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Canadas appointed Senate controversies reveal deeper trend of authoritarian rule

Roger Annis Posted: Nov 3rd, !"3 (Page " o# ) $tephen %arper and his governing, &onservative Part' hierarch' were hoping that the brawl the' have pic(ed with &anada)s appointed $enate would be wrapped up in time #or the part')s two*da' national convention in &algar' this past wee(end. +hat would allow them to more easil' pla' up the great news o# 'et another destructive, globali,ation/investment treat'-the one the' want to sign with .urope**as well as their ambitious plans to e/pand #ossil #uel e/traction and burning in this era o# global warming. Alas, not onl' did their timetable #alter, but %arper)s aggressive de#ense o# his use o# $enate patronage and his rough turn against some o# his advisers and $enate appointees is bac(#iring. %e has cast himsel# increasingl' as a deceptive autocrat who readil' turns on even his closest associates, leave alone appointed senators, when his political image or survival is at sta(e. +he $enate scandal bro(e in late !" over revelations o# the e/penses claimed b' senators #or housing and travel. 0our senators were deemed b' a $enate investigation committee to have made improper claims #or housing and related travel. +he committee said some o# the travel claims were even #alsi#ied. $enator 1i(e 2u##' is in the e'e o# the storm3 he was told to repa' 45!,!!! in housing e/penses #or a cottage he owns in Prince .dward 6sland and #alsel' claims as his primar' residence. According to $enate rules, a senator ma' be reimbursed #or costs o# a primar' residence i# he or she lives outside o# the 7ttawa region. +he rule is there #or senators who re8uire a secondar' residence in 7ttawa in order to per#orm senatorial duties. 9ut the non*7ttawa residence must be a primar' one, and it must be located in the province that he/she is deemed to represent. $enate appointments are based on the notion that senators represent the interests o# the province where the' reside and #rom which the' are appointed. Naturall', it is e/pected that live in the province the' supposedl' represent. 0our senators named b' the investigation committee contested its conclusions. +hree o# them were appointed b' Prime 1inister %arper in !!5.

6nitiall', %arper de#ended their claims o# innocence. 9ut as more o# the #acts o# their cases became (nown in earl' !"3, he too( his distance. $oon, the prime minister)s o##ice wanted the revelations to :go awa') as 8uic(l' and smoothl' as possible. +he blossoming o# the scandal is immediatel' rooted in the P17)s e##orts to pa' mone' to cover the e/penses owed b' $enator 1i(e 2u##'-a little more than 4"!!,!!!. Along the wa', the whole silencing operation went o## the rails. +he problem was that the three +or' senators never accepted responsibilit' #or their actions. +he' chose to not easil' be dismissed b' the prime minister who appointed them. 1atters sharpened considerabl' last month when %arper decided to press the $enate #or a vote to inde#initel' suspend the three appointees that had come to cause him so much embarrassment. +he e/pense side o# the scandal deepened considerabl' as a result o# 2u##';s statement (te/t here) on 7ctober < to the special session o# the $enate convened to vote on the suspensions. 2u##')s law'er then made subse8uent revelations. Protected #rom libel action b' the rules o# Parliament, 2u##' suggested that %arper lied to Parliament and to the &anadian people when he said that his chie# o# sta##, Nigel =right, acted on his own initiative to ma(e the &onservatives) ;2u##' problem; go awa'. >ast spring, 2u##' said, Prime 1inister %arper demanded that he pa' bac( the 45!,!!! that the $enate committee said he owed. 9ut 2u##' said he didn)t have the mone', and in an' event, he wasn)t happ' with conceding guilt in the matter. $o %arper)s chie# o# sta## cut a personal che8ue to 2u##' #or the 45!,!!! the $enate wanted repaid. 2u##')s law'er recentl' revealed that the &onservative Part' agreed at the time to cover the 4"3,!!! in legal #ees that 2u##' had rac(ed up in de#ending himsel# be#ore the $enate committee. 2u##')s 7ctober < speech to the $enate revealed the hereto#ore un(nown circumstances o# the 45!,!!! reimbursement b' =right, namel', that %arper ordered him to :pa' bac( the mone') he owed and put an end to the controvers'. =hat was subse8uentl' revealed was the pa'out b' =right. %e 8uic(l' resigned when that came out, in 1a'. %arper said at the time that =right had su##ered a temporar' lapse o# ?udgment in ma(ing the pa'out and should pa' #or his transgression. %e paid tribute to =right, sa'ing he had ta(en the honorable course o# resigning. 9ut last +uesda' in the %ouse o# &ommons, as the 8uestions mount o# what %arper (new o# the pa'out, and when, he turned on his #ormer chie# o# sta##, casting him as a wheeler*dealer lac(ing in morals and hardl' better than the three discredited senators that he, %arper,

