Keepitsimple

And you don't seem to recognize that the residency rules were made well over a century ago and they are useless. When we finally get around to defining them properly, do you really think that a Senator would have to be born in the province and lived there his/her entire life? Or maybe born there and recently moved out of province....or born somewhere else and recently moved to that province? What really is reasonable in today's context where people are so mobile? Would it be reasonable that Duffy was born and raised there? Once again - it's not his residency that's important - it's the fact that he used that residency to improperly claim expenses that were not incurred.

Too funny. If you like to save keystrokes - why do you blather on so much?

I was "simply" responding to Topaz's dirty air and water - which you've been absolutely no help....but thanks for trying.

That's not the question that I asked - it was....how does specifically reducing CO2 clean up air and water - and save on Healthcare? How does going from 400PPM back to 350PPM (for example) clean up water and air - and save on Healthcare? As I mentioned, Toronto air and water was a lot dirtier back when PPM were 370 or so.....and now we have cleaner air and water. Lets not confuse Global Warming Armagheddon with environmental cleanliness.

Here in Toronto, we used to have a lot of "smog" alerts because of particulates in the air. Hardly have any now. Used to be that you could hardly ever swim in Lake Ontario - now it's much better. We've proven that we're perfectly able to clean up our air and water. CO2 is not a pollutant - we don't have to clean it up - and if we did reduce it, it wouldn't have any impact on Healthcare. If you disagree, perhaps you can tell me how reducing CO2 will help air, water and Healthcare?

Keep an open mind on Smallc's comments - he's one of the more balanced and thoughtful posters. No one party can satisfy anyone all of the time.

You're missing the whole point and getting sucked in with those "Harper-haters". Duffy lives in Ottawa - not PEI - that's clear. He was born in PEI, lived there well into his 20's or 30's - and identifies as an Islander. So it's not outrageous at all to appoint him from PEI - on the contrary, it's quite reasonable. But he claimed expenses that he did not incur. While living in Ottawa, he claimed expenses as if he was living in PEI. That's what was wrong and that's what the Prime Minister has always said.

Think about it.....you don't read an email from your BOSS thinking that he's going to stick a time bomb in it! Bosses don't do that. Wright already testified that he didn't think the fact that he paid it personally was a big deal so obviously, he didn't make it out to be a big deal. So it got brushed over, skimmed, skipped - whatever.

The issue has never really been about what constitutes residency - it's about someone claiming expenses that were not incurred. In Duffy's case, it's about saying your primary residence is in PEI and then claiming per-diems and other expenses because you're in Ottawa. Nobody cares about Duffy actually living in Ottawa - we all know he's from PEI and recognized as an Islander. But we all care about those fraudulent or inappropriate expenses.

I think this says it all..... It’s unfortunate to see a leader who is admired across party lines for promoting fiscal sanity go stumping for politicians who stand for anything but.

It appears so far that Harper has been telling the truth all along as evidenced by Chris Woodcock's testimony - taken under oath of course. Let's hear from Ray Novak to see if he can add anything. So if this is the case - what values would Harper have displayed? Just one - fairness - because regardless of murky expense rules, Duffy's claims were improper - and to pay them back!

Fairly straight forward - because the $30K was almost all to do with residency issues - which at the time - and still - were murky at best.....but Harper knew that Duffy had not incurred the expenses that he was claiming and wanted him to pay them back. The $90K on the other hand - was filled with improprieties if not outright fraud. So yes, there's a big, big difference between the $30K and the $90K......although I don't expect you to acknowledge that. I'll look forward to Novak's testimony - which will undoubtedly come - right?

The big disconnect is what Harper knew when it was $30,000 - and whether he knew it went to $90,000 before Wright cut the cheque. Perrin's comments were when it was $30,000 and that's what Harper's "good to go" comment was based on. In fact, Harper has admitted he knew Duffy owed $30,000 and told Duffy - and Wright - that he didn't care if it was technically legal - it was wrong to claim expenses that were not incurred.....and to pay them back! |No evidence has been presented that Harper knew about a cheque for $90,000. That might be why the defense does not want to call Ray Novak.

I'm not sold at all that he knew that Wright was writing a personal cheque for $90K. I agree that Harper knew everything - right up to the five point plan - but that was all predicated on $30,000 to be paid by the party (good to go) - and as Perrin said, there was nothing illegal or improper at that time. As I've seen it, when Wright found out it was $90,000, everything else was already in motion - except for the money - so he just said the hell with it - and wrote the cheque without telling the PM ahead of time.

Me too. Ask yourself why he is not on the Defense's list of witnesses.

