An explosive Maclean’s story says Nova Scotia killer Gabe Wortman withdrew nearly half a million dollars in cash the same way RCMP informants and agents tend to receive cash payouts from police. Is the story, which relies on anonymous sources and speculation, plausible?
True North fellow and former RCMP officer Leo Knight joins The Andrew Lawton Show to discuss.
An Elections Canada investigation has let Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller off the hook after failing to report donors at a fundraising event in the US prior to the 2019 election.
On October 10, Miller attended a campaign fundraiser in New York City.
“[Miller] has agreed with the Liberal Party of Canada through oral discussions to attend a meet and greet among Canadian citizens living in New York City on October 10, 2019 at a Canadian citizen’s home in New York City, and collect donations from these Canadian citizens for his Canadian election campaign as Liberal Party of Canada candidate for Ville-Marie-Le Sud-Ouest-Île-des-Soeurs in Montréal, Canada,” wrote a Foreign Agents Registration Act with the Department of Justice at the time.
Although Miller registered the fundraiser, none of the 27 donors listed on the campaign return had a home address in the US city.
Earlier this year, Elections Canada confirmed that it had begun an audit on Miller’s alleged failure to properly report the donations.
Despite claiming that they had thoroughly investigated Miller’s fundraising discrepancies, Blacklock’s Reporter confirmed that they didn’t even interview the cabinet minister.
“We found no information to suggest the individuals who made contributions to Mr. Miller’s campaign through the association were not Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada,” claimed Elections Canada.
As reported on exclusively by True North founder Candice Malcolm, one of the fundraiser’s organizers was former senior aide to Hillary Clinton Justin Cooper.
Cooper’s work for Clinton involved setting up her ill-fated email server while she was the Secretary of State. Cooper set up the server which was eventually leaked despite not having any prior experience working in the field of cybersecurity.
Throughout Miller’s debacle, the Liberal government defended the minister’s actions alleging that all proper channels had been followed.
“All aspects of the law were faithfully adhered to and any insinuation, implication or suspicions otherwise with regard to Minister Miller are wholly and utterly unfounded,” said Government Representative in the Senate Marc Gold on February 27.
Elections Canada is currently investigating pro-life group Right Now for connecting pro-life volunteers and candidates during the 2019 federal election. The government body is also investigating Rebel News Editor Ezra Levant for potentially breaking the law by publishing a book criticizing Justin Trudeau during the 2019 federal election campaign.
If you’ve ever wondered why so much Canadian news and opinion seem to be filled with what’s happening south of the border, you’re not alone.
What you may not have realized, however, is that for a certain segment of the political establishment pushing an Americanized narrative on Canadians is one of the keys to electoral success.
We saw it most recently when Prime Minister Trudeau banned 1,500 different guns (not to mention anti-tank rockets, surface to air missiles and towed AT guns) ostensibly in response to the Nova Scotia shooting. The Liberals had promised to ban what they call “assault-style weapons” for some time in response to the supposed gun problem. While true that cities like Toronto may be experiencing a surge in gun violence over the past few years, does that mean Canada as a whole has a gun problem?
Canada has approximately 0.47 deaths per 100,000 people whereas the U.S. has 4.43 — approximately nine times as high. It is far more difficult to even purchase a gun in Canada compared to the United States. Just try to go out and buy one, you’ll see what I mean.
So why are the Liberals and their NDP supporters in parliament pushing left-wing American rhetoric? There are seven reasons that they’re doing it:
1 – We’re already steeped in American culture. From music to movies to daily news, most Canadians consume large amounts of American media and popular culture. So much so that they may not even realize that overarching narratives and norms actually stem from an American and not Canadian point of view. While it is true that our countries are close friends and allies, there is an important difference in our history, governance and societal outcomes which ultimately make for a different world view. Sometimes this is only apparent when travelling through the United States or talking to Americans.
2 – It allows them to focus public attention on American problems. By ensuring that the public conversation on certain topics is seen through an American lens, the Prime Minister has been able to distract Canadians from his many, many, many, scandals and failures. Apparently we can’t be mad at the Prime Minister for failing to address the plethora of First Nations issues — despite the fact that they were all part of his platform — if we’re busy applauding him for taking a knee at the anti-racism protest in Ottawa.
