I am very concerned about the information you provided in this article. It isn’t surprising that our government lacks the necessary knowledge or skills
to effectively manage our federal government or make decisions that reflect what is in the best interest of all Canadians.
I wish I had some brilliant ideas about how to fix what’s broken, but I don’t.
I support your decision to make an impact with the powerful voice and recognition you bring to the table.
If I can be of some help, feel free to contact me. Good Luck and God Bless.
Thank you. I think we all have a role to play to ensure locally and nationally politicians and local groups show strong judgment and complete dedication to the national interest.
I fear the lessons learned and explained in the Hogue report will be lost in the uproar around Trump, tariffs, the Liberal leadership race, and the machinations in Parliament once it is recalled. Please do keep up the good work.
The timing of the final report is brutal, but that was not the fault of the commission. The fact that more Canadians are now aware of what is happening means we all have to demand better.
Thank you. We can all put Canadian interests first whether we are in office or not. I try and weigh in on things that I think are good for our country and love seeing others do the same.
An excellent article….two things come to mind: it saddens me that it took a CSIS whistleblower to get the investigative ball rolling (/glad they contacted Bob Fife 😎👍) and why is the current CPC leader refusing a security clearance? I would think for the good of the country, all party leaders should be read-in? Continued good writing, Mr O’Toole.
Another insightful and excellent article. One positive change coming about was the Liberal party tightening membership rules to ensure members are permanent residents or citizens of Canada. We are facing so many challenges right now as a country but we can’t ignore this compelling issue. I believe we are seeing in Trump’s presidential run what happens when bureaucrats and politicians put loyalty to political parties over loyalty to the country and its laws. No politician or civil servant deserves their position if they knowingly allow national harm under their watch, and Justice Hoag’s report shows this was likely the case. As with many issues facing Canada, we have a lot to undo and fix.
But that 14 year old has to be a permanent resident of Canada.
“The Liberals have also implemented membership restrictions so only Canadian citizens and permanent residents over the age of 14 will be able to join the party and vote in the leadership election. This brings their rules into alignment with those of the Conservative Party of Canada.”
(TNN)
Vast improvement over non permanent residents like foreign students being bussed in to vote. Still not perfect. I’d like to see voting members age raised to federal voting age.
There was no mention of data brokers. The foreign troll farms and bots are the tools of social media campaigns, and a result in poor policies. A lot of the policies that we've seen has hurt the average Canadian, and helped foreigners. We've seen the fruits of that tree, and it's rotten - you don't have to be a spy to recognize it.
I applaud Erin I’Toole for working this issue. While there is some partisanship, it is not overblown hyperbole and doesn’t appear patently unfair. I think in this discussion should also acknowledge the impact of misinformation and disinformation that is created and/or amplified by domestic interests. We may be able to separate the issues, for examination and developing solutions, but they are also interrelated and both harmful to Canadian democracy.
Many of Hogue's recommendations to deal with foreign interference require changes to the Canada Elections Act, which were proposed in Bill C-65, a bill the conservatives obstructed in Parliament at the Procedures and House Affairs Committee ... why did that happen?
another point is that we should not intermingle foreign interference with foreign influence - i.e. specify which FI is at play. While usually, the difference is that foreign interference is covert and foreign influence is not - there is fludity along the spectrum from one to the other. Action in the zone where the fine line is undefined so that it's unclear whether it's illegal interference or barely tolerable influence can be just as damaging to the integrity of a process. Alertness to this possibility and better education about manipulation techniques are a must.
There are many seedy, disgusting aspects of the FI debacle but the failure of the intelligence apparatus to notify Opposition Party MPs of threats to their personal safety and that of their extended families is beyond contemptible. A Liberal staffer delayed a Warrant application for 54 days that was usually issued within 10 days, so the system can flag problematic situations but the partisan nature of the situation is unacceptable.
Also, politics is full of elbows up cheap shots but the “sore loser” statement by the Prime Minister (under oath, no less) to Mr. O’Toole is pretty brazen considering Trudeau is the one in the middle of the FI intelligence spectrum. MPs and party leaders have every right to challenge him on the execution of his responsibilities when the evidence points to shortcomings.
Very good article. This should remind us of Hanlon's Razor--the principle that one should never attribute to malice what one could equally attribute to incompetence. One doesn't need to posit a shadowy cabal of elites to explain how government fails to serve the interests of the people; it can just as easily be explained by a few bad actors and a great deal of incompetence. It's lamentable that people increasingly need to develop conspiracy theories to try to understand these problems, as they only obfuscate the facts. Revealing the ways that foreign interference actually does occur in our elections empowers us to make changes, whereas imagining an omnipresent evil force behind it all makes us apathetic and angry. I appreciate the moderation and nuance you bring to the discussion.
Someone else asked a question and I would like to ask it as well: Why won’t Pierre P. get security clearance? And could it be related to FI as Trudeau has suggested?
I am very concerned about the information you provided in this article. It isn’t surprising that our government lacks the necessary knowledge or skills
to effectively manage our federal government or make decisions that reflect what is in the best interest of all Canadians.
I wish I had some brilliant ideas about how to fix what’s broken, but I don’t.
I support your decision to make an impact with the powerful voice and recognition you bring to the table.
