to spare Kim some awkwardness, he only ended up underlining the pair’s height differential. Rather than making the disparity go away, Trudeau made it “the” story.
Most people might not have noticed a gladhand between a Canadian politician and the speaker of another nation’s parliament. Trudeau’s action has made sure everyone noticed. And not in a complimentary way.
I guess, at least we can be grateful Trudeau didn’t seek out a piano in the lobby of his Seoul hotel and start singing pop tunes, the way he drew unwanted attention to himself at his ultra-expensive London hotel the weekend before Queen Elizabeth’s funeral.
But Trudeau’s foreign policy failures go way beyond his propensity to shame our country while in foreign capitals. Trudeau, too, has all but destroyed what influence we had in foreign affairs with his weak, aimless positions, his preaching to other countries, his servile attitude towards Beijing and his apathy for our military, even peacekeeping.
If you think his economic policies are bad, just look at the way he’s dismissed internationally.
Remember the way Chinese President Xi Jinping threatened and scolded our prime minister for the world to see at last fall’s G20 conference in Bali? You don’t treat someone you respect or consider competent as though he was a bumbling schoolboy.
Indeed, it is Trudeau’s obsequiousness towards Beijing that is at the root of much of the decline in Canada’s foreign influence since 2015.
He let the Chinese Communists embarrass him during free trade talks. Even talking free trade with China, put the Americans (who are our largest customers) on guard about relations with us.
Trudeau’s coziness with China has caused our allies to stop sharing defence and intelligence with us.
And his unwillingness to send Canadians on UN peacekeeping missions cost our country a place on the UN Security Council.
While Trudeau boasted on the night he was elected eight years ago that “Canada is back” in international affairs, under him we have become more marginalized than ever.
GUNTER: Trudeau continues to embarrass Canada on world stage
Seriously, when are we Canadians going to stop letting our buffoon of a prime minister represent us on the international stage?
Teaching him some drama, maybe?
Or amateur proctology.
When you're a star, they let you do it, y'know.
Or amateur proctology.
When you're a star, they let you do it, y'know.
You could fill a newspaper’s obituary page with all the institutions Justin Trudeau’s Liberals have marred, stomped over like defiant toddlers in the throes of a tantrum and ultimately dealt crippling blows it will take years to recover from, if ever.
The latest: governors general, and the once bipartisan-ish esteemed David Johnston. The special rapporteur could’ve easily retired in relative peace, but instead Trudeau recruited him back to public life to serve as what very much looks like his puppet.
Johnston may not be attached to Trudeau at the limb, but the controlling strings of close family and class connections, as well as a professional history intertwined with Beijing, are showing. Oh well…
For a while, it looked like his performance might pass public scrutiny. However, a wholly insufficient first report on foreign interference that refused to call for a public inquiry, offer transparency or seemingly consider sources and intelligence outside those offered by the very people it was meant to investigate, made those strings plain as day.
apple.news
Now, after refusing to step down following a majority House vote demanding he do so, supported by all opposition parties, Johnston’s performance appears so orchestrated, it would be a farce if it weren’t a tragedy for Canadian democracy and public trust.
While obviously technically appointed by Trudeau, Johnston ignores that his real mandate is to Parliament at large and the Canadian people. His role isn’t to serve the Liberal government; it’s to investigate what they knew and when they knew it in order to restore broken public trust. Instead, he’s fragmented it further.
Without the confidence of opposition parties, who represent the MAJORITY of voters from coast to coast, he cannot fulfill his mandate. It’s as simple as that.
Instead, Johnston is now like a puppet insisting he’s a real boy while everyone not invested in the ruse can plainly see he’s not. The more he insists, the more offensive it becomes that he and those producing the show clearly think the audience is dumb.
So while Johnston was tasked with shedding light on one crisis, he’s instead created another — a parliamentary one.
If Trudeau and Johnston don’t come around and quickly, there’s no reasonable way NDP leader Jagmeet Singh can justify continuing the confidence-and-supply deal. Moreover, there’s nearly no reasonable way he can justify supporting the continuation of this Liberal government, period.
Singh says he doesn’t want an election until confidence is restored in our electoral system, but it increasingly looks like there’s no way to restore our electoral system without him pulling his confidence.
For Johnston and the prime minister to flatly ignore the will of every opposition MP on a matter of national security and democratic interference undermines the spirit of our system. It doesn’t restore faith in democracy; it helps destroy it.
The latest: governors general, and the once bipartisan-ish esteemed David Johnston. The special rapporteur could’ve easily retired in relative peace, but instead Trudeau recruited him back to public life to serve as what very much looks like his puppet.
