This is the week that was

After his motion on sex-selective abortion was rejected, Mark Warawa said his party leadership was preventing him from speaking in the House. Brent Rathgeber put the problem in perspective and the House of Commons got its back up. Stephen Woodworth blamed abortionism as values collided. The Prime Minister tried to draw a line. Costas Menegakis tried to claim ownership of the things he says. Mr. Warawa’s appeal was denied. Mr. Rathgeber, Nathan Cullen, Kyle Seeback, Mr. Woodworth and John Williamson support Mr. Warawa’s right to speak. We explained how to fix the time reserved for members’ statements and compiled a rough guide to our democratic crisis.

While promising not to raise taxes, Jim Flaherty raised tariffs on more than a thousand products. Some government backbenchers thought it was their job to scrutinize opposition MPs. Keith Ashfield offered an awkward compliment. The NDP asked the RCMP to investigate a budget leak. The Agenda talked to Kevin Page and considered Parliament’s ability to scrutinize government spending. The Harper government withdrew from the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. And the Prime Minister, Thomas Mulcair and Bob Rae mourned Ralph Klein.

Colby Cosh considered the legacy of Mr. Klein, John Geddes looked at the budget’s spending figures and focus on training, and Paul Wells explained how the Economic Action Plan wasn’t a budget.