Andrew Coyne: The only right thing left for Mike Duffy to do now is resign

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by corporatejay

Well this should clear everything up.

Joan Crockatt MP ‏@Crockatteer 3h Our govt has the highest ethical standards demonstrated by 3 resignations: 2 from Senate caucus & the PM chief of staff.@patbolland #cpc

Well that's certainly good to know.

This may be a bit off-topic, but I hate drunk driving. I hate it so much that last year, when I was arrested for it three times, I paid the fine EVERY TIME.

It's called ethics, people. Anyone who drinks and drives should take note.

[MarchHare]

Nenshi usually stays neutral in federal politics, but even he couldn't let this BS slide:

https://twitter.com/nenshi/status/336535799371800576

[Zulu29]

I am very surprised that Harper wasn't more critical of this mess during his open caucus meeting, I figured he'd cleave Duffy et al from the herd and distance himself. Instead he was just vague with his answers and seemed to just want everyone to forget about it.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by Zulu29

I am very surprised that Harper wasn't more critical of this mess during his open caucus meeting, I figured he'd cleave Duffy et al from the herd and distance himself. Instead he was just vague with his answers and seemed to just want everyone to forget about it.

Pretty hard to distance yourself when you're basically directly involved. No way his chief of staff cuts a cheque for $90k and Harper has no clue.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by Zulu29

I am very surprised that Harper wasn't more critical of this mess during his open caucus meeting, I figured he'd cleave Duffy et al from the herd and distance himself. Instead he was just vague with his answers and seemed to just want everyone to forget about it.

You're surprised? With how often he's done it, this should honestly just be known as "Pulling a Harper."

[Slava]

Oh, and answers to what? He took no questions, as usual, so I must have missed something there?

I have a hard time figuring out what the biggest scandal is right now. It could be Duffy, but that pesky little $3.1 BILLION the Harper Government™ lost is hard to overlook. Just for context, the sponsorship scandal that enrages CPC supporters was a mere $2M.

[Zulu29]

Originally Posted by rubecube

You're surprised? With how often he's done it, this should honestly just be known as "Pulling a Harper."

I hear ya, but this isn't the normal run of the mill scandal. This is massive and potentially fatal for the Cons, I expected more desperation. Ignorance is bliss?

[Zulu29]

Originally Posted by Slava

Oh, and answers to what? He took no questions, as usual, so I must have missed something there?

I have a hard time figuring out what the biggest scandal is right now. It could be Duffy, but that pesky little $3.1 BILLION the Harper Government™ lost is hard to overlook. Just for context, the sponsorship scandal that enrages CPC supporters was a mere $2M.

You are absolutely correct and I shouldn't have used he term "answers" rather, "regurgitated speech from 2005 that conveniently left out the parts where he said people should be held accountable or go to jail.

[Devils'Advocate]

From CBC.ca:

And while Harper was apologizing about what was going on behind his back, his right hand in the Senate, Marjory Lebreton chalked up intensive coverage to "hyped-up media stories" in a town "populated by Liberal elites and their media lickspittles."

So the Conservative message now is that this really is a non-story and shouldn't be getting the media attention that it has been getting, but it's the liberal elites and their lapdog's in the media that are making this molehill into a mountain. Just stop paying attention to this issue. Nothing to see here.

[Senator Clay Davis]

The CPC is getting dangerously close to "bubble" territory. If SunTV ever takes off past the 6 viewers they have look the hell out, we may have our own Tea Party up here.

[Makarov]

How is this thread only three pages long? I wonder how long would it be if this scandal broke for a Liberal federal government?

[Zulu29]

Originally Posted by Makarov

How is this thread only three pages long? I wonder how long would it be if this scandal broke for a Liberal federal government?

I was wondering the same thing.

[OldDutch]

My question is why would Duffy need someone to pay his debt? That is the real story. Is it because someone high ranking in CPC told Duffy that he could wink wink write all this off? Did Duffy cross his arms and refuse to pay due to a deal like this? So Harper told his PMO to pay it off so it would go away no more questions asked? In return for this "gift", was the chief of promised a cushy ROI himself?

This has all the makings of a lying 10 year old that is getting caught, and trying everything to avoid it...rather poorly. It s rather comical to see Harper caught in this.

[Bertuzzied]

Originally Posted by Makarov

How is this thread only three pages long? I wonder how long would it be if this scandal broke for a Liberal federal government?

The thread title isn't very enticing.

