No one was very surprised when Canada’s Ethics Commissioner came out in a report to say that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did in fact cross the line ethically in the SNC-Lavalin affair.
Even Trudeau had to reluctantly accept that this was the finding, but he then made a major contradiction in his response by saying he takes full responsibility for what happened, but will not apologize for it. At what point is refusing to apologize taking responsibility? When or how exactly is he going to take responsibility?
Refusing to apologize when he was called out for committing a wrong action is in fact irresponsible, particularly for the leader of the federal government. The buck has indeed stopped at the Prime Minister’s Office, but somehow he’s managed to still be passing it.
What really rankles is his claim that he was just fighting for jobs. Since most of those jobs are in Quebec, that’s no big surprise — but why isn’t he concerned about jobs in Western Canada? Why are the energy and agricultural sectors hurting deeply and there are no comments of concern or efforts made to fight for the many jobs lost there?
To read the remainder of this editorial, pick up a copy of the Aug. 21 issue of the Weyburn Review.