wants to suspend inde#initel' #or abusing the ta/pa'ers) purse. >ast wee( was also when %arper introduced the narrative that =right did not resign-he was @dismissed@. 6n a sign o# new troubles #or %arper with his own part', several prominent &onservatives have distanced themselves #rom the ruthless turn against =right. &abinet ministers Aason Benne' and Peter 1ac(a' as well as other prominent +ories have come out in strong de#ense o# his reputation. %arper)s e##orts to de#lect the e/pense scandals surrounding all three o# the senators he appointed in !!5-2u##', Pamela =allin and Patric( 9ra,eau** have ensnared him in a swamp o# deception and lies. %e stands e/posed as a deceiver and manipulator**#or man', even, as an outright liar. %e sa's he never tried to cover up the reimbursement to 2u##' #or his #alse housing and travel e/pense claims. 9ut 2u##')s convincing account o# the matter delivered to the a#orementioned session o# the $enate as well as other documentar' records that have emerged sa' otherwise. And it)s still not clear i# the now pain#ull' drawn*out e##ort b' %arper and the +or' brass to suspend the three senators will pass in a $enate vote. $everal &onservative senators have said the' will vote no. Nigel =right, the Barl Rove*t'pe #ormer chie# o# sta## and a rising neo* conservative star, is now reportedl' doing voluntar' penance in an 7ttawa soup (itchen and has so #ar (ept a ston' silence. +oronto $tar columnist &hantal %Cbert has recentl' speculated that =right could destro' %arper)s reputation in an instant i# he were to go public with details that would contradict %arper)s increasingl' contradictor' narrative. 9ut blind lo'alt' runs deep among at least some o# the neo*conservatives. As we saw at the +or' convention this past wee(end, the &onservative Part' hierarch' has become more deepl' enmeshed in the controvers'. +he original idea that was discussed there was to have the part' pa' o## all o# 2u##')s e/penses. 9ut the directors o# the part' #und used #or such purposes bal(ed when the' learned that the amount would not be 43 ,!!!, as initiall' reported to them, but 45!,!!!. Draciousl', the #und did agree at the time to cover 2u##')s legal e/penses. Anachronistic Senate and authoritarian rule %arper)s problems with the $enate go well be'ond the immediate circumstances that have landed him in hot water. +he institution is an undemocratic anachronism that is increasingl' alienated #rom a public now schooled in the revelations o# the courageous whistleblowers o# =i(ilea(s and .dward $nowden. 1an' &anadians, probabl' most, increasingl' recoil #rom the ugl' #ace o# capitalist rule which the whistleblowers have e/posed. &anadians e/pect accountabilit' and transparenc' #rom government. +he

