Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Steve, the Accountability Guy



That was Stand Up Comedy for Canada from Mr. Accountability Guy, Stephen Harper, in 2006.

Yesterday Steve never mentioned the under-the-table Perrin/Wright/Duffy hush money cheque, nor the cheque issuer or recipient in his speech about it to his caucus.  But just a little over 100 words into his 1000 word speech, Steve did spare a moment to mention Adscam and his pissy mood about what he did not mention, before blowing off the whole unmentionable thing as a "distraction" and winding up with "Let's get back to work".

Today, however, from the distance of some 6000 kms away in Peru, Steve, the most micro-managing PM in Canadian history, explained he knew nothing at all about any of this till he heard about it in the media. 

So how's that one flying for him? CBC poll , Wednesday 7pm:



Bonus Steve from 2005 :
 [h/t North Van's Grumps in comments]
"There's going to be a new code on Parliament Hill: bend the rules, you will be punished; break the law, you will be charged; abuse the public trust, you will go to prison," warned Harper.
Yeah, sure thing.


Update : From Stephen Lautens' Parking Space : Ethical Amnesia
“At worst, he personally ordered it done and chose the people who executed the plan. At the very least, he fostered an attitude within the party [...], chose the managers of the people who committed these crimes and completely and utterly failed to exercise any oversight, supervision or leadership. In the end, it doesn’t really matter where [his] actions or lack of them fall on that scale. He is the leader and a leader is responsible for the actions of the people he leads. If he had a right or honourable bone in his body, he’d admit that and resign immediately.”
Stephen Harper during the Gomery investigation

Thursday noon update : The link above to Stephen Lautens and the Harper/Gomery quote now redirects to a correction from Lautens stating he can't cite an original source for the above quote.  Appears to have been originally written by Kev who did not attribute it to Harper.

Thursday AM update : Dear Mr Mulcair : Stop giving Steve an assist by helping him frame this as being just about the need to reform/abolish the Senate.  Bigger fish here, Tom.  Knock it off.
Thursday noon : More on that from Pogge.
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Thursday 3PM update : Excerpts from Aaron Wherry's very interesting interview with Senator David Tkachuk, chair of the three person Senate steering committee, on whitewashing the audit on Duffy's expenses. 
Tkachuk also "didn't know about the cheque until I found out about it in the media."
A: I mean, you’ve got to remember I would have been having a number of discussions with Nigel, I had a few of them. He didn’t tell me to do anything, really. We discussed Mike and the situation that he was in. I mean, the Prime Minister’s Office was very concerned about this. They don’t like this scandal going on. It was hurting us politically. ... I got advice from all kinds of people. I’m not going to tell you who they are, but let’s put it this way: I talked to people in the PMO ...
Q: But did Nigel Wright ever suggest to you how the report should be written? 
A: Nigel Wright did not. 
Q: Did anyone in the Prime Minister’s Office ever suggest to you how the report should be written? 
A: Not really. 
Q: What does that mean? 
A: Because when I ask for advice, people will give advice. I did ask for advice, I’m not denying that. But all I’m saying is, no one gave me any orders, no one came to my room and told me what to do.
And there goes Steve's story that this was some obscure private deal between just Nigel Wright and Duffy that no one else knew anything about.
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10 comments:

West End Bob said...

"'Let's get back to work' destroying the parts of Canada we haven't already destroyed" is the rest of that line, no doubt . . . .

Boris said...

You know, I wonder if the PM will crack. He can't control his party anymore. Just about everyone he's recruited has been a profoundly corrupt embarrassment. Lost in their own minefield, and now when SH isn't looking his crack troops are planting their own mines any which where. That's gotta be a little maddening.

Alison said...

Well he did look a tad chagrined in Peru alright.
Tonight we learn that in addition to his special legal advisor and his chief of staff hatching the Duffy deal, it was his old Reform friend Senator Carolyn Stewart Olsen who assisted the chair of the Senate internal economy committee in sanitizing the Duffy audit.

This is like when Nixon fired Dean, Haldeman and Erlichman - with profound regret and a tight turniquet to stop the flow of evidence that could incriminate him.

deBeauxOs said...

The *good* thing about a tight tourniquet is that if it's left in place, gangrene will set in.

I couldn't wish for a better fate for Harper's venal C.R.A.P - the original name for the CPC.

Boris said...

http://youtu.be/lhbHTjMLN5c

The entire Con caucus, really.

Beijing York said...

The dish may be served cold but it will definitely taste delicious.

Alison said...

Boris : "his crack troops"

Heh
Very witty.

Rev.Paperboy said...

the bit credited to Stephen Harper from the Gomery Inquiry was indeed written by me in May 2012 about Harper regarding all the CPC election fraud efforts. It is one of those "some quotes are too good to confirm" kinda things but I said it, not Harper. Unfortunately, it is now all over the goddamned internet as having been said by him. Which, while it does not make me happy, it does make me laugh. He wishes he had speechwriters that good.

Alison said...

Hi Kev! How you doin'?
It's not fair, is it? This might be the most famous, albeit anonymous, speech you ever write. When I run into it on the netz I leave a link to your original blogpost and the quoters say they will check it out but I can tell they don't believe me - it's too big to fail now!

Re Harper speechwriters. According to Paul Wells, Harper meticulously goes through all his speeches expunging anything quotable or original that stands out. Only Borgspeak is permitted. Interesting, huh?

the salamander said...

.. as hard as it is to track the entire Harper Trail of Failure Secrecy Obstruction Outright Deceit Incompetance Willfullness Arrogance & Omnipotence.. its now taking a fair amount of time to read the scathing observations of Mainstream Media, all following the blood trail through the yellow snow. For now, they have Nigel Wright & The Duffster up a tree. They are now hot on the trail of the mysterious Ray Novak, long long overdue.. who if I am not mistaken still shares the same address as The PM & Laureen.. as well as the great evangel christian lawyer Arthur Hamilton of the 'he owns my next breath' quote re #cpcjesus Stevie (goodness gracious !)

This may not be the 'end times' or the 'rapture' Stevie/Ray had in mind when they decided to f_ck Canada and Canadians over.. more like the bloated 'rupture'.. the 'unravelling times' .. Not an ounce of courage or Canadian values between the two of these scumbags.. and the rest of the loutpack a la Van Loan, Jenni Byrne, Stephen Lecce, James '#ridemewilfred Moore, Joe Oliver, Peter poison the wolves Kent et al share the same sick traits.. and are fully complicit.

How much longer Stephen Harper will try to bluff and buffalo his asinine & ignorant PMO, Base, enablers, MPs, Senators, CSIS, RCMP, military is a good question.. on a scale of 1 to 100 as a leader or exemplar, our pompous glib PM is heading to terminal velocity downhill on yellow snow.. a very frightening old man

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