1) (Update) Trudeau says he has list of Tories vulnerable to, or engaged in, foreign meddling

Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press

By Jim Bronskill and Laura Osman, October 16, 2024

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre refuses to seek the security clearance necessary to be briefed on a list of people in his party who are involved in or vulnerable to foreign interference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday.

Poilievre swiftly demanded that Trudeau make any such names public after the prime minister made the unsettling claim at a federal inquiry into foreign meddling.

“I have the names of a number of parliamentarians, former parliamentarians and-or candidates in the Conservative Party of Canada who are engaged (in) or at high risk of, or for whom there is clear intelligence around foreign interference,” Trudeau said.

“I have directed CSIS and others to try and inform the Conservative party leader to be warned and armed,” so that Poilievre could make decisions to protect the integrity of the party and guard members against attempts at foreign interference, he said.

Trudeau did not provide details about the nature or scope of the information about Conservatives and foreign interference activities.

He said Poilievre has opted not to receive classified briefings on the details — a position he finds bewildering.

“The decision by the leader of the Conservative party to not get those classified briefings means that nobody in his party — not him, nobody in a position of power — knows the names of these individuals and can take appropriate action,” Trudeau said.

He said it also means nobody can stand up for the people in question if the intelligence is poor, incomplete or simply contains allegations from a single source.

Poilievre has previously defended his choice not to try to obtain a high-level security clearance. He has said it would prevent him from speaking out about what he has learned in secret briefings.

In response to Trudeau’s comments Wednesday, Poilievre released a statement accusing him of lying under oath at the inquiry and calling on the prime minister to publicly disclose the names.

“But he won’t. Because Justin Trudeau is doing what he always does: he is lying,” Poilievre said.

The Conservative leader also said his chief of staff receives confidential briefings, and has not been told about any past or present member of the party being involved in foreign interference.

“If Justin Trudeau has evidence to the contrary, he should share it with the public. Now that he has blurted it out in general terms at a commission of inquiry — he should release the facts. But he won’t — because he’s making it up,” Poilievre said in the statement.

Jenna Ghassabeh, the prime minister’s press secretary, said if Poilievre obtains a security clearance, “he’ll get all the information the prime minister spoke about in testimony today.”

“Finding out about foreign interference impacting his own party, MPs, candidates, and leadership race isn’t something he can delegate to his parliamentary staff.”

Under cross-examination at the inquiry by Nando De Luca, a lawyer for the Conservatives, Trudeau said a party leader has many tools with which to act on information of concern.

Trudeau said a leader could choose not to sign the nomination of a candidate who is under a cloud of suspicion or, after an election, decide not to elevate them to a critic’s position or promise them a cabinet portfolio.

None of these options require a leader to publicly reveal anything about classified foreign interference concerns, Trudeau added.

“The leader of a party has quite a bit of power over what happens within that party, and that’s why the ultimate decision-maker in a political party should always be the leader.”

De Luca accused Trudeau of grandstanding by levelling accusations against Conservatives without mentioning that CSIS could simply use a tool called a threat reduction measure to warn the leader through a briefing.

Trudeau said such a threat reduction briefing might only be general in nature and not include “the names of the people most at risk or most engaged in potentially problematic activity.”

Trudeau acknowledged he was also aware of Liberals and members of other parties at risk of being compromised by foreign meddling, but he did not elaborate beyond mentioning the well-known case of the MP for Don Valley North.

The inquiry’s interim report, released in May, flagged issues with the 2019 Liberal nomination race in that riding, which was won by Han Dong. After media reports alleged Dong was involved in foreign interference, he left the Liberal caucus to sit as an Independent MP.

The National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians said in June that some unnamed parliamentarians were “semi-witting or witting” participants in the efforts of foreign states to meddle in Canadian politics.

The stark but vague assertion by NSICOP, an intelligence watchdog made up of MPs and senators who are sworn to secrecy, triggered ongoing concerns that people knowingly involved in interference might still be active in politics.

However, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc told the inquiry Tuesday it is an irresponsible, “partisan exaggeration” to claim there are traitors or treasonous people sitting in Parliament based on the findings of the spy watchdog report.

“Those are criminal phrases that are not borne out by the evidence and by the work of the police or the security agencies.”

Nathalie Drouin, Trudeau’s national security adviser, recently told the inquiry the watchdog’s conclusion that some MPs might have acted in a treasonous manner makes her very uncomfortable, because that’s not what she sees.

Drouin said she had learned of inappropriate behaviour and lack of judgment on the part of certain politicians.

However, after reviewing the relevant intelligence, she found no MPs had engaged in espionage, sabotage or other activities that put Canada’s security at risk.

LeBlanc said Tuesday that assessment is consistent with the intelligence he has seen as minister.

Trudeau indicated Wednesday he takes exception to how NSICOP framed the matter, “because it worried Canadians and talked about traitors in Parliament when that is not the assessment that our intelligence agencies put forward.”

The commission of inquiry’s latest round of hearings, which wrapped up Wednesday, have focused on ways to better detect and deter foreign meddling.

Trudeau said Wednesday the world is more uncertain and less safe than ever due to the rise of authoritarian powers determined to sow chaos in democracies like Canada.

He said the answer to the aggression of countries like China and Russia is to reinforce the rule of law and the international order.

“We cannot allow might to become right once again in the world.”

The RCMP and other government officials recently told India its diplomats were persons of interest in several investigations into violent crimes in Canada.