Johnston may not be attached to Trudeau at the limb, but the controlling strings of close family and class connections, as well as a professional history intertwined with Beijing, are showing. Oh well…
For a while, it looked like his performance might pass public scrutiny. However, a wholly insufficient first report on foreign interference that refused to call for a public inquiry, offer transparency or seemingly consider sources and intelligence outside those offered by the very people it was meant to investigate, made those strings plain as day.
Sabrina Maddeaux: David Johnston determined to destroy faith in democracy — National Post
A parliamentary crisis is brewing thanks to the former governor general
Now, after refusing to step down following a majority House vote demanding he do so, supported by all opposition parties, Johnston’s performance appears so orchestrated, it would be a farce if it weren’t a tragedy for Canadian democracy and public trust.
While obviously technically appointed by Trudeau, Johnston ignores that his real mandate is to Parliament at large and the Canadian people. His role isn’t to serve the Liberal government; it’s to investigate what they knew and when they knew it in order to restore broken public trust. Instead, he’s fragmented it further.
Without the confidence of opposition parties, who represent the MAJORITY of voters from coast to coast, he cannot fulfill his mandate. It’s as simple as that.
Instead, Johnston is now like a puppet insisting he’s a real boy while everyone not invested in the ruse can plainly see he’s not. The more he insists, the more offensive it becomes that he and those producing the show clearly think the audience is dumb.
So while Johnston was tasked with shedding light on one crisis, he’s instead created another — a parliamentary one.
If Trudeau and Johnston don’t come around and quickly, there’s no reasonable way NDP leader Jagmeet Singh can justify continuing the confidence-and-supply deal. Moreover, there’s nearly no reasonable way he can justify supporting the continuation of this Liberal government, period.
Singh says he doesn’t want an election until confidence is restored in our electoral system, but it increasingly looks like there’s no way to restore our electoral system without him pulling his confidence.
For Johnston and the prime minister to flatly ignore the will of every opposition MP on a matter of national security and democratic interference undermines the spirit of our system. It doesn’t restore faith in democracy; it helps destroy it.
Justin Trudeau is making a mockery of our democracy and undermining faith in our institutions with his actions this week.
Despite a second vote by the majority of MPs calling for a public inquiry, he refuses — just as he refuses to drop David Johnston from the investigation into China’s interference.
MPs must now decide whether to let Trudeau get away with this or force his hand through other means. That doesn’t mean the opposition parties must force an election, though that shouldn’t be ruled out, but they will need to act together.
Jagmeet dropping the non-deal-deal for the non-coalition-coalition doesn’t mean there’s going to automatically be an election unless Trudeau wants one…& then the non-whatever-whatever would be irrelevant anyway. It would just restore balance to a Minority Government in parliament that would actually have to work with parliament to get things done.
Trudeau can huff & bluff & puff about a ‘confidence vote’ but that would be on him, and nobody else. Until Jagmeet picks a lane, Trudeau is going to rule like a monarchy or a Majority…& he’s neither.
Despite a second vote by the majority of MPs calling for a public inquiry, he refuses — just as he refuses to drop David Johnston from the investigation into China’s interference.
MPs must now decide whether to let Trudeau get away with this or force his hand through other means. That doesn’t mean the opposition parties must force an election, though that shouldn’t be ruled out, but they will need to act together.
Jagmeet dropping the non-deal-deal for the non-coalition-coalition doesn’t mean there’s going to automatically be an election unless Trudeau wants one…& then the non-whatever-whatever would be irrelevant anyway. It would just restore balance to a Minority Government in parliament that would actually have to work with parliament to get things done.
Trudeau can huff & bluff & puff about a ‘confidence vote’ but that would be on him, and nobody else. Until Jagmeet picks a lane, Trudeau is going to rule like a monarchy or a Majority…& he’s neither.
I've heard of "running out the clock," but the first period is generally not the time to drag out that strategy.
Poilievre's 'gotcha moment' on Trudeau a legendary debate KO or low blow?
Author of the article:Joe Warmington
Published Jun 01, 2023 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
It was either a knockout moment for the political history books or a “despicable” low blow unbecoming in the House of Commons.
It depends on which side of the aisle you are on.
But what no one in politics is denying is that it was a classic verbal sparring session between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre on Wednesday during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill.
It started with Trudeau landing a strong personal shot on Poilievre, who was mocking his adversary as a “drama teacher” and was coming after the government on the rising cost of living.
“Yes, Mr. Speaker I was a high school teacher before getting into politics, but I have a little trouble remembering what exactly the job the leader of the opposition had before getting into politics,” Trudeau said.
