"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Friday 17 May 2013

The Day Will Come

By resigning from the conservative caucus , Duffy  has  no  role to play in the  Senate.  He still keeps a seat and the salary that goes with it. I'm not sure  he can be fired. 

A federal riding in Markham had an M.P. once who was expelled from the Liberal caucus.  His name was Jag Badhuria.He became an embarrassment to  the government because of his conduct. 

But he could not be  expelled from Parliament. Markham  voters collected petitions for him to be removed as their member and a by election held. But that  never  happened. He had been elected to the seat and there he stayed until the next elecition.

He even went on a trip to Asia at  public expense  while having no role to play in the House of Commons. 

In the next election, he  again sought the  Liberal nomination. 

I'm not sure I've  ever heard of a Senator being  removed.  A retirement age  of seventy-five was introduced  a number of years ago. 

A recent retirement of a Senator who was suffering from Alzheimer's   was in  the news  but that  probably only happened when the facts became public.

Duffy's situation may be  enlightening to us all.

The Prime Minister's handling of the situaition has not been impressive so far. How long he can turn a blind eye to the situation remains to be seen. 

I don't think the story is going away soon. 

Contrast it with the firing of Paul Godfrey and  resignations of eight members of the Ontario Gaming and Lottery Board. 

Not much grace was attached to that.  The Premier blunders in to the question of an equalising factor between cities. She declared on a Sunday night that Ottawa would receive the same as Toronto. It's unlikely she paused to discover the facts. 

Now we hear it was Charles Sousa who fired Godfrey and then the story was leaked. 

Charles Sousa was a rival candidate for the leadership. He is a provincial member from Mississuaga 
Probably knew all about the cancellation of the generating plants. Formerly associated with the Royal Bank of Canada.

Paul Godfrey was probably paid an adequate salary for the job of Chairman of OLG. Still the job was a public service. 

Dalton McGuinty saw fit to keep hm in the job. His performance  must have been satisfactory. 

Paul Godfrey started as an alderman in North York. His successful career has been  very public. He is an icon in the Jewish community.

There's something mean-spirited in the Kathleen Wynne government that couldn't handle the separation  with  more class. It's not worthy of a government. 

They may rue the day.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pamela Wallin plays the victim card. So far 4 Senators are out of their comfortable seats including one Liberal. Rome had circuses -Canada has a Senate.

Anonymous said...

I have a good book, the garden is coming along far too fast and now politics all over the place. Is this normal? Keep well.

Anonymous said...


Yes, but right here in Aurora we had our own "scandal."

It was the recent Ballard booze issue with documentation to prove it, although this was not easily forthcoming.

Finally the facts came out. The Mayor had claimed an expense of $56 for hospitality during a two-year period; beer money it's often called.

If the sanctimonious Mr. Ballard had to deal with the present federal and provincial cock-ups he might have expired by now. Simply couldn't handle the pressure.

Having made a mockery of public polling earlier this week, Christy Clark now comes across as the most sincere and likeable Canadian politician.

Harper should get new glasses and Wynne should get new frames for hers.

Anonymous said...

I think he can only be fired if he fits a few limited categories. Being broke or convicted of a felony are two of them. But it actually does look as though charges might eventually filed against one or more senators..The operative work there is ' might '.

Anonymous said...


Harper and Wynne are political babes in the woods in comparison with Lyndon Johnson, a master at the game.

He demanded, and received, loyalty from his staff and their passion for anonymity. It was all about him, not them. He wanted all the credit.

And in a moment of wisdom, when talking about politics, he said: "While you're saving your face, you're losing your ass."

That's just what is happening in Ottawa and Toronto, today, right now!

Anonymous said...

The irony about the Senate uproar fairly screams. Duffy & Wallin were products of the media and their current mess is a direct result of the social media. It must be particularly painful for Pamela to see her carefully-laid long-term plans to head up the Senate lying in ruins. Almost worth my pity, almost.