Harper Needs to Get His Facts Straight

Considering the latest round of Conservative blunders and smear campaigns, Prime Minister Stephen Harper might as well stand up in the House of Commons, wave his hands around, and loudly proclaim, “Facts? Who needs facts?”

During question period yesterday Harper, responding to a question regarding his controversial plan to politicize the appointment system for the Immigration and Refugee Board, argued his government was simply trying to clean up years of Liberal patronage and entitlement.

We are putting in place a new selection system so we do not have what we had before – like the member for Westmount-Ville-Marie (Robillard) appointing her former husband as a member of the board, like the husband of the member for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce-Lachine (Jennings) as a member of the board.

There’s only one problem: neither allegation is true.

According to a Toronto Star article published early this morning, the appointment of Robillard’s ex-husband, Jacque Lasalle, was a product of Brian Mulroney’s Conservative government in 1990 and Jenning’s husband, Luciano del Negro, was appointed a full year before she was elected to the Commons in 1997. Harper, it would seem, failed to do his homework. He has proven time and time again, particularly in the last few weeks, that he is willing to stoop to any low in an attempt to insult and discredit the opposition. Whether it involves smearing the good name of a Liberal MP, trotting the victims of the Air India disaster around the House of Commons, or blatantly twisting irrefutable facts regarding political appointments, he is without moral boundary.

As we inch closer and closer to a possible spring election, Canadians at every corner of the political spectrum would do well to examine Harper’s actions and ask themselves if he truly represents Canadian values and ideals. I’m willing to bet, for a large majority of the country, the answer will be no.