It was an opening salvo that prompted cheers, laughter and applause from his Liberal caucus.
Trudeau then talked about his government bringing out “grocery rebates” and “dental care” for children while Poilievre laid in wait.
When it was his turn, he got to his feet and delivered a counter punch that had everybody talking.
“Yes, and he left right in the middle of the semester and I am having trouble remembering why,” Poilievre said.
Lots of cheering and jeering followed the comment, which was reminiscent of the slam dunk Brian Mulroney delivered with his “you have an option, sir” line in a debate with then prime minister John Turner in 1984 over patronage appointments.
Not all members of the Conservative caucus cheered at Poilievre’s shot to the chin.
This was something Liberal cabinet minister Marc Miller noted in a tweet, “There are decent Conservative Members of Parliament and I’m glad they refused to applaud their leader as he grinned like a macaque while fuelling conspiracy theories in his well-rehearsed toxic Twitter troll style. This is despicable.”
But not everybody agreed, including the Prime Minister’s own half-brother Kyle Kemper, who tweeted, “How your paid propagandists deceived and gaslit Canadians is truly despicable Marc.”
Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne tweeted, “God Poilievre is a thug,” and called it an “appalling insinuation.”
However, those who felt mentioning Trudeau leaving his teaching job in British Columbia in 2001 was below-the-belt stirring up conspiracy theories, it must be noted that Poilievre did not make any allegation but merely countered with Trudeau’s line that he was having trouble remembering why it is.
An insinuation may be perception, but it does not mean it was what the person reacting thinks it was. Like the Rorschach test in psychiatry, people see things how they see them and not always how it was intended. That’s what made Poilievre’s barb so powerful. He went right to the line but did not cross it.
How people reacted is certainly their prerogative but out of Poilievre’s control.
He just used Trudeau’s words against him. It was classic debating.
Meanwhile, for the record, the school in which the Prime Minister once taught has not indicated anything unusual about his departure.
Whatever way you come down on it, it was great theatre and one of those highlight reel videos that will stay on YouTube for decades to come.
jwarmington@postmedia.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Joe Warmington
Published Jun 01, 2023 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
It was either a knockout moment for the political history books or a “despicable” low blow unbecoming in the House of Commons.
It depends on which side of the aisle you are on.
But what no one in politics is denying is that it was a classic verbal sparring session between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre on Wednesday during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill.
It started with Trudeau landing a strong personal shot on Poilievre, who was mocking his adversary as a “drama teacher” and was coming after the government on the rising cost of living.
“Yes, Mr. Speaker I was a high school teacher before getting into politics, but I have a little trouble remembering what exactly the job the leader of the opposition had before getting into politics,” Trudeau said.
It was an opening salvo that prompted cheers, laughter and applause from his Liberal caucus.
Trudeau then talked about his government bringing out “grocery rebates” and “dental care” for children while Poilievre laid in wait.
When it was his turn, he got to his feet and delivered a counter punch that had everybody talking.
“Yes, and he left right in the middle of the semester and I am having trouble remembering why,” Poilievre said.
Lots of cheering and jeering followed the comment, which was reminiscent of the slam dunk Brian Mulroney delivered with his “you have an option, sir” line in a debate with then prime minister John Turner in 1984 over patronage appointments.
Not all members of the Conservative caucus cheered at Poilievre’s shot to the chin.
This was something Liberal cabinet minister Marc Miller noted in a tweet, “There are decent Conservative Members of Parliament and I’m glad they refused to applaud their leader as he grinned like a macaque while fuelling conspiracy theories in his well-rehearsed toxic Twitter troll style. This is despicable.”
But not everybody agreed, including the Prime Minister’s own half-brother Kyle Kemper, who tweeted, “How your paid propagandists deceived and gaslit Canadians is truly despicable Marc.”
Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne tweeted, “God Poilievre is a thug,” and called it an “appalling insinuation.”
However, those who felt mentioning Trudeau leaving his teaching job in British Columbia in 2001 was below-the-belt stirring up conspiracy theories, it must be noted that Poilievre did not make any allegation but merely countered with Trudeau’s line that he was having trouble remembering why it is.
An insinuation may be perception, but it does not mean it was what the person reacting thinks it was. Like the Rorschach test in psychiatry, people see things how they see them and not always how it was intended. That’s what made Poilievre’s barb so powerful. He went right to the line but did not cross it.
How people reacted is certainly their prerogative but out of Poilievre’s control.
He just used Trudeau’s words against him. It was classic debating.
