Power & Politics' Ballot Box question
- March 30, 2012 4:20 PM
- By Rosemary Barton
Ballot Box replaces our Question of the Day. Learn more about our new interactive features for Power & Politics and how you can take part in the political conversation -- live and on-screen -- here. Ballot Box refreshes daily - the question you see above is the current question.
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Farewell, Angelo Persichilli: PMO loses its sixth director of communications in six years
- March 30, 2012 11:25 AM
- By Kady O'Malley
Hot off the press gallery listserv comes a letter of resignation from Angelo Persichilli, who leaves his position as director of prime ministerial communications after just seven months on the job.
Hit the jump for the full post.
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Orders of the Day - Fix teleprompters, ministers! There's an Economic Action! Plan to tout!
- March 30, 2012 8:34 AM
- By Kady O'Malley
Despite the awkward timing of the budget drop, which traditionally takes place on the eve of a constituency week, thus freeing up cabinet ministers and MPs across the country to tout its marvels, the good news circuit is, it seems, up and running at maximum capacity.
At press time -- and the advisories keep flooding in, so this could change -- it appears that PMO has dispatched no fewer than 18 (!) ministers (and one backbench MP) to the four corners of the country to deliver what will almost certainly be virtually identical speeches on the wonders of the latest iteration of Canada's Economic Action! Plan, as well as pose for the cameras at what will almost certainly be virtually identical EA!P-themed photo ops.
At press time -- and the advisories keep flooding in, so this could change -- it appears that PMO has dispatched no fewer than 18 (!) ministers (and one backbench MP) to the four corners of the country to deliver what will almost certainly be virtually identical speeches on the wonders of the latest iteration of Canada's Economic Action! Plan, as well as pose for the cameras at what will almost certainly be virtually identical EA!P-themed photo ops.
Hit the jump for the full post.
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Follow politics live on our Hill tickers
- March 30, 2012 6:00 AM
- By Kady O'Malley
Follow the latest tweets from Parliament Hill in our liveblog.
You can also keep track of other active liveblogs and tickers via the handy-dandy menu, which gives you instant access to all active and completed events from a single window.
Mobile-friendly auto-updating text feed available here or hit the jump for the full CoveritLive experience.
You can also keep track of other active liveblogs and tickers via the handy-dandy menu, which gives you instant access to all active and completed events from a single window.
Mobile-friendly auto-updating text feed available here or hit the jump for the full CoveritLive experience.
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Power & Politics' Ballot Box question
- March 29, 2012 5:05 PM
- By Evan Solomon
Ballot Box replaces our Question of the Day. Learn more about our new interactive features for Power & Politics and how you can take part in the political conversation -- live and on-screen -- here. Ballot Box refreshes daily - the question you see above is the current question.
Internet Explorer 8 users please note: browser cookies must be enabled to vote in Ballot Box. Consult your browser's privacy settings.
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Committee Recap: Elections Canada looking into 800 complaints covering 200 ridings: Chief Electoral Officer
- March 29, 2012 2:15 PM
- By Kady O'Malley
Despite fears that he wouldn't be able to provide much in the way of new information on the robocalls controversy, Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand more than lived up to his billing as star witness at committee, and provided a somewhat unexpected, but entirely welcome update on the file to a packed-to-the-rafters-and-then-some committee room. According to Mayrand, as of today, the agency has accepted more than 800 specific complaints -- covering approximately 200 ridings, a number considerably higher than pretty much anyone had been expecting -- and 250 open files currently before the elections commissioner.
Not surprisingly, that didn't go over terribly well on the government side of the table, where Conservative members, apparently unprepared for such detailed disclosure, were forced into an ad hoc defence that involved attempting to downplay the new numbers, as well as suggesting that a good number of the allegedly misdirection calls could have been inadvertent misdirection resulting from inaccurate information on the voters list. Mayrand, however, took issue with the suggestion that a call that involved posing as Elections Canada could be explained away as an honest mistake, and chided prime ministerial parliamentary secretary Dean Del Mastro for his own "unfounded allegation" that Elections Canada itself was leaking information to reporters. (Somewhat bizarrely, Del Mastro claimed that he had been made aware of this allegation from other (unnamed) reporters, who allegedly called his office to complain about it.)
Not surprisingly, that didn't go over terribly well on the government side of the table, where Conservative members, apparently unprepared for such detailed disclosure, were forced into an ad hoc defence that involved attempting to downplay the new numbers, as well as suggesting that a good number of the allegedly misdirection calls could have been inadvertent misdirection resulting from inaccurate information on the voters list. Mayrand, however, took issue with the suggestion that a call that involved posing as Elections Canada could be explained away as an honest mistake, and chided prime ministerial parliamentary secretary Dean Del Mastro for his own "unfounded allegation" that Elections Canada itself was leaking information to reporters. (Somewhat bizarrely, Del Mastro claimed that he had been made aware of this allegation from other (unnamed) reporters, who allegedly called his office to complain about it.)
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Orders of the Day - Happy Budget/Chief Electoral Officer Speaks Out On Robocalls Day!
