Dumbing of Canadian Democracy, The

Political scandals abound in our country, no digging required. The windowsill of responsible government in Canada has become grimy with the dirt of recent lies and antics: ⢠The Conservatives have run roughshod over Parliament with their use of massive omnibus bills that include many smaller, unrelated pieces of legislation crammed into one bill, making it difficult for MPs to give each part the attention it deserves ⢠With its majority in Parliament, the Conservative government has essentially dismantled the system of multiparty committees that report back to the House on issues, preferring instead to consult only a select few with no comprehensive study ⢠Despite promises of Senate reform and fiscal accountability, the RCMP have charged Conservative senators Mike Duffy, Patrick Brazeau and others for fraud and breach of trust after four senators used Senate coffers as a money tree for their activities ⢠The cost to replace Canada's aging CF-18 fighter jets with F-35 Lightning II stealth aircraft has ballooned from $16 billion to $45 billion, and the F-35s are still in development ⢠The revelation of Julie Couillard's history of past ties to the Hells Angels and her intimate relations with Maxime Bernier heated up the political scene when it was discovered that he left classified documents in her home, prompting his resignation as foreign affairs minister ⢠In 2008, rather than lose a vote of non-confidence and face voters after tabling an unpopular fiscal update, Harper convinced the Governor General to prorogue Parliament.