Meanwhile, for the record, the school in which the Prime Minister once taught has not indicated anything unusual about his departure.
Whatever way you come down on it, it was great theatre and one of those highlight reel videos that will stay on YouTube for decades to come.
jwarmington@postmedia.com
WARMINGTON: Poilievre's 'gotcha moment' on Trudeau a legendary debate KO or low blow?
It was either a knock-out to canvas moments for the history books or a “despicable” low blow unbecoming in the House of Commons.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is promising to put up procedural roadblocks and delays to prevent the Liberals’ budget bill from passing, unless they scrap proposed carbon tax increases and lay out a plan for a balanced budget.
Poilievre delivered his ultimatum Monday, with just three weeks left in the House of Commons sitting before a summer recess. Poilievre argued high interest rates and inflation are being driven by government debt, making it imperative that the government provide a plan to balance the budget.
Bill C-47, the Budget Implementation Act, is currently at the report stage in the House of Commons and has the NDP’s support, which means when it comes to a vote it should pass.
apple.news
Details & Concerns at the above link…
Poilievre delivered his ultimatum Monday, with just three weeks left in the House of Commons sitting before a summer recess. Poilievre argued high interest rates and inflation are being driven by government debt, making it imperative that the government provide a plan to balance the budget.
Bill C-47, the Budget Implementation Act, is currently at the report stage in the House of Commons and has the NDP’s support, which means when it comes to a vote it should pass.
Poilievre promises to delay Liberal budget from passing — National Post
'We will use all procedural tools at our disposal to block the budget from passing including 900 amendments, lengthy speeches, and other procedural tools that are in our toolkit'
Trudeau's failure to appoint judges could let criminals off the hook
Author of the article:Brian Lilley
Published Jun 07, 2023 • Last updated 2 days ago • 3 minute read
We can expect more rapists, child molesters, drug dealers and murderers to go free unless something happens to our court system soon.
There is a shortage of judges and while that may sound like a far-off problem for someone in government to solve, the real-world implication is that criminals will go free without getting to trial.
Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice is short 19 judges, according to the federal government’s website. Just as worrying, 73 of the 278 total judges in the criminal system are supernumary, meaning they are semi-retired and work on a part-time basis.
With 26% of all judges being part time, plus the missing 19 judges, Ontario is in the worst shape of any province.
All of this leads to a backlog of cases that could and should be cleared away if the Justin Trudeau Liberals were doing their job of appointing judges. Their decision not to means that people charged with serious crimes are let off the hook.
On Wednesday, the Toronto Sun broke the story of a young girl in Toronto who came forward to describe years of physical, mental and sexual abuse at the hands of her father. After an investigation by police and social workers, charges were laid in early 2021.
After going through pre-trial hearings and having court dates scheduled, but then cancelled due to the lack of judges, the girl and her family face the prospect of the case being dropped without going to trial.
A Supreme Court ruling in 2016 established strict guidelines to ensure that the charter guaranteed the right to a trial within a reasonable timeframe. In lesser cases, a trial had to be held within 18 months and within 30 months for more serious cases.
The 30-month mark is now closing in on the horrendous allegations Alexandra and her mother Lisa (not their real names) have described and there is still no trial date that will meet the Supreme Court deadline. The problem isn’t the Supreme Court, it’s our government.
The court set this rule in 2016, but here we are in 2023 and cases are still falling through the cracks due to a lack of resources. Yes, there are problems due to a pandemic backlog and there are issues with lower-level court workers not wanting to return to in-person hearings post-pandemic, but at its heart this is about successive governments — most recently the Trudeau government — not taking criminal justice seriously.
“New Democrats have raised concerns with the government that their tardiness in appointing judges is causing delays which risk very serious criminal cases being dismissed,” NDP MP Randall Garrison said.
Conservative justice critic Rob Moore said the failure of the Trudeau government to fill these vacancies means there are more dangerous people on our streets.
“Victims and their families receive no justice when dangerous criminals who have committed horrible crimes are let off the hook because Trudeau is failing to hire enough judges for our court system,” Moore said.
For their part, the Liberal government said in a statement that they have appointed 100 new judges. But that doesn’t help fill the gap in Ontario, where between vacancies and part-timers the number of judges in court doesn’t match what is needed.
“(Justice) Minister (David) Lametti stands with victims of sexual assault and is working to make sure we have a justice system that supports and protects them. He is aware of concerns regarding judicial vacancies in Ontario and is doing everything he can to fill them expeditiously,” press secretary Diana Ebadi said Wednesday.
