Tuesday April 9, 2019

April 16, 2019 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday April 9, 2019

Trudeau threatens Scheer with lawsuit over SNC-Lavalin comments

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has received a lawsuit threat from the prime minister regarding comments he made about the SNC-Lavalin affair.

October 16, 2015

Scheer says he received a letter from Justin Trudeau’s lawyer on March 31.

The letter from Trudeau’s lawyer Julian Porter took issue with what they term inappropriate comments in a statement made by Scheer on March 29 in response to new documents tabled in the justice committee from former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould.

“The statement contained highly defamatory comments about Prime Minister Trudeau,” it reads.

Trudeau has been under fire for the last two months over allegations that there was pressure on Wilson-Raybould to interfere in criminal proceedings against Quebec construction giant SNC-Lavalin. In an appearance before the House justice committee, she said top government officials asked her to help ensure a special legal deal was extended to the company.

She later provided emails, a written statement and a taped recording to the committee.

Scheer’s March 29 statement, in part, accused the prime minister of political interference, of lying to Canadians and of corrupt conduct.

Trudeau’s lawyer alleges Scheer made false statements, and refers to the Libel and Slander Act of Ontario, which deals with any publicly published material or comments that defame or disparage an individual or their profession.

February 28, 2019

“The prime minister supports wide-ranging and vigorous political debate on matters of public policy. However, your statement, in its entirety, is beyond the pale of fair debate and is libellous of my client personally and in the way of his occupation as prime minister,” Porter writes.

Scheer has retained legal counsel as well.

His lawyer Peter Downard responded to the letter on Sunday, calling the complaint “entirely without merit.”

“It is profoundly disappointing that the prime minister is seeking to silence debate on matters of such great public importance. Mr. Scheer will not be intimidated,” he wrote.

The rebuttal also dares the prime minister to proceed with the lawsuit — which Scheer reiterated in his Sunday afternoon news conference — saying the defence will call for evidence, for Trudeau to testify under oath and for members of his government also to testify.

“I will defend myself vigorously on this,” Scheer said. (Source: CBC News)

Friday October 7, 2016

October 6, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday October 7, 2016

Blue Jays beer-tossing incident: Who threw that brew?

Amateur sleuths have joined Toronto police in the investigation into who threw a can of beer that narrowly missed Baltimore Orioles outfielder Hyun Soo Kim at the Rogers Centre on Tuesday.

But, while police have named their suspect, the Internet is not so sure.

On Wednesday, police released a photo of an unnamed man who they said was the beer-thrower. That man turned out to be Ken Pagan, a journalist who works for Postmedia.

Pagan acknowledged being the man in the photo.

“I contacted Toronto police earlier this evening, around 7 p.m., and identified myself as the person in the photo,” Pagan wrote Wednesday night in an email to The Canadian Press, adding he “cannot say much else.”

That’s when the Internet kicked in with videos shared on Reddit and YouTube.

Starting from a wide-angle shot showing section 139 of the Rogers Centre, one video shows a silver streak crossing the frame. While it’s impossible to identify any faces in the video, Pagan is clearly identifiable when the grainy images are cross-referenced with photos shot by Canadian Press photographer Frank Gunn.

“Fairly clear video of him throwing it backhanded like a Frisbee,” wrote Twitter user Melanie Harrington.

Case closed?

Not quite.

Other photos of Pagan show him holding a plastic cup, not a can of beer.

Then more video surfaced, in which some people claim to see a woman hurling the brew before disappearing from the scene.

Both videos are so grainy, it’s almost impossible to deduce what is taking place exactly.

ther photos show a hole in the crowd just behind and to Pagan’s left, which some argued was the real thrower’s location. They suggest the villain ducked out of sight as soon as the sudsy shot was fired.

In the style of the infamous Zapruder film, both videos of the flying drink are grainy and difficult to make out.

Const. Jenifferjit Sidhu said Toronto police would not comment on the conflicting theories.

“However, we are confident we have made a positive ID and we will continue to work with the Rogers Centre to further the investigation‎,” Sidhu wrote in an email to the Star.

As of early Thursday afternoon, there was no word on charges against Pagan. (Source: Toronto Star)

Tuesday October 4, 2016

October 3, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday October 4, 2016

Trump tax records suggest no federal taxes for years, New York Times reports

Donald Trump’s business losses in 1995 were so large that they could have allowed him to avoid paying federal income taxes for as many as 18 years, according to records obtained by the New York Times.

In a story published online late Saturday, the Times said it anonymously received the first pages of Trump’s 1995 state income tax filings in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The filings show a net loss of $915,729,293 in federal taxable income for the year.

