Mulroney gets his Inquiry

[Higgly]

When the Karlheinz Schreiber affadavits emerged, the opposition called for an inquiry. Steve said no.

Brian Mulroney gets up and asks for an inquiry. Steve says yes.

What do you have to do to get an inquiry? Be Steve's friend? Or should I use the word crony here?

[myata]

It came handy in the midst of death penalty row. Simple Dion swallowed it hard and whole.

[old_bold&cold]

Are you kidding? Let me get this straight, the opposition howled that they wanted a public inquirey, and they were ready to take the government to task on this and now they say that it is cronism to gotten what they requested. The time line was a little short but given the circumstances and the options that Harper would have had, I do not see anything wrong with the decision at all. Once these things have all played out the natural course of things was the inquirey.

[buffycat]

What a waste of time and money.

[daniel]

...Once these things have all played out the natural course of things was the inquirey.

What foresight the opposition had. Naturally, the government would drag its feet.

What a waste of time and money.

Because it's not about the Liberals, right?

[geoffrey]

Because it's not about the Liberals, right?

No, because the RCMP will investigate. And because this has already been dragged through a courtroom at enormous expense to taxpayers.

[scribblet]

No, because the RCMP will investigate. And because this has already been dragged through a courtroom at enormous expense to taxpayers.

And if Mulroney wins again, as he likely will, he could sue again costing the taxpayers more money.

[geoffrey]

The entire thing is Shreiber fighting his extradition. Today he said he won't talk if he goes to Germany. Great. So essientially he's full of shit, and we're going to foot a few million dollar bill to keep him out of jail for a year or two... just so that Mulroney can sue the pants off the government again.

Are Canadians that stupid? Really?

[jdobbin]

The entire thing is Shreiber fighting his extradition. Today he said he won't talk if he goes to Germany. Great. So essientially he's full of shit, and we're going to foot a few million dollar bill to keep him out of jail for a year or two... just so that Mulroney can sue the pants off the government again.

Are Canadians that stupid? Really?

I suspect the Tories will send him back to Germany and if he does refuse to talk, Harper can cancel the inquiry.

[Visionseeker]

I suspect the Tories will send him back to Germany and if he does refuse to talk, Harper can cancel the inquiry.

If the Tories send him, they come across as sweeping the matter under a rug and protecting Mulroney's "ill-gotten" $2.1 million settlement.

No, as unpalatable as it will be to them, they'll have to keep Karl around for the inquiry. Otherwise, they'll have to wear the scandal and can forget Ontario in any election.

IMO, they're better off with Schreiber here to testify. For it opens the door to the government sueing Mulroney to get its $2.1 million back. And that would be an action that could win votes.

[geoffrey]

I suspect the Tories will send him back to Germany and if he does refuse to talk, Harper can cancel the inquiry.

He needs to go to Germany. Why the hell are you and I paying to keep him out of real prison? That's all this is jdobbin, we've already had an inquiry, an RCMP investigation and a civil lawsuit. And now another RCMP investigation.

How much do you want to spend on keeping a con-artist out of prison? As much as it takes for him to continue spewing anti-Conservative bullshit?

No, as unpalatable as it will be to them, they'll have to keep Karl around for the inquiry. Otherwise, they'll have to wear the scandal and can forget Ontario in any election.

Just like Mulroney they don't need Ontario and are unlikely to change much in Ontario regardless of what happens.

IMO, they're better off with Schreiber here to testify. For it opens the door to the government sueing Mulroney to get its $2.1 million back. And that would be an action that could win votes.

You have no idea how difficult it is to sue to return a previous settlement do you? My my. It's not quite so simple. Not to mention, Mulroney was right, the Liberal government at the time made acqusations that could never be proven. Nothing will be proven here. Mulroney seems pretty adament in defending himself. You realise that if this fails, he can probably sue again for much much more. I don't think a court would hesitate in awarding damages when a government continously picks on people without any new information.

Do note that no MP's discuss the matter outside of the Commons. Each Liberal knows that they'd be slapped with a massive lawsuit if they tried it, and they all know they'll never have the evidence to back up their comments... because it doesn't exist.

The inquiry showed this, the RCMP showed this and the settlement shows this.

A big waste of taxpayer money, all to keep ol' Karl out of German prison for the rest of his life.

[Oleg Bach]

He needs to go to Germany. Why the hell are you and I paying to keep him out of real prison? That's all this is jdobbin, we've already had an inquiry, an RCMP investigation and a civil lawsuit. And now another RCMP investigation.

How much do you want to spend on keeping a con-artist out of prison? As much as it takes for him to continue spewing anti-Conservative bullshit?

Just like Mulroney they don't need Ontario and are unlikely to change much in Ontario regardless of what happens.