3 – They can virtue signal about problems which may have no real Canadian solution. Canada has a very different history when it comes to anti-black racism, and there is no real Canadian context for Trudeau taking a knee (not to mention while also ignoring social distancing rules.) To be clear, racism in Canada is an issue worthy of serious discussion, and we must ensure that the concerns of black Canadians and other minority groups are heard. However, this cannot be done if we are discussing the protests in the United States surrounding the death of George Floyd instead of what the instances of racism look like in Canada because they may not be the same.
4 – It helps push the narrative of a compassionate [woke] leader. If you listen to many mainstream media outlets you would get the impression that Prime Minister Trudeau is a staunch feminist, anti-racist and indigenous rights activist who is helping bring Canada back from the precipice of the Harper government. But any logical person who looks at his actions will come away with a very different opinion and many more questions. The Prime Minister attended a protest about anti-black racism and took a knee signalling his desire for change, yet he was the one caught wearing blackface multiple times. As the leader of the country, it is inappropriate for him to be pretending he’s just part of a crowd protesting in favor of change; if anyone in Canada can affect positive change it is him.
5 – It allows them to run against the Republican Party. Elections are a difficult thing to win, moreso when you’re trying to get away from a few of your own scandals. Wouldn’t it be easier, then, to simply pretend you’re running against someone else, someone that the public can dislike more than you? Ask Andrew Scheer or Doug Ford if this is the case and they’ll tell you that it’s true. While any right-wing politician will face classic anti-conservative smears, Scheer and Ford were saddled with the alleged sins of Donald Trump and the Republican Party, forcing them to either disavow the President, take his lumps or pretend that the entire thing wasn’t happening.
6 – It’s guaranteed to get a reaction. American politics seems larger than life, especially when compared to the rather tame goings-on in the House of Commons. While this current session is a bit more lively due to COVID and accusations of racism flying about, Canadians and our politics tend to be more polite and measured. As a result, it’s no surprise that when we are shown videos of horrific events like the death of George Floyd or even a political scandal, which can involve money, sex and violence, that we’re shocked and appalled. However it is in this state of shock that political spin doctors use the newly created opportunity to push their own political agenda. The gun ban, mentioned above, is one of the most striking examples. How many Canadians own an AR-15? How many times has an AR-15 been used in a mass shooting in Canada? The answers (very few, and zero) are almost irrelevant because of the public perception that this is a popular “assault style”— very scary looking — rifle owned by many Canadians.
7 – We keep letting them get away with it. We all look at American politics in much the same way we tend to turn their heads when driving past an accident — the disaster begs curiosity. While it’s fine to peek over the border to see Trump’s latest tweet or the Democrat’s newest scandal accusation, we have to remember that political theatre on Capitol Hill does not have the same effect on us as it does Americans. By allowing ourselves to be distracted with foreign issues, we are by definition taking time away from thinking, discussing and solving our own. Countless First Nations communities across the country still do not have access to clean drinking water. Recommendations from the numerous inquiries into the missing and murdered indigenous women still have yet to be implemented. Our oil and gas sector is suffering greatly putting our entire economy at risk. We are in what could be a worse financial position than during the great depression. These are all serious issues that require our immediate attention and we should demand that our politicians work towards addressing them instead of giving us talking points from the Democratic Party.
Ben Mulroney has decided to trade in some of his white privilege by cancelling himself out of the anchor chair at CTV’s Etalk. Except he’s still keeping his morning show and red carpet gigs.
True North’s Andrew Lawton talks about this self-serving act of self-cancellation, as well as the UBC board chair’s “resignation” after the “racist” act of liking Donald Trump’s tweets.
Plus, SNC-Lavalin is still getting government money and fellow True North fellow Leo Knight joins the show to discuss a speculative Maclean’s report suggesting the Nova Scotia killer may have been an RCMP operative.
Conservative MP and official critic for immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Peter Kent called for a “total pause” on immigration into Canada.
