senate – Page 2 – David Akin’s On The Hill

Senate adopts "11 tough new rules" on expenses

Harper and LeBreton — Prime Minister Stephen Harper is seen with Marjory LeBreton, Government Leader in the Senate after speaking to his National Caucus at Parliament Hill in Ottawa May 21, 2013. (Andre Forget/QMI Agency)

Just distributed to the Parliamentary Press Gallery at 10:30 pm ET this evening from Senator Marjory LeBreton, the leader of the government in the Senate. Read it for yourself. My only comment would be that LeBreton has been the leader of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government in the Senate for 7 years now and her party has had an absolute majority in that chamber for more than three years now. So I don’t think it’s inappropriate to ask: What the heck took so long?! Anyhow, I’ll get out of the way now and let Sen. LeBreton continue :

“Our Government is focused on delivering meaningful reform to the Senate – including elections, term limits and tough spending oversight.

“Canadians understand that our Senate, as it stands today, must either change, or like the old Upper Houses of our provinces, vanish. Continue reading Senate adopts "11 tough new rules" on expenses

Justin Trudeau: Senate is Quebec's secret weapon!

As Thomas Mulcair and the federal NDP began their “Abolish the Senate” campaign, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau argues to keep the Senate the way it is, after all, with all those senators from Quebec’s, it’s all good for Quebec! Continue reading Justin Trudeau: Senate is Quebec's secret weapon!

Those Liberal elites and their media lickspittles!

london 008 — I snapped this pic of Senator Marjory LeBreton during the 2006 general election. Senator LeBreton’s task was to ride on the media bus – a task she has had in subsequent elections — where she has never been shy to let reporters know her opinions about coverage of her party and her leader.

Conservative partisans are angry about this Senate expense scandal. They are angry at Senators Duffy and Wallin for getting them in this mess and they are angry at many others — mostly in the media — who aren’t giving them the benefit of the doubt on all this stuff. On Parliament Hill, that sentiment is largely voiced by Conservative MPs and senators who wish to remain anonymous. But on Wednesday in the Senate, Senator Marjory LeBreton, the leader of the government in the Senate, gave a remarkable speech which, though I thought many parts of it wrong-headed, seems to capture the mood among many Conservative partisans. Continue reading Those Liberal elites and their media lickspittles!

After Harper's speech this morning, we still have questions

I’m not normally a fan of going about my Parliamentary news gathering in this fashion but there are some days when there doesn’t seem to be much choice… (see the raw video posted by CBC News above)

Meanwhile, here is the text of what Prime Minister Stephen Harper had to say to his caucus this morning: Continue reading After Harper's speech this morning, we still have questions

Front page faceoff: Rob Ford vs The Senate

It is rare, believe it or not, for news about federal politics to make the front pages of the country’s newspapers. It is also rare for newspaper editors to give prominent front-page play to stories about another city’s mayor. Not today. The Senate Scandals and Toronto Mayor Rob Ford can be found on front pages all across the country — but not necessarily coast-to-coast . Continue reading Front page faceoff: Rob Ford vs The Senate

Can Brazeau be automatically suspended from the senate? Probably not.

Senator Patrick Brazeau was charged this morning with assault and sexual assault. The Crown prosecutor indicated in court that he would not proceed by indictment but would instead try to obtain a summary conviction. (What’s the difference? Read this explainer.)

This afternoon, many senators were muttering that they can suspend Brazeau. I’m not sure how for there does not appear to be an provision in the rules of the senate to automatically suspend any senator unless they’ve been charged with an indictable offence, which Brazeau has not. Here’s the rules. Read for yourself: Continue reading Can Brazeau be automatically suspended from the senate? Probably not.

Hansard geeks rejoice! It's all going online!

I don’t know about you but I am constantly finding neat, new things at the Parliamentary Web site. It’s invaluable for political journalists and, I assume, teachers, researchers and others who want to know more about federal politics.

Well, here’s some good news — all of Hansard for both the House of Commons and the Senate will be making its way online over the next couple of years.

Right now, Hansards dating back to 1994 for the House of Commons and to 1996 for the Senate are already online and are searchable. Continue reading Hansard geeks rejoice! It's all going online!

By the numbers: The Harper Conservative majority in the senate

Prime Minister Stephen Harper today appointed five new senators including Doug Black (above in an interview with me from March,2012) who got the most votes among all candidates to be a senator-in-waiting in Alberta’s provincial election last year. With these new appointments, the 105-seat Senate is now filled with 53 Harper appointees. So it’s not only a Conservative majority in the Senate, it’s a Harper Conservative majority.

Since taking office, Harper has now made 58 appointments — some had already resigned, one died in office, and one (Fabian Manning) quit and then got reappointed. That means, with 58 appointments to the Senate, Harper has passed Brian Mulroney in terms of senate appointments.

That’s a bit of an awkward accomplishment for Harper who, in March,2004, said, “I will not name appointed people to the Senate.” Continue reading By the numbers: The Harper Conservative majority in the senate

Trudeau at 28: The Senate is "perfectly useless" filled with "doddering old monks"

Given the events of Friday, I was particularly interested to read what the 28-year-old PIerre Elliott Trudeau had to say about our Senate in a presentation he gave in Paris, France in 1947:

“Our Senate is an odd mixture of the U.S. Senate and the British House of Lords, and, as it lacks the justification of either of these Chambers, it is perfectly useless. Continue reading Trudeau at 28: The Senate is "perfectly useless" filled with "doddering old monks"

In the Senate, the new majority is the Harper Party

While my family and I were out snowshoeing this afternoon, enjoying the last day of our Christmas break, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced seven more appointments to the Senate. When they are sworn in, 43 of the country’s 105 Senators will be Harper appointees. By the time the next federal election rolls around in October, 2015, 62 Senators will be Harper appointees. Continue reading In the Senate, the new majority is the Harper Party