You have no idea how difficult it is to sue to return a previous settlement do you? My my. It's not quite so simple. Not to mention, Mulroney was right, the Liberal government at the time made acqusations that could never be proven. Nothing will be proven here. Mulroney seems pretty adament in defending himself. You realise that if this fails, he can probably sue again for much much more. I don't think a court would hesitate in awarding damages when a government continously picks on people without any new information.

Do note that no MP's discuss the matter outside of the Commons. Each Liberal knows that they'd be slapped with a massive lawsuit if they tried it, and they all know they'll never have the evidence to back up their comments... because it doesn't exist.

The inquiry showed this, the RCMP showed this and the settlement shows this.

A big waste of taxpayer money, all to keep ol' Karl out of German prison for the rest of his life.

Old feuds and we have to watch a bunch of aging corporationist - get their revenge on each other - could they not wait for 12 years and just push the guys wheel chair down the stairs or maybe just cut him off his Prozac supply so he gets the sling shot effect and tosses his sorry rich stealing ass out the window - first Conrad and now Malroney - what about that shark Trudeau? Oh yah - nature took him out...why not let them slowly fade and age and die - what's the rush.

[Michael Bluth]

He needs to go to Germany. Why the hell are you and I paying to keep him out of real prison? That's all this is jdobbin, we've already had an inquiry, an RCMP investigation and a civil lawsuit. And now another RCMP investigation.

How much do you want to spend on keeping a con-artist out of prison? As much as it takes for him to continue spewing anti-Conservative bullshit?

It's not taxpayer's money. It's the Government's money.

Any amount that can be given to Liberal supporters, or spent to try and advance Liberal political aims, is not too much.

Just like Mulroney they don't need Ontario and are unlikely to change much in Ontario regardless of what happens.

Exactly. If they pick up as few as ten seats in Ontario they are headed for a majority. They are poised to pick up upwards of 25 seats in Quebec, plus a few dribs and drabs in the rest of the country.

A big waste of taxpayer money, all to keep ol' Karl out of German prison for the rest of his life.

Again, better to waste taxpayer money in a vain attempt for Dion to keep his job than to cut the deficit or spend it on programs.

[Higgly]

Are you kidding? Let me get this straight, the opposition howled that they wanted a public inquirey, and they were ready to take the government to task on this and now they say that it is cronism to gotten what they requested.

What they? I'm the one saying cronyism.

Schreiber has just filed papers for a Supreme Court hearing on the grounds that Canada may be co-operating with a country (Germany) that committed an illegal act (by seizing Schreiber's accounts in Switzerland). The Swiss are suing the Germans over this at the moment, and if they win, the evidence used against Schreiber for the extradition may have to be thrown out.

What fun.

In the meantime, the committee looking into the whole thing has requested that both Schreiber and Mulroney come for a little chat.

Edited November 22, 2007 by Higgly

[Carinthia]

He needs to go to Germany. Why the hell are you and I paying to keep him out of real prison? That's all this is jdobbin, we've already had an inquiry, an RCMP investigation and a civil lawsuit. And now another RCMP investigation.

How much do you want to spend on keeping a con-artist out of prison? As much as it takes for him to continue spewing anti-Conservative bullshit?

Just like Mulroney they don't need Ontario and are unlikely to change much in Ontario regardless of what happens.

You have no idea how difficult it is to sue to return a previous settlement do you? My my. It's not quite so simple. Not to mention, Mulroney was right, the Liberal government at the time made acqusations that could never be proven. Nothing will be proven here. Mulroney seems pretty adament in defending himself. You realise that if this fails, he can probably sue again for much much more. I don't think a court would hesitate in awarding damages when a government continously picks on people without any new information.

Do note that no MP's discuss the matter outside of the Commons. Each Liberal knows that they'd be slapped with a massive lawsuit if they tried it, and they all know they'll never have the evidence to back up their comments... because it doesn't exist.

The inquiry showed this, the RCMP showed this and the settlement shows this.

A big waste of taxpayer money, all to keep ol' Karl out of German prison for the rest of his life.

When the last inquiry was performed, they didn't have the full cooperation of Schreiber. Now they do. That changes things and we may see ol "Britan" having to pay it all back, not win another bunch.

Mulroney's phony pleasure at the decision to have an inquiry is pure bravado and bluff. I bet he's quaking in his shifty boots.

Edited November 22, 2007 by Carinthia

[sharkman]

I suspect the Tories will send him back to Germany and if he does refuse to talk, Harper can cancel the inquiry.

You misunderstand the situation. It is the judicial system that has been making judgements against his case time and time again, appeal after appeal. He has exhausted his legal options and at the last minute has made yet another appeal to the Supreme court, which has already heard his case twice, and denied him both times. If ever a man deserved to be deported it is this shyster. The Tories have nothing to do with it.