In an interview quoted by Blacklock’s Reporter, Kent disagreed with the Liberal government’s long-term immigration quotas, claiming that they are no longer achievable.
“The long term plan has to be reset. Those ballpark figures should not be taken as a realistic target anymore,” said Kent.
“We have to put a pause on everything from refugee intake to economic immigrants. At this point in time in only make sense. We’re already stretched.”
True North was able to confirm with Kent regarding his past calls for a pause.
“My question then was about both economic immigrants for the provincial nominee programs and the other regional nominee programs, as well as for the asylum claimants now in the system,” said Kent.
“[I asked] whether or not it might be wise to hit a pause given the uncertainty on the asylum claimant side like the capacity of cities and provinces to house these claimants in shelters.”
Kent questioned whether the Liberal immigration plan was realistic given the reduced capacity of the public service sector and the suffering labour market.
“What we need from the prime minister is the department’s changed estimates for both processing the economic immigrants and our capacity at a time when we’re still emerging from lockdown,” said Kent.
A plan tabled in the House of Commons by Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino on March 12, outlined a one percent increase in immigration quotas annually.
The plan would see the intake increase from 341,000 this year to 351,000 in 2021.
Kent questioned Deputy Minister Catrina Tapley on the numbers during the immigration committee
“What are your estimates today in the number of new permanent residents that will be accepted to the country?” asked Kent.
“It’s difficult to say what an estimate might be given that there are so many uncertainties, so many uncertainties on travel, so many uncertainties in other countries that affect people’s ability to complete their application,” said Tapley.
“But I want to be clear, we have continued to process applications and we are continuing to land individuals during this period.”
According to a recent scientific poll commissioned by True North, 76% of Canadians strongly or moderately agree with a temporary pause on immigration until a vaccine is developed or unemployment rates drop to pre-coronavirus levels.
Support for an immigration pause was high across all federal parties with 67% of Liberals supporting it and 66% NDP voters. Meanwhile, 67% of Conservative voters strongly agreed with a pause and another 22% moderately agreed.
“Given today’s global circumstances of a public health pandemic and severe economic crisis, now is the perfect opportunity to revert back to our successful historic immigration model, listen to the majority of Canadians, and take another pause,” said True North founder Candice Malcolm.
Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump announced a plan to issue an executive order to restrict issuing certain work visas. One of the possible restrictions to be announced is a stoppage on the temporary H-1B visa program.
The H-1B program is a non-immigrant visa that allows skilled foreign workers to gain employment in the US for a certain period of time. The Trump administration argues that the move would secure the jobs for Americans who are currently suffering due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson stated that he has no plans for the city to remove the historical statue of Sir John A. Macdonald from the city’s park.
Left-wing activists in the city protested over the weekend demanding that the statue of Canada’s first prime minister be removed.
During the demonstration, people defaced the statue by throwing eggs at it and then marched to City Hall to burn an effigy of Macdonald.
Approximately 100 people took part in the event.
“I certainly do not condone vandalism,” Paterson told the Whig-Standard.
“I don’t think it’s helpful. I don’t think it’s constructive. We’ve been working really hard as a city to try to bring people together on this issue, understanding that it’s complex, and there are different viewpoints.”
Instead of completely removing the statue, Paterson has suggested that the city would elaborate on the more troubling aspects of Macdonald’s history as a Father of Confederation.
“I’m very supportive of what I’ve heard from the community, that there’s a better way here, and that’s to add to history and not take away from it,” said Paterson.
“We need to clearly talk about both the good and the bad of Macdonald’s legacy, and be clear in that, so we can make Kingston a true museum without walls.”
Kingston is among several cities in which left-wing activists have called for historical monuments to be removed or for placenames to be changed citing racism and a colonial past.
In Montreal, another statue of Macdonald has been the target of frequent vandalism and a recent petition is calling on the city’s Mayor Valérie Plante to remove the monument.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo released a biting press statement on Monday, expressing his extreme concern regarding the Chinese government’s filing of formal espionage charges against Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.