I hope before Harper falls he unleashes the real Rob Anders!

[Makarov]

Originally Posted by fotze

Ya, I'm suprised the liberals on this board are ignoring it more than the conservative types.

How many liberals are there on this forum? Not very many. And how many times can each of us say "this is the exact type of corruption that the Conservatives promised they would deliver us from"?

No, I suggest that the length of this thread indicates: (1) there are far more conservatives than liberals on this forum; (2) the majority of those conservative forumers (perhaps not surprisingly) have a double standard when it comes to corruption in Liberal and Conservative governments; and (3) as Bertuzzied points out, the thread title is not filled with the scandalous hyperbole that entices people to view it (although, again, I can't help but wonder whether the title would be much different if this was "Nanny Redford"'s government, for example.)

[Senator Clay Davis]

This thread isn't very long because the people who don't like the CPC aren't even remotely surprised by this. In fact we all expected this day to come, so whats the point of being chest out about it? The CPC is who we thought they were: Fiscal conservatives who aren't fiscally conservative, and the champions of transparancy and open government who are as restrictive and secretive as can get. I can see why there isn't a ton of posts about an expected result.

[Senator Clay Davis]

Speaking of untrustworthy...

A draft report on Mike Duffy’s expenses clearly shows a Conservative-dominated committee removed several key sentences that would have cast the PEI senator in a more negative light.

A copy of the report obtained by The Globe and Mail contains 10 paragraphs, whereas the final version from the Senate internal economy committee has only seven.

REMOVED SECTIONS

A draft report on Senator Mike Duffy’s expense claims shows how the Conservative-dominated committee removed several key sections.

Mr. Duffy’s lawyer says an audit is unnecessary after the repayment: “A letter was received from [Mr. Duffy’s Ottawa lawyer Janice Payne] on March 26, 2013 in response, indicating that Senator Duffy had repaid an amount regarding the housing living allowance and that, ‘In the circumstances, the review that Deloitte has been asked to undertake is now unnecessary.’ ”

The Senate says its expense rules are clear: “[T]he purpose and intent of the original Living Expenses in the NCR [National Capital Region] Guidelines and of the Senators Travel Policy adopted in June 2012 are very clear. … Your Subcommittee considers this language to be unambiguous and plainly, if a Senator resides primarily in the NCR, he or she should not be claiming living expenses for the NCR.”

Details on Mr. Duffy’s travel patterns and time spent at primary residence: “Senator Duffy was found to have spent approximately 30 per cent or 164 of the 549 days in the period of review at this declared primary residence. Additionally, Senator Duffy’s travel patterns were consistently Ottawa-PEI-Ottawa, demonstrating that Ottawa was his primary default location.”

A conclusion that Mr. Duffy uses the PEI cottage mostly in summer: “… while recognizing that Senator Duffy owns a residence in PEI and spends considerable time there, in particular during the summer months, his continued presence at his Ottawa residence over the years does not support such a declaration and is contrary to plain meaning of the word ‘primary’ and to the purpose and intent of the provision of living allowance …”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...ticle12082045/

[Makarov]

Originally Posted by fotze

Do you write tweets for Joan Crockatt?

Or maybe there is no defending this scandal, the conservative types in this thread have even said so.

No side ever will go on and on about their own sides wrongdoing. That just doesn't ever happen, on either side. Thats why partisan debates are such a yawn. Your side is all evil and dumb and you are all the same wah wah wah.

True enough, but this point is seldom raised on the Redford or Liberal party threads that stretch on for dozens and dozens of pages of conservative chest-thumping.

[Devils'Advocate]

You look at any thread about the sponsorship scandal and they are longer than the "Funny or Cool Pictures" threads.

This one is like tumbleweeds.

And Fotze may be correct in saying that no "side" trumpets their own failures. However, it should give evidence to:
(1) CP, like Calgary, is very Conservative
(2) Those that said they were "outraged" at the sponsorship scandal were mostly feigning outrage because it was to their political advantage. If they were really outraged at government malfeasance they would be equally outspoken no matter what party was in power.

[jammies]

I never really liked Harper, but I always thought he was in the "power-hungry but competent" category of politicians. Now I'm rethinking the "competent" part - I expect a certain amount of malfeasance and skulduggery, but this is getting way way way out of hand.

My fervent hope is that next election we end up back with some kind of minority government. None of the three major parties appeals to me, so I guess the best you can hope for is that none of them get what they want.