Cash-for-access doesn’t pass the smell test

Justin Trudeau’s government finds itself caught in a bind of its own making as it struggles to justify its practice of providing preferred access to the Prime Minister and his top cabinet officials to those who can afford it.

The Liberals are getting quite proficient at creating these conundrums. The battering they’ve been taking over their electoral reform project was entirely avoidable, caused by Trudeau’s vow to change the voting system in time for the next election despite lacking a ready alternative or adequate public support, and his determination to push ahead even when it became obvious the responsible minister, Maryam Monsef, couldn’t deliver. Only a year in power, and already they’re tripping over their own feet.

Interim opposition leader Rona Ambrose has asked ethics commissioner Mary Dawson and lobbying commissioner Karen Shepherd to examine the Liberal practices. The fact the practice is commonly referred to as “cash for access” or “pay to play” is a good illustration of the problem involved: the Liberals openly and actively seek out wealthy, well-placed individuals willing to hand over large sums of money – with tax benefits attached! – in return for a chance to rub shoulders with the key decision- makers in the government. Finance Minister Bill Morneau and Justice Minister Jody Wilson- Raybould have both served as star attractions, but the biggest draw has been the biggest fish: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself.

Trudeau has been attending fundraising events held at the homes of wealthy Chinese entrepreneurs, some of whom have boasted of the opportunity it provided to personally lobby him on their business interests. After one fundraiser organized to promote Chinese interests, a pair of attendees donated $ 200,000 to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and $ 50,000 to erect a statue of the prime minister’s father.

Ambrose wants a closer look at these activities. Dawson has already labelled them “not very savoury,” but says there’s a limit to what she can do about it, because private fundraisers organized by a political party don’t violate Canada’s elections law, which only prohibits events organized by individual cabinet members themselves. So as long as Trudeau doesn’t per- sonally send out the invites, he’s home free.

Except that cash- for- access does clearly violate the ethics guidelines Trudeau proudly unveiled soon after he took office. The guidelines — which the Liberals have not seen fit to make law — state that “there should be no preferential access to government, or appearance of preferential access, accorded to individuals or organizations because they have made financial contributions to politicians and political parties.” They also specify that merely sticking to the letter of the law is not good enough. Government ministers are to “perform their official duties and arrange their private affairs in a manner that will bear the closest public scrutiny.”

None of the fundraisers bear close public scrutiny, as the uproar they have created testifies. Yet Trudeau’s response has been to insist they don’t strictly break the law, and thus are perfectly fine. Morneau dismissed questions about a $ 1,500- a- head dinner he attended on the basis that it “was organized by the Liberal Party of Canada and we followed all of the applicable rules.”

Of course, it’s the Liberals who make the rules, and could make them stricter if they chose. The Prime Minister says his willingness to serve as chief attraction at such blatant lobbying sessions reflects his determination to attract investment to Canada. As a justification, it’s barren of merit: if Trudeau wants to promote investment, or draw the attention of wealthy entrepreneurs, he hardly has to charge them $ 1,500 a pop to do so. It’s unlikely any investor of any stripe would turn down a chance to meet the country’s leader free of charge. The only loser in that instance would be the treasury of the Liberal Party of Canada.

A set of emails reported in the Globe and Mail show just how shamelessly the party sells access to Trudeau. A gathering at the home of a veteran Montreal fundraiser was promoted as a chance to “form relationships and open dialogues with our government.”

Liberal claims that no government business is discussed at such events are contradicted by people who attend: why else would they be paying $ 1,500 if they expect nothing in return?

Ontario’s Liberals stumbled into this same quagmire with their own pay- to- play program, until public pressure forced a full retreat on Premier Kathleen Wynne. Her reversal resulted from the strong smell that emanates from such blatant influence-peddling, and the public reaction it produced. Trudeau should act now to entrench his own guidelines in law and ensure they are rigorously enforced, before the stench in Ottawa gets much worse, as it certainly will.

ONTARIO’S LIBERALS STUMBLED INTO THIS SAME QUAGMIRE.