On Monday, Canada ordered six Indian diplomats out of the country, and India swiftly retaliated with the expulsion of Canadian diplomats.

The inquiry plans several days of policy consultation sessions beginning next Monday to help develop recommendations, with a final report due by the end of the year.

2) Trudeau to shuffle cabinet as four ministers say they won’t seek re-election

Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press

By Laura Osman and Mia Rabson, October 17, 2024

With a simmering mutiny plot in the backbenches and four more cabinet ministers deciding not to seek re-election, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s attempt to right the Liberal ship and stay on as captain is becoming more challenging. 

Trudeau is expected to make changes to his cabinet for the third time since July after the latest group of ministers informed the Prime Minister’s Office they won’t be candidates in the next election.

Filomena Tassi, the minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, said Thursday she won’t be running for personal reasons.

Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal and Sports Minister Carla Qualtrough also issued statements to say they won’t be seeking re-election. 

A senior government source confirmed a report from Radio-Canada Thursday that National Revenue Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau will not be on the ballot next election either.

Qualtrough offered few details except to say that it is time for her to move on and she is excited to see what comes next. She also thanked her family and the prime minister.

Vandal said he had decided it was time to move on to the next stage after 30 years in politics. 

None of the ministers immediately left the cabinet. Vandal indicated he was “working with the Prime Minister’s Office to ensure an orderly transition of my cabinet positions.”

There is no date set for the shuffle but the source said it won’t be before all Liberal caucus members are expected to meet on Parliament Hill on Oct. 23.

That meeting could be quite tense, as several Liberal MPs are expected to push Trudeau to resign.

While the loss of several cabinet ministers isn’t good news for Trudeau, Liberal strategist Andrew Perez said the cabinet shuffle may be an opportunity to take the wind out of the sails of the caucus revolt. 

“In terms of morale, if he does promote a couple or even four members from the backbench, that could be good,” said Perez, a principal at Perez Strategies. 

But it could also be a “double-edged sword,” said Charles Bird, a principal at Earnscliffe Strategies.

“For every one that you reward, there’s another five or 10 who will be bitterly disappointed, and that runs the risk of further entrenching concerns about the prime minister’s future,” he said. 

Trudeau’s leadership has been under fire for months as the government’s polling numbers tanked alongside his approval ratings.

Trudeau has so far been steadfast in his plans to stay on as Liberal leader for the next campaign, which must happen before next October but could happen far sooner with a minority government.

Several media reports have outlined plans by some Liberal MPs to band together in an attempt to convince Trudeau to step down.

It’s not clear how many MPs have signed onto the effort, or how many of those who have signed on plan to run in the next election.

Vandal criticized the conspiratorial approach his colleagues have taken, which he said he only learned about in the news.

“If you have something to say, just say it,” he said in an interview Thursday.

“I think the best way to resolve issues is to just hash it out in the open, in confidence, in the caucus room.”

There is no way for caucus to force Trudeau to step aside, but one MP told The Canadian Press on background that some are discussing the possibility of calling for a secret ballot vote on his leadership at next week’s caucus meeting. 

Holding a leadership race while the Liberals try to hold onto power in the minority House of Commons would be risky, but if Trudeau did decide to step down he could take the controversial step of proroguing Parliament in order to give the party time to elect a new leader, Perez said. 

The number of Liberals jumping ship by declining to run in the next election could suggest they are “voting with their feet and effectively signalling that concerns around the prime minister are real,” Bird said.

At least 18 Liberals have now publicly confirmed they won’t be on the next ballot.

However, two cabinet ministers who announced their plans not to run again said they still stand by Trudeau. 

“I wish him the very best now and in the future. I believed in him in 2015 and I believe in him now,” Tassi said in a statement on social media.

Vandal also said he’s a “strong supporter” of Trudeau’s continued leadership. 

“I think he’s done an amazing job for the first nine years, and really, I have confidence in the entire team going forward to the next election.”

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly told a Montreal radio station on Thursday that Trudeau can count her on loyalty and noted that he has said he’s committed to staying at the helm of the Liberal party. 

“I know times are tough for my party and for our government, we’ve been nine years in power and there is fatigue,” she said, adding she thinks incumbent governments around the world are in a similar position. 

“We’ll have that conversation amongst ourselves, because I believe that a caucus should be a safe space.”

Winnipeg South Centre MP Ben Carr said Vandal’s decision is understandable, but he will be missed.

“Any time that a distinguished, hard-working, highly regarded parliamentarian like Dan Vandal decides it’s time to step away it’s a huge loss,” Carr said.

Carr wouldn’t speculate about what else the departure of another four cabinet ministers says about the party.

He also wouldn’t comment on the ongoing machinations behind the scenes regarding Trudeau’s leadership.

“It is healthy to have robust and difficult conversations as a caucus,” he said.

Tassi, who was procurement minister in 2022, asked the prime minister to shuffle her into a smaller portfolio at the time for family reasons.

Since then, Trudeau has held three shuffles, including a major shakeup in the summer of 2023 that saw seven ministers leave the cabinet table.

Four of them had announced they wouldn’t run again: Carolyn Bennett, Joyce Murray, Omar Alghabra and Helena Jaczek. Then-public safety minister Marco Mendicino, treasury board president Mona Fortier and justice minister David Lametti were also replaced, though Lametti did end up resigning from the House of Commons several months later.

Former labour minister Seamus O’Regan resigned from cabinet in July for family reasons, and former transport minister Pablo Rodriguez left last month to seek the Quebec Liberal leadership.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.

— With files from David Cummings