If I can be of some help, feel free to contact me. Good Luck and God Bless.
Deborah Kenneally
spicerdeborah60@gmail.com
Thank you. I think we all have a role to play to ensure locally and nationally politicians and local groups show strong judgment and complete dedication to the national interest.
I fear the lessons learned and explained in the Hogue report will be lost in the uproar around Trump, tariffs, the Liberal leadership race, and the machinations in Parliament once it is recalled. Please do keep up the good work.
The timing of the final report is brutal, but that was not the fault of the commission. The fact that more Canadians are now aware of what is happening means we all have to demand better.
I fully agree
As most of the benefit of the foreign interference was to the current government it is not surprising that it didn't hurry to change the situation.
Thank fact was never lost on me, which I why I think the final report pulled a few punches that were necessary.
Please keep writing - your integrity , the benefit of your experience and wisdom cuts through the noise. I wish you were still leading the CPC.
Thank you. We can all put Canadian interests first whether we are in office or not. I try and weigh in on things that I think are good for our country and love seeing others do the same.
An excellent article….two things come to mind: it saddens me that it took a CSIS whistleblower to get the investigative ball rolling (/glad they contacted Bob Fife 😎👍) and why is the current CPC leader refusing a security clearance? I would think for the good of the country, all party leaders should be read-in? Continued good writing, Mr O’Toole.
Another insightful and excellent article. One positive change coming about was the Liberal party tightening membership rules to ensure members are permanent residents or citizens of Canada. We are facing so many challenges right now as a country but we can’t ignore this compelling issue. I believe we are seeing in Trump’s presidential run what happens when bureaucrats and politicians put loyalty to political parties over loyalty to the country and its laws. No politician or civil servant deserves their position if they knowingly allow national harm under their watch, and Justice Hoag’s report shows this was likely the case. As with many issues facing Canada, we have a lot to undo and fix.
But that’s not true. The
The Liberal leadership can be voted on by a 14 year old living in India. No rules were altered.
But that 14 year old has to be a permanent resident of Canada.
“The Liberals have also implemented membership restrictions so only Canadian citizens and permanent residents over the age of 14 will be able to join the party and vote in the leadership election. This brings their rules into alignment with those of the Conservative Party of Canada.”
(TNN)
Vast improvement over non permanent residents like foreign students being bussed in to vote. Still not perfect. I’d like to see voting members age raised to federal voting age.
There was no mention of data brokers. The foreign troll farms and bots are the tools of social media campaigns, and a result in poor policies. A lot of the policies that we've seen has hurt the average Canadian, and helped foreigners. We've seen the fruits of that tree, and it's rotten - you don't have to be a spy to recognize it.
I applaud Erin I’Toole for working this issue. While there is some partisanship, it is not overblown hyperbole and doesn’t appear patently unfair. I think in this discussion should also acknowledge the impact of misinformation and disinformation that is created and/or amplified by domestic interests. We may be able to separate the issues, for examination and developing solutions, but they are also interrelated and both harmful to Canadian democracy.
Many of Hogue's recommendations to deal with foreign interference require changes to the Canada Elections Act, which were proposed in Bill C-65, a bill the conservatives obstructed in Parliament at the Procedures and House Affairs Committee ... why did that happen?
another point is that we should not intermingle foreign interference with foreign influence - i.e. specify which FI is at play. While usually, the difference is that foreign interference is covert and foreign influence is not - there is fludity along the spectrum from one to the other. Action in the zone where the fine line is undefined so that it's unclear whether it's illegal interference or barely tolerable influence can be just as damaging to the integrity of a process. Alertness to this possibility and better education about manipulation techniques are a must.
There are many seedy, disgusting aspects of the FI debacle but the failure of the intelligence apparatus to notify Opposition Party MPs of threats to their personal safety and that of their extended families is beyond contemptible. A Liberal staffer delayed a Warrant application for 54 days that was usually issued within 10 days, so the system can flag problematic situations but the partisan nature of the situation is unacceptable.
Also, politics is full of elbows up cheap shots but the “sore loser” statement by the Prime Minister (under oath, no less) to Mr. O’Toole is pretty brazen considering Trudeau is the one in the middle of the FI intelligence spectrum. MPs and party leaders have every right to challenge him on the execution of his responsibilities when the evidence points to shortcomings.
Very good article. This should remind us of Hanlon's Razor--the principle that one should never attribute to malice what one could equally attribute to incompetence. One doesn't need to posit a shadowy cabal of elites to explain how government fails to serve the interests of the people; it can just as easily be explained by a few bad actors and a great deal of incompetence. It's lamentable that people increasingly need to develop conspiracy theories to try to understand these problems, as they only obfuscate the facts. Revealing the ways that foreign interference actually does occur in our elections empowers us to make changes, whereas imagining an omnipresent evil force behind it all makes us apathetic and angry. I appreciate the moderation and nuance you bring to the discussion.
With respect, sir, you are one of the last people in my country to whom I would listen.
Everything you write is just political contrivance.
Someone else asked a question and I would like to ask it as well: Why won’t Pierre P. get security clearance? And could it be related to FI as Trudeau has suggested?
Do you think it was relevant that PP get his security clearance?