Expeditiously means with speed and efficiency, but that’s not how positions are being filled, especially not in Ontario. The Trudeau government needs to do better on this front or admit they aren’t worried about sexual offenders, drug dealers and murderers going free before they go to trial.
And they need to be able to look young girls like Alexandra in the eye and explain why her case didn’t deserve the attention of the court and a judge.
fja.gc.ca
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Brian Lilley
Published Jun 07, 2023 • Last updated 2 days ago • 3 minute read
We can expect more rapists, child molesters, drug dealers and murderers to go free unless something happens to our court system soon.
There is a shortage of judges and while that may sound like a far-off problem for someone in government to solve, the real-world implication is that criminals will go free without getting to trial.
Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice is short 19 judges, according to the federal government’s website. Just as worrying, 73 of the 278 total judges in the criminal system are supernumary, meaning they are semi-retired and work on a part-time basis.
With 26% of all judges being part time, plus the missing 19 judges, Ontario is in the worst shape of any province.
All of this leads to a backlog of cases that could and should be cleared away if the Justin Trudeau Liberals were doing their job of appointing judges. Their decision not to means that people charged with serious crimes are let off the hook.
On Wednesday, the Toronto Sun broke the story of a young girl in Toronto who came forward to describe years of physical, mental and sexual abuse at the hands of her father. After an investigation by police and social workers, charges were laid in early 2021.
After going through pre-trial hearings and having court dates scheduled, but then cancelled due to the lack of judges, the girl and her family face the prospect of the case being dropped without going to trial.
A Supreme Court ruling in 2016 established strict guidelines to ensure that the charter guaranteed the right to a trial within a reasonable timeframe. In lesser cases, a trial had to be held within 18 months and within 30 months for more serious cases.
The 30-month mark is now closing in on the horrendous allegations Alexandra and her mother Lisa (not their real names) have described and there is still no trial date that will meet the Supreme Court deadline. The problem isn’t the Supreme Court, it’s our government.
The court set this rule in 2016, but here we are in 2023 and cases are still falling through the cracks due to a lack of resources. Yes, there are problems due to a pandemic backlog and there are issues with lower-level court workers not wanting to return to in-person hearings post-pandemic, but at its heart this is about successive governments — most recently the Trudeau government — not taking criminal justice seriously.
“New Democrats have raised concerns with the government that their tardiness in appointing judges is causing delays which risk very serious criminal cases being dismissed,” NDP MP Randall Garrison said.
Conservative justice critic Rob Moore said the failure of the Trudeau government to fill these vacancies means there are more dangerous people on our streets.
“Victims and their families receive no justice when dangerous criminals who have committed horrible crimes are let off the hook because Trudeau is failing to hire enough judges for our court system,” Moore said.
For their part, the Liberal government said in a statement that they have appointed 100 new judges. But that doesn’t help fill the gap in Ontario, where between vacancies and part-timers the number of judges in court doesn’t match what is needed.
“(Justice) Minister (David) Lametti stands with victims of sexual assault and is working to make sure we have a justice system that supports and protects them. He is aware of concerns regarding judicial vacancies in Ontario and is doing everything he can to fill them expeditiously,” press secretary Diana Ebadi said Wednesday.
Expeditiously means with speed and efficiency, but that’s not how positions are being filled, especially not in Ontario. The Trudeau government needs to do better on this front or admit they aren’t worried about sexual offenders, drug dealers and murderers going free before they go to trial.
And they need to be able to look young girls like Alexandra in the eye and explain why her case didn’t deserve the attention of the court and a judge.
Federal Judicial Appointments - Number of Federally Appointed Judges in Canada
Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs Canada
LILLEY: Trudeau's failure to appoint judges could let criminals off the hook
A major backlog in criminal court due to a lack of judges means cases are being dropped because they aren't heard in enough time.
But think of all the money he's saving!
PROTIP: Don't have the Federal government appointing provincial judges. That's stupid. Kinda what the provincial governments are for in the first place.
Oh, well. Canada.
PROTIP: Don't have the Federal government appointing provincial judges. That's stupid. Kinda what the provincial governments are for in the first place.
Oh, well. Canada.
FIRST READING: How power has changed Justin Trudeau — National Post
He use to like guns, dislike abortion, and advocate for balanced budgets
Hypocrite.
FIRST READING: How power has changed Justin Trudeau — National Post
He use to like guns, dislike abortion, and advocate for balanced budgets
LILLEY: Incompetence of Trudeau Liberals is on full display — Toronto Sun
The Trudeau Liberals have become the gang who couldn't shoot straight with file after file falling apart for them.