- March 29, 2012 8:48 AM
- By Kady O'Malley
In what can only be described as a deeply unfortunate bit of scheduling business, Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand is set to make his first public statement on the robocalls controversy at committee later this morning, just hours before the budget drops, when all but a handful of Hill media -- although not, I should note, your humble liveblogging correspondent -- will be sequestered in the finance department lockup, and as such, will be unable to attend, or even tune into the livestream to hear what he has to say.
According to the committee chair -- the always affable Joe Preston -- the time clash, while awkward, was inevitable: the members, he says, had indicated that they were keen to hear from the CEO at the earliest possible opportunity, and this was the first available opening. It's fair to say that, thus far, his explanation has done little to quell the conspiracy theorizing that followed the revelation that Mayrand would appear on Budget Day.
In any case, it's not entirely clear what new information the CEO can share with the committee, given the constraints on what he can reveal publicly, particularly with regard to the still-ongoing investigation(s) into alleged voter suppression tactics deployed in Guelph, and possibly beyond. Still, depending on how MPs approach the issue, his appearance may turn out to be an enlightening one. For more on that, read my post on the five questions that he may actually be able to answer.
According to the committee chair -- the always affable Joe Preston -- the time clash, while awkward, was inevitable: the members, he says, had indicated that they were keen to hear from the CEO at the earliest possible opportunity, and this was the first available opening. It's fair to say that, thus far, his explanation has done little to quell the conspiracy theorizing that followed the revelation that Mayrand would appear on Budget Day.
In any case, it's not entirely clear what new information the CEO can share with the committee, given the constraints on what he can reveal publicly, particularly with regard to the still-ongoing investigation(s) into alleged voter suppression tactics deployed in Guelph, and possibly beyond. Still, depending on how MPs approach the issue, his appearance may turn out to be an enlightening one. For more on that, read my post on the five questions that he may actually be able to answer.
Hit the jump for the full post.
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Power & Politics' Ballot Box question
- March 28, 2012 4:07 PM
- By Evan Solomon
Ballot Box replaces our Question of the Day. Learn more about our new interactive features for Power & Politics and how you can take part in the political conversation -- live and on-screen -- here. Ballot Box refreshes daily - the question you see above is the current question.
Internet Explorer 8 users please note: browser cookies must be enabled to vote in Ballot Box. Consult your browser's privacy settings.
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UPDATED - NDP MP launches privilege complaint over government's non-answer on the Office of Religious Freedom
- March 28, 2012 3:33 PM
- By Kady O'Malley
Since Confederation, MPs have dutifully filled the back pages of the Order Paper with all manner of questions on the administration of government -- specifically, questions that, by their very nature, were simply too technical or otherwise unwieldy to be answered during QP. Judging from this response to a query from NDP foreign affairs critic Helene Laverdiere on the Office of Religious Freedom, it really may no longer be worth the price of the toner used to print it out for tabling purposes. Not, that is, unless members are ready to kick up a fuss when a government doesn't even pretend to provide an answer.
Hit the jump for the full post.
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Robocalls Watch: 5 questions for Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand (that he can actually answer at committee)
- March 28, 2012 12:39 PM
- By Kady O'Malley
Given the sky-high expectations for dramatic committee room reveals that
are swirling around the Hill in anticipation of tomorrow's committee
appearance by Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand, this seems like as
good a time as any to issue a general preemptive caveat, at least as far
as what new information the CEO might be able to share with MPs -- and,
by extension, the rest of us -- on the topic du jour, "allegations of
wrong-doing during the 41st general election."
After all, not only will Mayrand be constrained by the fact that the hunt for Pierre Poutine is still underway, but he also has no direct role in active investigations, which fall under the purview of the commissioner of elections, and not the CEO.
As such, he's not likely to be able to provide specific details on the latest developments related to alleged voter suppression in Guelph, nor any other riding(s) that may now be under review following the flood of 700-plus complaints that followed the initial robocall revelations.
Given all that, what will Mayrand be able to discuss at tomorrow's meeting?
Hit the jump for a few possibilities, depending, of course, on the questions that he's asked by inquisitive MPs:
After all, not only will Mayrand be constrained by the fact that the hunt for Pierre Poutine is still underway, but he also has no direct role in active investigations, which fall under the purview of the commissioner of elections, and not the CEO.
As such, he's not likely to be able to provide specific details on the latest developments related to alleged voter suppression in Guelph, nor any other riding(s) that may now be under review following the flood of 700-plus complaints that followed the initial robocall revelations.
Given all that, what will Mayrand be able to discuss at tomorrow's meeting?
Hit the jump for a few possibilities, depending, of course, on the questions that he's asked by inquisitive MPs:
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About the Authors
- Kady O'Malley has been covering the Hill for more than a decade (yes, really) for a variety of publications. An Ottawa girl (not quite born, but raised), she has a passion for politics that borders on the unhealthy, and has liveblogged her way through hundreds of committee meetings, press conferences, judicial inquiries, budget launches, cabinet shuffles, and even the odd constitutional crisis. Oh, and yes, her Boston Terrier really is named "BlackBerry."
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