Editor:
In response to your editorial, “Truthfulness and trust,” I can only reply: “Et tu, M. Gleeson?”
Perhaps Canada was ready for Trudeau’s balanced cabinet concept “because it was 2015.” Sadly, novice Wilson-Raybould was not ready to be a cabinet member, in 2015 or today.
In 2017, Canada introduced Deferred Prose-cution Agreement (DPA) legislation, as is standard in other first world countries. In 2018, Canada’s chief prosecutor and her staff declined to apply the DPA, instead recommending a costly, lengthy, hard-to-win prosecution.
We elect accountable politicians to direct less accountable bureaucrats. The only logical approach was the DPA – regardless of which party was in power. The political branch “pressure” was thus prudent governing, not political interference.
It is said: “When you didn’t get what you wanted, what you got was experience.” Unless you are Wilson-Raybould – who instead got “even.” Indeed, Mr. Wernick represented PM Trudeau as being “determined.” Personally, I prefer my leadership that way. Aside from which, Wernick’s comment was obviously posturing and definitely hearsay.
There are millions of confidential conversations in Canada annually; replay any one publicly, a career may be ended. Shall we just record everything at this point? Privacy and confidentiality is so 20th century.
Finally, $8 billion of SNC corporate expertise is not something you can throw in the ditch like a sack of rotten potatoes.
Mr. Trudeau, you have my trust and my vote – just lose the sunny ways, the sherwani, and the cabinet by quota. Appoint strong, competent ministers who need not be managed with kid gloves for sake of optics and get back to governing.
Alan Donenfeld, Gibsons