And now, at this LATE date, this con artist comes up with new information! Yeah, right. Look, if Mulroney did something illegal he should face the consequences as any Canadian. But it will not come at the hands of this man, whose testimony would be shot down as soon as they looked at his character and willingness to lie when it suited his needs.

Of course liberals such as yourself are hoping this incident will somehow implicate Harper and cause the government to fall. The reality is this puts off the inevitable punting of Dion for a few more months, which is only a good thing for the Tories.

[capricorn]

jd, I don't think the inquiry would be cancelled if Schreiber is extradited. For one thing, Canadians would not like that move by Harper and he would be accused of flip flopping. Harper is well aware of this.

Schreiber has made a mockery of our judicial system and in actually fact, this case has brought out some disturbing aspects with the present extradition process. It takes way too long and it is way too expensive. If anything, Canadians know more about the process now than they ever did. That is a positive outcome to this sordid affair.

[jdobbin]

You misunderstand the situation. It is the judicial system that has been making judgements against his case time and time again, appeal after appeal. He has exhausted his legal options and at the last minute has made yet another appeal to the Supreme court, which has already heard his case twice, and denied him both times. If ever a man deserved to be deported it is this shyster. The Tories have nothing to do with it.

And now, at this LATE date, this con artist comes up with new information! Yeah, right. Look, if Mulroney did something illegal he should face the consequences as any Canadian. But it will not come at the hands of this man, whose testimony would be shot down as soon as they looked at his character and willingness to lie when it suited his needs.

Of course liberals such as yourself are hoping this incident will somehow implicate Harper and cause the government to fall. The reality is this puts off the inevitable punting of Dion for a few more months, which is only a good thing for the Tories.

A deportee always has one final arbiter of whether they stay or go: the government of the day and a ministerial permit.

I think he should be be deported as he is the one has stretched things out this long.

I still think that as soon as he is gone, the inquiry is off.

I don't think Harper is implicated in anything Shreiber or Mulroney did. I don't think he was interested in the least about what may or may not have happened.

I'm a bit dubious about whether Harper was uninformed about what Shreiber was claiming though. I think he was caught off guard when Shreiber swore in an affidavit what he said in a letter to Harper months earlier.

I know many Conservatives think Mulroney is totally innocent but he does Harper no favour by not explaining the dealings he had with Shreiber.

Edited November 23, 2007 by jdobbin

[jdobbin]

jd, I don't think the inquiry would be cancelled if Schreiber is extradited. For one thing, Canadians would not like that move by Harper and he would be accused of flip flopping. Harper is well aware of this.

Schreiber has made a mockery of our judicial system and in actually fact, this case has brought out some disturbing aspects with the present extradition process. It takes way too long and it is way too expensive. If anything, Canadians know more about the process now than they ever did. That is a positive outcome to this sordid affair.

I think Shreiber should be deported. But I also think that if Shreiber refuses to testify, the inquiry is over.

[gc1765]

Gomery on this inquiry:

Ottawa — The man who headed the inquiry into the Liberal sponsorship scandal is questioning how serious Prime Minister Stephen Harper is about an inquiry into the Mulroney-Schreiber affair.

...

“Once you've said you're going to do something, usually you're expected to do it within a reasonable period. And the period is getting beyond reasonable.”

...

The prospect of a narrow probe may be making it difficult for the government to find a judge willing to take the job, Judge Gomery speculated.

Any commissioner “is going to be criticized from Day 1 if he follows that [mandate] and restricts the evidence to certain periods of time, certain facts. If he goes a little bit more broadly, he may be challenged in court for exceeding his mandate.”

It was a different story, said Judge Gomery, when former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin gave him a broad mandate to delve into the sponsorship affair that erupted under predecessor Jean Chrétien.

“Generally speaking, I was able to go where I thought I should go to get the answers that I needed to get. I don't think that's the case for the [Mulroney-Schreiber] inquiry, if it's ever conducted.”

link

[Fortunata]

The prospect of a narrow probe may be making it difficult for the government to find a judge willing to take the job, Judge Gomery speculated.

That's the whole point isn't it? Steve will stand up and say that he has no control; it won't happen because no one is willing to take it on instead of being a man and widening the scope so it can be looked into. Poor, poor Steve. He tried, he really did.

[jdobbin]

Finally.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...0612?hub=Canada

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has named Associate Chief Justice Jeffrey Oliphant of Manitoba's Court of Queen's Bench to lead a public inquiry into the Mulroney-Schreiber affair.

Today's announcement comes seven months after Harper first promised to launch an investigation into former prime minister Brian Mulroney's controversial financial dealings with arms lobbyist Karlheinz Schreiber.

Talk about dragging feet. I'm sure Harper expected an election by now so this would go away.