“These charges are politically motivated and completely groundless. The United States stands with Canada in calling on Beijing for the immediate release of the two men and rejects the use of these unjustified detentions to coerce Canada,” wrote Pompeo.
“Additionally, we echo Canada’s call for immediate consular access to its two citizens, in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, as China has prohibited such access for almost six months, and the world has no knowledge of the two Canadians’ condition.”
The two Canadians are facing a number of serious trumped-up charges in China related to spying and providing state secrets.
While in detention, Chinese authorities denied and limited access to consular visits for the two.
In contrast to Pompeo’s sternly worded condemnation, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Friday that he was “disappointed” with China’s decision to lay formal charges.
“In the case of the two Michaels, I can say that we are using a wide range of public and private measures to ensure that everything is being done to get these Michaels home,” said Trudeau.
On Monday morning, spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry Zhao Lijian said that there was “no such thing as arbitrary detention” in China.
“China urges the relevant Canadian leader to earnestly respect the spirit of the rule of law, respect China’s judicial sovereignty and stop making irresponsible remarks,” said Zhao.
Later on Monday, Trudeau refuted China’s claims.
“Within the very first few days of the detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, Chinese officials were highlighting a link between the detention a week before of Meng and the arrest of the two Michaels,” said Trudeau.
Meng is currently wanted by US authorities for breaking American sanctions on Iran and several wire fraud charges.
If you “like” a tweet featuring basic, mainstream Republican talking points, the radical left will come after your job.
This is what happened to the University of British Columbia board of governors chair Michael Korenberg. Korenberg apologized and resigned after leftist activists, media and academics disapproved of tweets that he liked, which included tweets from Dinesh D’Souza, Ann Coulter and a Happy Birthday greeting to President Trump.
True North’s Lindsay Shepherd says conservatives are being persecuted by the radical left.
Independent media is more important than ever. We’re not part of the Trudeau government’s media bailout. Instead, we rely on supporters like you. Support True North: http://www.tnc.news/donate/
According to Blacklock’s Reporter, SNC-Lavalin has not been stopped from bidding on lucrative government contracts, even after they admitted to bribing foreign officials abroad and bid-rigging.
The engineering giant has received $6.8 million in federal contracts since pleading guilty to fraud. One contract was awarded on December 18, the same day that the firm pleaded guilty.
Under the terms of their out-of-court settlement, SNC-Lavalin has agreed to pay a fine of $280 million. The firm is still eligible to bid on federal contracts according to the settlement.
According to Blacklock’s, the Public Prosecution Service has refused to disclose the terms of the settlement.
Between 2001 and 2011, SNC-Lavalin spent $48 million to bribe officials in Libya in exchange for government contracts.
SNC-Lavalin also paid for the son of former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi to use prostitutes during a visit to Canada.
On Sunday SNC-Lavalin was ordered to pay $1.9 million for rigging bids on public works projects in Quebec, the fourth time the firm has made such a settlement.
“The company adopted an unusual, unlawful and dishonest practice by artificially inflating the prices of contracts, paying bribes and misappropriating money for personal gain,” Crown prosecutor Anne-Marie Manoukian said at the fraud trial.
Firms found guilty of wrongdoing would usually be blacklisted from federal contracts, but SNC-Lavalin is the only firm in Canada to have been granted an exemption by the federal government.
“SNC-Lavalin is able to continue to contract with the federal government,” Public Works Spokesman Marc-André Charbonneau said in an earlier statement.
“The Integrity Regime continues to provide a mechanism to encourage suppliers to cooperate with legal authorities.”
In 2019 high-ranking government officials, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, were accused of pressuring then-Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould to give a beneficial plea deal to SNC-Lavalin.
As a result of the SNC-Lavalin scandal, Canada’s global corruption ranking fell from 9th least-corrupt to 12th.
Compared to Stephen Harper, Justin Trudeau spent a lot more money and campaigned a lot harder in an effort to get Canada a seat on the UN security council.
If both Harper and Trudeau failed, perhaps it’s time to ask why do we even want a seat on the UN security council?
True North’s Anthony Furey says it’s time for Canada to re-think our relationship with the United Nations.
