HeCan'tRefuseVille
From Robert Benzie, writing in the Toronto Star:
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives have quietly held the largest political fundraiser in Canadian history, bringing in a staggering $6 million.
Quietly, because even though more than 4,000 people paid $1,500 apiece to attend Thursday’s sold-out event at the Toronto Congress Centre in Etobicoke, it was closed to the media...
{snip}
...Attendees on Thursday night, speaking confidentially in order to freely discuss what they saw, said it was a coterie of elected officials, lobbyists, developers, union leaders, political staffers, lawyers and assorted other hangers-on.“Wow, what a room, what a crowd. The energy in here is absolutely amazing. I’m told that we have over 4,000 people here tonight. It’s truly remarkable — and make no mistake, this is a dinner to celebrate all of Ontario,” the premier told the assembled throng...
And if there were members of the coterie from 'all' of Ontario that were a little concerned that their constituencies, members, and/or customer bases might not like to see them cosying up to Doug Ford on bended knee?
No problem, the once and future label maker, has taken care of that also:
No problem, the once and future label maker, has taken care of that also:
...Under previous Progressive Conservative, Liberal and NDP premiers, such partisan fundraising events were open to the media, but Ford’s office controversially ended that tradition in 2019.That was after the Star had revealed four years ago that lobbyists had been enlisted to sell tickets...
Hmmmm...
Didn't the good premier's men also strong arm select members of that very same coterie into attending a party to help pay for a certain family member's wedding not long ago?
Why, yes, they did.
...(Ontario's Integrity) The commissioner determined that since the premier said he had “no knowledge of gifts” and that there was “no discussion of government business,” Ford was in the clear...
Gosh.
I guess ring kissing isn't part of the integrity commissioner's purview.
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7 comments:
Having attended such fundraisers on behalf of a large Ontario manufacturer during the Hartis era, I can assure you that the integrity commissioner is likely quite right that "no discussion of government business occurred." Indeed, such discussion would have been quite gauche. But it's truly amazing how a substantial donation can get you a direct line to the premier when you need it. It's also astounding how loopholes can be written into legislation even at late stages of drafting. Of course, any suggestion of quid pro quo would be preposterous. Ontario is simply "open for business," as Ford would say.
https://www.elections.on.ca/en/political-financing0/eligible-contributions.html
Ontario
Eligible Contributors
Monetary contributions or goods and services provided to a political party, constituency association, candidate or leadership contestant are eligible for tax receipts. Contributions given to a nomination contestant, or a third party are not eligible for tax receipts.
Contributions to political parties, constituency associations, candidates, leadership and nomination contestants may only be made by individuals normally resident in Ontario using their own funds.
Contributions to third parties may be made by:
individuals normally resident in Ontario using their own funds;
corporations carrying on business in Ontario that are not registered charities; or
trade unions.
Anonymous contributions are not allowed.
and
In the 2023 calendar year, a person can contribute up to a limit of $3,350 to each registered political party.
No media? Gee sounds to me like the beginning of open government, ford style Reminds me of those "gatherings" Christy used to have here in B.C.. No one really knew who was attending, as in state secret or "some such thing".
So far we have had Ford try to remove a green belt to build houses. Who benefits? Perhaps developers, builders, friends of Ford, people at this gathering. at this point we can only guess.
Interesting news item last week or perhaps the week before, new condo building all units sold, collapses. (developer had asked for and given "changes"_)
Then we hear of Ford and his "privitization" of health care wanderings. First thing which went through my mind was the building which collapsed.
It would not surprise me if there were changes in Ontario which may remind a few of us of Ontario in the 1950s, 60s, 70s, etc. Always wondered where premier ford stood on his brother the mayor's activities and his invovlement in them.
Premier ford seems to win the the best Premier money can buy.
The concept at a sizeable donation to a political event will give one special access to the premier and his ministers is abhorrent to me. It is the erosion of democracy and puts a lie that we live in a democratic society, more like a modern feudal society where the rich have special privileges by paying an indulgence to the ruling party.
The media was not invited for good reason because it would showcase politcal corruption first hand.
Ford's "Tammany Hall" sort of politic should be illegal, but this is Canada and corruption, especially politcal corruption, is so common place that the public (the voter) has accepted it as a way of doing business.
This reminds me when the building inspector failed the plumbing (done by an accredited plumber) three times because, as the inspector told me "your plumber does not know how to do business in .............."
More recently my son failed 3 times getting his "N", even though he took Young Drivers of Canada, but at a different location he passed with flying colours and was told by the inspector that they do business different ly in.............."
The proprietary railway that operates on the Expo and Millennium Lines, is now called Movia automatic Light metro (MALM). MALM is the 6th name this railway was marketed under and only 7 such systems sold. the last for sold, when Bombardier owned it, was marketed as Advanced Rapid Transit (ART) and had a very jaded history.
The two sold to Korea and Malaysia, saw the patent holders of ART, Bombardier and SNC Lavalin involved with corruption trials where they paid "success fees to senior politicians and bureaucrats to have the system built.
The American Federal government refused all subsidies to ART in the USA because after a peer review found the the system poorly built and very expensive for what it does. The JFk "AirTrain" was financed by the Canadian Overseas Development Bank to save Bombardier's reputation for rail vehicles.
The Chinese built one to steal technology and they never built another one.
Question: Why did the the NDP's Joy McPhail and glen Clark flip flop from LRT to ART (erroneously called SkyTrain) for what we now call the Millennium Line?
And by coincidence, this happened at the same time.
http://jcameronlaw.com/off-duty-cop-finds-1-million-in-vancouver-trash-can/
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/finders-keepers-pays-off-for-vancouver-cop-1.184805
Cap said...
"It's also astounding how loopholes can be written into legislation even at late stages of drafting."
I agree, especially when select members of the coterie themselves help 'advise' how those legislative drafts are written.
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NVG--
In the case of that 'stag and doe' thingy, the favour currying was all out in the open (which is what made some members of the coterie squeamish) and part of the rationalization was that it was NOT electioneering.
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e.a.f--
This no media thing really began in earnest with the Harpoonistas of yore.
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EE
Tammany Hall Country, indeed!
Quid Pro Quo, or something like that?
Chuckstraight--
Absolutely.
All with very deeply scratched backs, of course.
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