25 Mar 20
The late Senator Eugene Forsey, an expert on the Canadian constitution, was rolling in his grave. Somewhere, the severed head of King Charles I of England was grinning in satisfaction. The government of Justin Trudeau was asking parliament to be granted the powers that Charles I was beheaded for exercising.
Where the hell was the Department of Justice? It is supposed to supervise the drafting of legislation, and say “you can’t do that!” The Minister of Justice ought to have resigned.
Section 2 of the original COVID-19 emergency legislation would have granted the Trudeau government full powers, without further reference to parliament, to raise taxes, spend money, and borrow money on the credit of Canada as it saw fit for the next year and nine months. Charles I tried something like that, paid the ultimate price for it; and his beheading established a constitutional precedent that holds to this day.
It is one thing to ask for emergency powers for a month or two, but to ask for a year and nine month raises the question of what parliament was going to be doing over that time – nothing? Did Trudeau really think that the country couldn’t risk having a debate in parliament over a new tax or spend measure four or six months from now? What was Trudeau planning? A Nancy Pelosi like jamming of hobby-horses into an emergency measures bill? Never let a good crisis go to waste!
Luckily, the bill passed the House without Section 2. When the dust settles, there needs to be a reckoning with the Department of Justice, which is supposed to uphold law and constitutional precedent, and protect the government - and us - from such mistakes - or power grabs.
The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.
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