Good morning,
It was a day of fallout on Parliament Hill over Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to expel Jody Wilson-Raybould and Jane Philpott from the Liberal caucus.
About 50 women slowly stood and turned their backs when Mr. Trudeau began speaking Wednesday at an event designed to boost female leadership in politics.
Mr. Trudeau told the more than 300 Daughters of the Vote delegates sitting in House of Commons chamber seats that he welcomes disagreement within his government. He said, however, that he can’t work with people he doesn’t trust.
“There are always going to be a range of perspectives that we need to listen to. But ultimately … diversity only works if there is trust, and within a team when that trust gets broken we have to figure out how to move forward,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ms. Wilson-Raybould and Ms. Philpott spoke to The Globe’s Robert Fife and Laura Stone in their first sit-down interviews since being booted from caucus.
Here are some of the highlights from those conversations.
Jody Wilson-Raybould on regrets:
“I do regret that the Prime Minister never took responsibility. I do regret that the Prime Minister never apologized to Canadians or never listened or looked at the evidence that was presented. If the Prime Minister had accepted responsibility and apologized to Canadians, we would not be in the situation we are in."
On her thinking when she resigned from cabinet and testified before the House of Commons:
“I didn’t have an endgame. I literally was just doing my job and I believe was penalized for doing my job and I feel to this day that I have, and carry a responsibility to make sure that the truth is out there and to hold true to my values. Did I anticipate I would be expelled from caucus for wanting to do the right thing? Absolutely not."
On the unnamed Liberal who told media she was difficult and driven by her own ego:
“I have a thick skin, but I do not understand and will never understand why, when somebody stands up for something or speaks the truth, even if the truth isn’t convenient for some people, that the reaction to that is smear people or to say they are difficult or say they are incompetent.”
On why she taped tape a Dec. 19 conversation with Privy Council Clerk Michael Wernick:
"I had a heightened level of anxiety. I knew that my position was at risk and I was wanting to protect myself. In any other circumstance it would be inappropriate, but I do not believe it was in this case.”
Jane Philpott on the Prime Minister’s decision to expel her from caucus:
“I actually think it’s a mistake. Obviously, he has his own advisers. There is a potential that this could backfire, in a way that may not make Liberals happy.”
On criticism that Mr. Trudeau’s treatment of some female MPs amounts to “fake feminism”:
“I have no desire to cast any doubt on his qualifications as a feminist. He has fought very hard for women’s rights, and he deserves credit for that."
On Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s allegations that she was pressured by the PMO:
“I believe the evidence shows that there were attempts, by politicians, staff members and senior officials to interfere in a very important criminal trial. People hesitate to compare this to other forms of harassment. But I think in general, it’s not the person who is inflicting bullying or harassment or pressure to decide, it’s the person who is on the receiving end to decide whether they were pressured."
"The former attorney-general said she felt pressured, and I believe her.”
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Aron Yeomanson. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you’re reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
ALBERTA ELECTION UPDATE
It’s debate day in Alberta. The four party leaders will square off in what’s scheduled to be the only leaders’ debate of this provincial campaign. The festivities are set to get underway at 5:30 p.m. MT.
On Wednesday, Jason Kenney has condemned homophobic comments by one of his candidates while keeping the United Conservative on the ballot.
Meanwhile, a Calgary judge denied an injunction that would have postponed an investigation into the United Conservative Party’s leadership race until after Alberta’s April 16 provincial election.
TODAY’S HEADLINES
Indigenous people offer mixed reactions to Jody Wilson-Raybould’s removal from the Liberal caucus.
Jody Wilson-Raybould’s ouster from the federal Liberal caucus has left party members in British Columbia in limbo as they search for another candidate in Vancouver-Granville.
The crew of Ethiopian Airlines’ 737 Max 8 jet followed emergency procedures but were unable to prevent the crash, a report says.
U.S. Congress is on a collision course with President Donald Trump over the U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement (USMCA).
Activists are asking Canada to take a tougher line on Beijing by imposing sanctions on officials in China’s Xinjiang region.
Export Development Canada has retained legal counsel to review an insurance policy covering political risk it underwrote on SNC-Lavalin’s behalf in 2011.
The federal government is preparing to release new “clean fuel” regulations that will push up the cost of gasoline and other fossil fuels beyond the impact of the carbon tax that took effect this week.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has expressed optimism that a way out of the Brexit impasse can be found after she ended the first day of talks with Opposition Leader Jeremy Corbyn.
The Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee voted to authorize subpoenas for special counsel Robert Mueller’s full, unredacted report.
A U.S. House committee chairman formally asked the IRS to provide six years of President Donald Trump’s personal tax returns and the returns for some of his businesses.
Responding to complaints that he made some women uncomfortable by touching them at political events, former U.S. vice-president Joe Biden released a video in which he pledged to be “more mindful about respecting personal space in the future.”
Alabama is the latest Republican-leaning state seeking to enact a strict abortion ban.
Campbell Clark (The Globe and Mail) on Justin Trudeau: “Mr. Trudeau is the politician known for his EQ – emotional intelligence. He emotes. He has empathy. But the SNC-Lavalin affair underlined his surprising weakness in handling key relationships – the professional relationships with his own ministers.”
Konrad Yakabuski (The Globe and Mail) on Justin Trudeau: “By ousting Ms. Wilson-Raybould and Ms. Philpott, he looks more interested in preserving power than upholding the principles he was elected on.”
Emmett Macfarlane (Maclean’s) on the expulsions: ”If the decent people implicated by this story, and the many decent people in the Liberal caucus, including the Prime Minister, engaged in some self-reflection, perhaps Tuesday’s decision would not have been necessary.”
The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on the SNC-Lavalin affair: “Each time the government tries to obfuscate the real issue, it not only undermines its own credibility, it waters down principles established long before the Trudeau government came to power. They’re carved into the bedrock of Canadian law. Or at least they’re supposed to be.”
Denise Balkissoon (The Globe and Mail) on the carbon tax: “The era of belching carbon without consequence is over. Hopefully, Canadians disagree that ensuring good livelihoods and a livable planet for their children and grandchildren is too expensive to bother.”
Gary Mason (The Globe and Mail) on the carbon tax: "What’s really immoral is being a leader of a political party in this country with no plan to help fight climate change. That’s far more odious than the nature of the scandals that preoccupy us now.”
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