image o# a $enate #illed with patronage appointments (sometimes o# losing candidates in #ederal elections) and in which senators load up on dubious e/pense claims is increasingl' repellent. %arper once railed against the appointed $enate, musing about :re#orms) such as ma(ing it an elected bod'. A wing o# his part' is deepl' committed to nostrums o# $enate re#orm. Eet once in power, he seamlessl' continued the long >iberal Part' tradition o# patronage appointments. =orse #or him, he pla'ed loose with the constitutional tradition that senators are there to represent the interests o# the provinces and should be appointed accordingl', including that the' reside in their respective province. +his is the precise origin o# the 2u##'*=allin*9ra,eau e/pense scandal. 1ore speci#icall', the scandal coincides with growing opposition to the increasingl' authoritarian practices o# #ederal governments in &anada. +he' have dramaticall' cut social spending on housing, education and other services. Fnder the &onservatives, more and more power has been concentrated in the o##ice o# the prime minister. 0or man', %arper cuts a particularl' unattractive #igure as autocrat. Also, the +ories have institutionali,ed the practice o# using :omnibus) legislation to push through sweeping attac(s on democratic rights, environmental protection, social services and a host o# other government programs that man' &anadians hold dearl'. +he &onservative convention in &algar' revealed an increasingl' restless right wing among his part' membership. 6t is unhapp' with the social polic' leash on which %arper has (ept it since the part' was #irst being elected in !!G. %arper wants the most unpopular o# his reactionar' ideolog' and social polic' to be brought #orward at a time o# his choosing, not that o# his right wing base. +his convention passed resolutions in #avour o# restricting a woman)s right to choose abortion, #urther outlawing assisted suicide, and sweeping attac(s on the salaries and bene#its o# public service wor(ers and the right o# their unions to #unction #ree o# government harassment, including how the' #und themselves. %arper does not disagree with all this. 9ut he is deepl' aware that it is out o# step with a large bod' o# the &anadian population. +he loosening o# %arper)s grip on his o##ice is li(el' prompting his right wing base to tug harder on their leash, which will onl' increase the part')s headaches and public image challenges. %arper is #ar #rom down and out #or the count. %e has several options up his sleeve to deal with his mess in the $enate, including convening a national re#erendum in #avour o# an elected senate. +hat would reposition him nicel' as a $enate :re#ormer). %e could even propose outright abolition o# the bod', though that seems unli(el' given its long and important tradition as an outlet #or patronage.

A #actor wor(ing in %arper)s #avour is the tepid opposition he #aces in Parliament. +he >iberals are the (ing o# $enate patronage and have nothing b' wa' o# :$enate re#orm) to o##er. +he N2P has long voiced the notion o# $enate abolition, but it does little to campaign and educate on the issue. 6ts position could easil' be undercut b' a re#erendum #or an elected bod'. 7ne can ?ust imagine %arper on the re#erendum campaign trail**:+he N2P sa's it doesn)t li(e an appointed senate. +he' should ?oin me in creating an elected one3 i# the' don)t the' are h'pocrites.) =hat)s more, the N2P is (eeping a studied silence on %arper)s rough (and unconstitutional) proposal to suspend without salar' or bene#its the three appointees that have given him such headaches. %is proposal would den' them their supplemental medical bene#its, among other measures. 7n the two #undamental polic' issues that %arper is li(el' to trumpet in the ne/t #ederal election-globali,ed trade and investment deals, and increased #ossil #uel e/traction-the >iberals and N2P are in agreement with much o# it. 9oth support the :.nerg' .ast) tar sands pipeline proposal, the o/'moronic notion o# :sa#e) oil b' rail transport, and creation o# a huge, li8ue#ied natural gas industr' in 9ritish &olumbia. +he >iberals share the &onservative government)s enthusiasm #or the troubled Be'stone H> tar sands pipeline. +he' want a tar sands pipeline to the 9& coast (though recogni,e that Northern Datewa' is Ithe wrong locationJ). >eaders o# the 9& N2P repudiated their leader earlier this 'ear when he voiced opposition during the provincial election campaign to the other, #or now less controversial, tar sands pipeline-Binder 1organ)s +rans 1ountain. $o there remains much political renewal to be done in &anada i# democrac', the political le#t and all those being targeted b' the %arper &onservatives** women, unions, 0irst Nations, 'oung people-are to emerge strengthened b' all we)ve learned o# the $enate imbroglio. Here is a timeline of the Senate expense scandal and fallout in Canada.

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