Update: Jaffer emailed Industry staff from Guergis account (post #13)

[RedHot25]

http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/201...legations.html

Environment Minister Jim Prentice has disclosed that Rahim Jaffer met with his staff member on behalf of a company in his wife Helena Guergis's parliamentary office, not in Prentice's riding office in Calgary, as the minister first stated.

...

Last Friday, Prentice rose in the House of Commons on a point of order to disclose Jaffer met with his staff member, Scott Wenger, in Calgary last April and their discussions "involved representations by Mr. Jaffer on behalf of a company."

But during Monday's question period, Liberal environment critic David McGuinty asked Prentice to confirm that Wenger met Jaffer in the offices of his wife Guergis, who was minister for the status of women at the time of the meeting.

Prentice replied that "the meeting in question did, in fact, happen in that particular office." But he gave no explanation for the change in information.
McGuinty also accused the minister of delaying his disclosure until after Jaffer testified in front of a parliamentary committee last week.

[CaptainCrunch]

Interesting.

I'm waiting to see if any money actually went to Jaffer's company.

I would also assume that there have to be notes from that meeting. It could have been a simple "Buzz off" meeting between the aid and Jaffer.

I want to see the pictures of the coke and hooker party myself.

[mariners_fever]

So far all of the documents found by the Globe and Mail, who'd I'd expect first to reveal any misgivings given their left-wing reputation, indicate the government rejected any applications made by Jaffer.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1545044/

[The Goon]

The G&M's left-wing? This is news to me.

A quick search revealed some info about their political stance. Looks like they've been centrist on average.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by mariners_fever

So far all of the documents found by the Globe and Mail, who'd I'd expect first to reveal any misgivings given their left-wing reputation, indicate the government rejected any applications made by Jaffer.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1545044/

Interesting that his wife wrote a letter of support, thats a conflict of interest right there that should probably have cost her her job.

I'm thinking that Jaffer probably got in front of Prentice's aid as a courtesy ambush.

[mariners_fever]

Originally Posted by The Goon

The G&M's left-wing? This is news to me.

A quick search revealed some info about their political stance. Looks like they've been centrist on average.

Let me qualify that statement a little bit better.

Centrist by our standards is fairly left by most of the Western world's standards. While the editorial board has supported Harper in both of his victorious campaigns, I find as a political scientist that stories that are of more interest to the left are found more easily in the G&M, especially when compared to the National Post.

Bear in mind, also, that the Liberals are a centrist party, so by left in that statement, I'm saying that they would typically be a more Liberal-friendly (centrist) paper than, say, the National Post who is a reasonably right-leaning paper despite the Aspers' efforts otherwise around the dawn of the millennium.

My point is that they'd be the first to break a story that may look bad to the Conservatives if they're left-wing or centrist because such stories would be in diametric ideological opposition to the current government. This is evidenced in that I've found Jaffer has been the lead story on their website with much greater frequency than the Post. So that they're the first to break that the government rejected Jaffer's proposals would say to me that if a voice that would generally look for negativity on the right has produced these documents, perhaps Jaffer's 'meetings' with Prentice aides were apparently met with an emphatic 'buzz off'.

[Russic]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Interesting.

I'm waiting to see if any money actually went to Jaffer's company.

I would also assume that there have to be notes from that meeting. It could have been a simple "Buzz off" meeting between the aid and Jaffer.

I want to see the pictures of the coke and hooker party myself.

I hope so ... I know the aid ... awesome guy.

[burn_this_city]

Originally Posted by Russic

I hope so ... I know the aid ... awesome guy.

Can you get me some money then?

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by mariners_fever

Let me qualify that statement a little bit better.

Centrist by our standards is fairly left by most of the Western world's standards. While the editorial board has supported Harper in both of his victorious campaigns, I find as a political scientist that stories that are of more interest to the left are found more easily in the G&M, especially when compared to the National Post.

Bear in mind, also, that the Liberals are a centrist party, so by left in that statement, I'm saying that they would typically be a more Liberal-friendly (centrist) paper than, say, the National Post who is a reasonably right-leaning paper despite the Aspers' efforts otherwise around the dawn of the millennium.

My point is that they'd be the first to break a story that may look bad to the Conservatives if they're left-wing or centrist because such stories would be in diametric ideological opposition to the current government. This is evidenced in that I've found Jaffer has been the lead story on their website with much greater frequency than the Post. So that they're the first to break that the government rejected Jaffer's proposals would say to me that if a voice that would generally look for negativity on the right has produced these documents, perhaps Jaffer's 'meetings' with Prentice aides were apparently met with an emphatic 'buzz off'.

So to sum up, because G&M is generally to the left of the National Post they have reason to falsify the story.

Is Iraq still looking for an Information Minister? You may want to apply.

[mariners_fever]

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

So to sum up, because G&M is generally to the left of the National Post they have reason to falsify the story.

Is Iraq still looking for an Information Minister? You may want to apply.

Completely out of context, buddy. Said nothing of falsifying, I said that because they were quick to report on documents that show the government rejected Jaffer's proposals, then it would seem that the government did indeed act properly in this case. If I had accused them of falsifying, I would have said that they would have not have shown those documents at all, or altered the story.

Nor did I say they falsify stories or content, I simply said that they are more apt to print stories that would cater to a non-conservative crowd. As a matter of fact, I prefer the description of them as centrist as it does fall in line with the middle-of-the-road position that is typically occupied by the Liberal Party and since they are Canada's "natural governing party", it would make sense to call them centrist as they print stories to appeal to the largest segment of the population possible. My initial moniker of "left" was simply in reference to its position next to its competitor, the Post.

Saying that they choose the stories they print to best sell their papers is by no means an accusation of falsifying information. To not acknowledge that this is possible would be a gross underestimation (or overestimation of altruism) of human nature.

[RedHot25]

Just an update from today: http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/201...testimony.html

Nazim Gillani, a Toronto businessman at the centre of lobbying allegations against Rahim Jaffer, has challenged the former Conservative MP's assertion that no business relationship existed between his company and Gillani's firm.

Gillani presented documents to a parliamentary committee in Ottawa on Wednesday that suggest his firm had a contract with Jaffer's company to help secure government funding. Gillani, who insisted on being sworn in for his testimony, told MPs he sought a business relationship with Jaffer because the former MP "knew how to negotiate the government maze."

[RedHot25]

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/...exchanges.html



Rahim Jaffer, the former Conservative MP accused of unlawfully lobbying for government contracts, used one of his wife's parliamentary email accounts to contact the Industry Ministry last month about business on behalf of his friends, documents obtained by CBC News show.

Jaffer sent an email to an Industry Ministry official from an account registered to MP Helena Guergis, who at the time was the minister for the status of women. The message inquired about Canada's plans for installing new space satellites and about national ownership rules in that sector.

The information was requested "on behalf of some constituents who are friends of Helena and I," Jaffer wrote in the message. Jaffer hasn't been an MP since he lost his Edmonton-Strathcona seat in the October 2008 election.

In the email, he asks whether the federal government is interested in technology that allows satellites to track ocean vessels. If so, he says, it "would be positive for commercial development and MDA." MDA refers to MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates, a B.C.-based aerospace firm that has built several government satellites.

[mikey_the_redneck]

Wait a minute!!

There is "minister for the status of women"??

You gotta be kidding me......

[Wookie]

nm