LIVE UPDATES: Liberal bureaucrats testify on foreign election interference
Lawyers representing Michael Chong, Erin O'Toole, the RCDA, and others are expressing concern because the government provided a substantial amount of documents to the commission over the weekend. The contents of these documents are unknown, leading some lawyers to suggest recalling government witnesses.
The Foreign Interference Commission resumes Monday morning, April 8, 2024, with government officials, such as former Deputy Minister of Justice Nathalie Drouin, Deputy Minister of Indigenous Services Canada Gina Wilson, David Morrison, Deputy Minister of International Trade, and Marta Morgan, former Deputy Minister of Global Affairs Canada, among others.
Today's schedule change at the commission is due to last-minute evidentiary issues similar to those seen during the POEC. Government documents are being provided late at night, giving intervening lawyers no time to prepare their questions. The panel of five individuals from 2019 and 2021 will be examined in the morning and cross-examined in the afternoon.
The lawyer from the Russian Canadian Democratic Alliance (RCDA) is asking for a delay until tomorrow because the government documents were given at 1 am. Justice Hogue has not responded yet.
Follow along with live updates from the hearing with Sheila Gunn Reid on X, or on the page below:
Back at it covering the Foreign Interference Commission into China and other foreign states' attempts (and, as it turns out, successful interventions into the last two federal elections).
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
I'll be cutting some clips as I go and posting them here. You can see the compilation of…
Today's schedule change at the commission is due to the same sort of last-minute evidentiary games we saw during the public order emergency commission.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
Gov docs are being turned over late at night leaving the intervening lawyers no time to prepare their questions.
The panel…
I don't know what these documents are, but the government dumped a bunch of documents on the commission over the weekend, and lawyers for Michael Chong, Erin O'Toole, the RCDA, and others , are very concerned. Some even want govt witnesses recalled.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
There is so much election bureaucracy jargon, but here is what the Panel of Five is and what its mandate is/was. There was one during 2019 and 2021.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
They were getting briefings from the SITE Taskforce on foreign interference. pic.twitter.com/LOw3W6ezm3
"The agencies will inform the affected party ...of the incident directly."
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
However, they didn't inform Kenny Chui, Michael Chong, Bob Saroya, Jenny Kwan, and Alice Wong, although agencies knew about foreign state actors targeting these MPs and candidates. pic.twitter.com/6SH5ukws7Z
These are Panel of 5 documents that suggest the senior Liberal bureaucrats on the panel were well aware of the foreign interference, including the transfer of $250,000 in CPP funds to an unnamed Ontario MPP running as a federal Liberal. pic.twitter.com/0pGuBNiftg
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
Lyall King, the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) on the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections (SITE) Task Force, sent Panel of 5 members a report on an FI threat on the Friday before the election.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
The panel talked about it on the election Monday. Didn't act… pic.twitter.com/fSSrYW9cQZ
The Panel of 5 explains how Facebook came to censor a 2019 Buffalo Chronicle article.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
They say FB came to the PCO with the article. Then the PCO said to take it down to comply with a voluntary agreement with social media companies to pull down what the government (and other… pic.twitter.com/Igq4r1w6gi
CCP. Not CPP. https://t.co/dGSQKKAgZ5
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
Panel of Five questioned on a Sept 11, 2021, secret brief to the Liberals - just 9 days before the election - given to the party by the SITE TF.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
We learn nothing except that the Panel of 5 senior bureaucrats knew about it but felt whatever it was didn't rise to the threshold of… pic.twitter.com/5JEFZXfynw
Justice Hogue rules that the last-minute government documents turned over in the dead of night will not delay the commission, and intervening lawyers can submit limited questions in writing to CSIS (so no cross-examination in person) on the information contained within.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
I guess… pic.twitter.com/rjj4IBOTF3
WHOA 🚨🚨!!!!
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
No wonder the Liberal gov withheld these CSIS docs until 1 am this morning.
"We know that the PRC clandestinely and deceptively interfered in both the 2019 and 2021 general elections."
"At least 18 candidates and 13 staff members were implicated in PRC foreign… pic.twitter.com/IpLFPUJ5Wk
"Russia had little interest in Canadian elections"
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
CBC, hardest hit. pic.twitter.com/8vvhlsDg3R
Here is the full cross-examination of the Panel of Five (P5) by Conservative Party lawyer Nando De Luca.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
He shows them to be hand-selected Prime Ministerial Appointees who operate under a mandate that allows (or obliges) them to do nothing in nearly all instances of foreign… pic.twitter.com/mqV0Ts0zLz
Here's a shorter clip of CPC lawyer Nando De Luca asking the Panel of 5 what they knew about two transfers of PRC money totalling $250,000 destined for 11 candidates in late 2018—early 2019.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
The money flowed from the PRC to local proxies, to the staff of a 2019 federal… pic.twitter.com/i5Ibj6F6kG
From an Oct 22, 2022 report on a foreign actor acquiescing to PRC officials and co-opted local proxies, saying that if nothing was done now to stop the foreign meddling, it will get worse
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
"PRC officials could be emboldened in their electoral interference efforts by the 2021… pic.twitter.com/KrMuUDWbt6
"You are a panel of deputy ministers and the clerk of the Privy Council, and you speak with authority.
— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) April 8, 2024
"You could have come out and said in Mandarin,
'this information is being spread. We assess it as being false. Please advise yourselves accordingly and conduct yourselves… pic.twitter.com/4NzJLTSb3c
Don't Get Censored
Big Tech is censoring us. Sign up so we can always stay in touch.