Trump’s campaign released a statement on Saturday lashing out at the Times for publishing the records and accused the newspaper of working to benefit the Republican nominee’s presidential rival, Democrat Hillary Clinton.

“Mr. Trump is a highly skilled businessman who has a fiduciary responsibility to his business, his family and his employees to pay no more tax than legally required,” the statement said.

October 16, 2015

“That being said, Mr. Trump has paid hundreds of millions of dollars in property taxes, sales and excise taxes, real estate taxes, city taxes, state taxes, employee taxes and federal taxes, along with very substantial charitable contributions,” it said.

Trump initially said that he would make his tax returns public during the course of his campaign but later switched course, citing what he said were years of ongoing IRS audits and the advice of his attorneys to keep them private as those audits proceed.

Tax experts say there’s no prohibition on Trump releasing his returns.

Since 1976, every major party presidential nominee has released tax returns. Clinton has publicly released nearly 40 years’ worth, and Trump’s running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, has released 10 years of his tax returns. (Source: CBC News)

Friday October 16, 2015

October 15, 2015 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday October 16, 2015

Blue Jays win throws curve at election

The federal election is dealing with a late curveball hurled by the red-hot Toronto Blue Jays.

Blue Jays fans in the vote-rich 905 and 416 regions — studded with ridings that could help determine who becomes Canada’s next prime minister — are certain to tune into the Jays game on Monday night while possibly tuning out the election.

2011-2015

The first pitch in the third game of the Jays’ American League showdown against the Kansas City Royals is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on Monday, 90 minutes before the polls close to end an election campaign that’s been almost as enthralling to Canada’s political junkies as the Jays post-season run has been to the country’s sports fans.

The team’s post-season games have earned huge ratings, with overnight numbers for the first three outings against the since-defeated Texas Rangers suggesting an average audience of 2.8 million for the Rogers-owned Sportsnet.

Scott Moore, president of Sportsnet and NHL Properties for Rogers, tweeted that more than nine million Canadians watched Wednesday night’s thrilling nail-biter that ended with a 6-3 Jays victory and elimination for the Rangers.

“Seriously. Elections Canada should consider setting up polling stations in sports bars on Monday night,” Conway Fraser, a self-described communications strategist, tweeted shortly after Major League Baseball announced the timing of the game.

Added another: “So the jays first ALCS home game is election night? . . . so much for voter turnout.”

Yet another Twitter user chided any voters pondering skipping voting in favour of cheering on the Jays: “I can’t stress enough that ALCS game 3 is at 8 p.m. on Monday. Voting goes ALL DAY people. Worst excuse to not vote,” tweeted Drew Garner.

Nonetheless broadcaster CTV is conducting a web poll asking people: “Which result will interest you more? The federal election or the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS Game 3?”

In response, one apparent Jays retorted: “Anything will be more interesting than the election results. Whatever they are, we have the next 4 yrs to discuss & argue.” (Source: Toronto Star)

Friday October 2, 2015

October 1, 2015 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday October 2, 2015

O Canada: Nationalism soars as Jays head into postseason glory

For most Canadian baseball fans in the last 22 years, the red maple leaf as a fall classic has been the preserve of trees in their autumnal splendour. But not this October.

We as a nation are about to be reminded of that little red symbol on the Toronto Blue Jays logo, during what is hopefully a full month of October baseball in the Great White North.

The maple leaf is once more going to be the totem of a Canadian nationalism not seen since the days of Kim Campbell, Pearl Jam and season five of Seinfeld.

Whether the players are Canadian – it matters not. The Jays are Canada’s only Major League Baseball team – and their incredible success over the last two months gets the nationalist blood flowing. It’s a tribal instinct that makes us all feel like we belong to something bigger than ourselves.

When Josh Donaldson won the team’s last home game in September with a walk-off home run, the SkyDome – ahem, Rogers Centre – physically shook. It was a tremor felt across the country, united once more by the possibility of what’s to come.

Part of the reason for the current passion is the excruciating time that has elapsed between anything meaningful (read: winning) in Canadian professional sport. The last World Series and Stanley Cup wins by Canadian clubs both last occurred in 1993. The nationalists have been gnashing their teeth ever since.

We’ve seen this phenomenon before: I remember the overwhelming patriotism fuelled by the Blue Jays in 1985, when the team first won the American League East. Elspeth Cameron wrote in this paper that the club had done “more for Canadian nationalism than Terry Fox or Anne Murray.”

A few years later, in 1992, when the team won its first of back-to-back World Series championships, the country hit peak patriotism. The only comparison journalists could draw upon for the key moment was Paul Henderson’s famous goal in 1972. (Continued: Globe & Mail)

Some Toronto love, Hamilton?

Posted by The Hamilton Spectator on Thursday, October 1, 2015