Roundup: The First Hogue Report

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On a very busy Friday, Justice Marie-Josée Hogue released the first report of the foreign interference public inquiry, to some moderate fanfare. Much of it was broadly what was in the Johnston report, but with some more nuance, which left some of it open to degrees of interpretation, some partisans claiming it proves there was meddling, others leaning on the parts where she said that what there was wasn’t enough to amount to changing an election outcome, and there certainly wasn’t some grand effort by China to win the election for the Liberals. At most, it might have cost Kenny Chiu his seat, and there remained questions about Han Dong’s nomination, but even there, there wasn’t a lot of evidence to prove or disprove anything one way of the other.

To that end, key points, and five things from the report. It wasn’t just China, but India, Pakistan, Iran, and a few others. Some candidates in the 2019 election “appeared willing” to engage in foreign interference, with more staff members implicated, around advancing the interests of China, but there weren’t any firm conclusions about who much any foreign interference actually tipped the scales in any one riding. The government also announced that they are tabling legislation on Monday, which is likely to include the foreign agent registry, and possibly some updates to CSIS’ mandate and powers.

Justice Hogue did make a couple of comments about nominations being a possible gateway for foreign interference, but that’s something that would be hard for governments or agencies to do much to involve themselves in because of how parties operate as private clubs, by necessity. That said, as I wrote in this column a couple of weeks ago, open nominations are practically extinct in the current moment so perhaps there isn’t that much danger after all.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Debris from destroyed drones fell on Kharkiv, injuring three and starting a fire. Russia says it has pushed Ukrainians back from 547 square kilometres so far this year, as Americans delayed their crucial aid shipments.

https://twitter.com/ukraine_world/status/1786364727032971377

Good reads:

  • At an event in Hamilton, Justin Trudeau said that universities and local police of jurisdiction need to be trusted to keep students safe with campus protests.
  • Ahmed Hussen announced $65 million in developmental funding and humanitarian relief for Lebanon.
  • The federal government is partnering with Manitoba to develop the “Red Dress” Alert system  help find missing Indigenous women before become victims.
  • The federal government is being very cagey in terms of its figures on how any people the bare-bones Canada Disability Benefit.
  • General Wayne Eyre says he’s looking for clarification on the military spending plans, about just what is planned for cuts and what is being invested in.
  • Canada Post lost $748 million last year, and is in “critical” financial shape.
  • The RCMP have made three arrests in the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, and the investigation is ongoing related to the involvement of India.
  • In its annual report, the Military Police Complaints Commission outlined how the Canadian Forces Provost Model is resisting their civilian oversight.
  • Princess Anne was in Vancouver in her capacity as commodore-in-chief of the Canadian Fleet Pacific for a “presentation of the keys” for a new slushbreaker.
  • The Supreme Court of Canada ordered a new trial in a case where a francophone accused hadn’t been given the option of a French trial at first instance.
  • Pierre Poilievre penned a lie-filled screed about how useless lobbyists are and tells businesses to get support from “common people” instead of politicians.
  • Wesley Wark gives a cursory look at the report and the places where he finds gaps in what Justice Hogue has written on to date.
  • Susan Delacourt worries about the increasing number of MPs who plan to leave politics because of the toxicity and toll it’s taking on their lives.

Odds and ends:

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2 thoughts on “Roundup: The First Hogue Report”

    • As former senator Colin Kenny so eloquently put it, “These ships couldn’t cut the ice in a gin and tonic.”

      Reply ↓

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