Benjamin Perrin had a very telling comment - buried of course at the end of The Star's story. This pertains to the "good to go" comment and puts things in a different context than sensational headlines would infer. So why isn't the headline: Nothing illegal or improper in 5 point plan: Perrin Link: http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/08/21/ex-pmo-lawyer-continues-testimony-at-duffy-trial-today.html

But there's where your rant falls off the rails. Whether Duffy was deemed the "Senator from PEI" or not - he was claiming expenses that he did not incur. That's what Harper said was wrong. That's what he told Duffy and that's why he handed the ball to Wright to fix it. As for the residency rules - there's no doubt they need a complete makeover. Duffy for example was born in PEI and lived there well into his 20's, if not 30's. He considers himself an Islander. Should someone like that be considered for a PEI Senate seat? Who knows - why not though? And then how about the Senator who is appointed to the Senate for a province and then for personal reasons, decides to move to another province - or to Ottawa? Do they have to give up their Senate seat? The Duffy residence issue is minor and almost irrelevant - at issue is claiming all those expenses that he never incurred.

There's a flip side to all this. There's what I call the "Ford" effect. The Toronto Star was so over-the-top against Rob Ford in the mayoralty race that his support actually went up and he won in a landslide! There comes a point of diminishing returns where people start to catch on - that the anti-Harper crowd is over-playing their hand with political opportunism. The Conservative core base is rock solid - so garnering just 3 or 4 extra votes out of 100 might be all they need to get another majority. The Ford effect.

If you want to see a heavyweight Ontario-centric deal - look no farther than the potential for a Trudeau/Wynne team. It's staring everyone in the face.

Let me be perfectly clear. I agreed with Harper back then - and so did the vast majority of Canadians. There's a technical argument - and then there's doing what's right for the country......and when the NDP and Liberals combined can't outnumber the Conservatives - and need to enlist the support of the separatist Bloc Quebecois.....that is indeed an affront to our democracy and in all reality, I doubt that the Governor General would have approved and instead, would have dissolved Parliament anyway. I would have had no problem whatsoever if the NDP and Liberals had the numbers - but they did not. And yes - if the ploy had worked, it would have meant that the two losers had stolen the election with the help of the Bloc. Now - how about you being perfectly clear. Would you seriously have wanted the Dion-led Liberal/NDP/Bloc coalition to govern back then?

If the media uses their same doggedness on Mac Harb as they have on Duffy, I think they'd find some very juicy morsels. Harb's residence that he used as his primary residence to claim expenses? Well, he only owned half a percent of the mortgage. The other 99.5% was held by the female Ambassador from Brunei. Apparently, the house was almost entirely vacant. Just sayin......

Nope - I cared back then because of the Bloc participation. Don't care now - so now you're just arguing with yourself - which I think you can understand would be completely futile. If the Conservatives win a minority and the collective NDP, Liberals and Greens want to bring them down - that's their right......and if they can form a workable coalition that is acceptable to the GG, good for them. But there's always an eventual reckoning with the public in the follow-on election - so those decisions and actions have to be taken very carefully.

Doubt it was me......but regardless, you're blustering on about hypothetical scenarios - just to try and perpetuate your anti-Harper rant. Hypothetical because in order for your coalition to take effect, these things have to occur: 1) There's no majority government 2) The party with the most seats cannot attain a working relationship with one of the other parties. 3) The government falls on a confidence vote where both/all opposition parties vote against it. 4) The Opposition parties must create a coalition partnership that gains the GG approval 5) The opposition parties must make their decisions knowing that they may be taken to task by the electorate. So in the end - who cares? Like I said - if the NDP, Liberals and Greens have the numbers - have at it!

I'm questioning - no, damning - the Dion/Layton/Duceppe "coalition". Your hatred of Harper - and love of JT - goes so far as to imply that such a farcical coalition would have been better for the country? Unbelievable. And as I've said, if the day comes that there is a minority situation - and the NDP, Liberals and Greens have more seats than the Tories - go ahead, go for it. Nothing wrong with that at all - that's democracy. So go ahead - keep blustering on about......nothing....because all three parties are trying to win the election outright - and it looks like we have a horse race. Stop being so cynical and enjoy it.

When they can prove to the GG that they have the confidence of the house.......Waldo said the Bloc played no direct/active role in the coalition.....but without an active/direct role (and you saw the picture of Duceppe shaking hands with Layton), the NDP and Liberals would not have been able to show that they had the confidence of the house. All I'm saying - once again - is that Canadians did not - and still will not accept - having the Bloc anywhere near the levers of government.