Politics on TV: Brazeau, Estimates, and RCMP harassment
The three things you need to see
38-year-old homeless tour guide Karim stands at the Prague’s main railway station during his tour in Prague November 20, 2012. Karim works for a student-run tour agency Pragulic as a tour guide that shows tourists the sides of Prague that sightseers would normally avoid. Picture taken November 20, 2012. To match CZECH-HOMELESS/TOUR REUTERS/Petr Josek (CZECH REPUBLIC – Tags: SOCIETY POVERTY TRAVEL)
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Here are the three things you should not have missed:
- The charges against Senator Patrick Brazeau
- MPs talking about the Main Estimates
- Tackling RCMP harassment
Power Play opened with La Presse journalist Hugo de Grandpré, who broke the story on the charges against Senator Patrick Brazeau, based on the police records used to obtain the warrant. The argument allegedly started over a disagreement over Aboriginal issues. Records allege Brazeau hit his partner, attempted to choke her and threw her down the stairs with an intensity that broke the banister. Brazeau has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Don Martin hosted an MP panel of Shelly Glover, Peggy Nash and Scott Brison to talk about the Main Estimates, which were tabled yesterday. Nash said the Estimates are a signpost for the government’s spending plans, but they have been “creative” with the numbers, which is why they need the PBO to make sense of them. Brison noted the increased spending on “propaganda advertising,” while cuts are being made in such areas as food safety, defence and maritime safety. Glover said the cuts are actually savings made by finding efficiencies, and said the PBO’s report stating there were front-line service cuts missed “other categories” of savings.
Power & Politics had an MP panel of Candice Bergen, Randall Garrison and Francis Scarpaleggia to discuss RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson’s appearance before a Commons committee to discuss issues facing the Force. Bergen spoke of the need to change the culture in the RCMP before changing the composition, with a target of 30 per cent women by 2025, and the need to pass Bill C-42 to establish the new framework. Garrison said there is a crisis of confidence for women in the RCMP, and the government needs to settle and reconcile with the 300 women litigating against the Force for sexual harassment. Scarpaleggia said the Liberals are supporting C-42, and he was pleased to hear Paulson said he would accept all of the recommendation from complaints commissioner.
Worth Noting:
- NDP leader Thomas Mulcair had a wide-ranging interview on P&P talking EI “quotas,” the Senate and procurement.