Connecting the Duffy Dots

Prime Minister Harper has repeatedly insisted that only Nigel Wright knew about the $90,000 cheque to Senator Mike Duffy and that he was not aware until the story broke in the media. But as a result of the ongoing Duffy trial and the media coverage thereof we know the following:

#1.       A number of others were, in fact, aware of this payment, including senior staff in the PMO.

#2.       Attention has focused on Harper’s current Chief of Staff, Ray Novak. While there was an email to him discussing the $90,000 payment, we were told that he didn’t read it.

#3.       Novak was at a meeting where Nigel Wright discussed the Duffy payment, but we were told that he attended only part of that meeting, and didn’t hear the revelation.

#4.       Harper’s campaign spokesperson, Kory Teneycke, said that Novak only learned of the payment when Harper did, insisting that “it’s unfathomable” that Novak would be aware of the $90,000 and not tell the Prime Minister.

#5.       Ben Perrin, the former legal counsel to Harper’s PMO told the RCMP that Novak was at a meeting where Nigel Wright revealed the $90,000 payment and that Novak’s knowledge of this payment is “black and white.”

#6.       Chris Woodcock, Director of Issues Management in the PMO, played a central role in the efforts to manage the Duffy problem yet he would have us believe that he also didn’t know about the $90,000 payment – because he failed to read beyond the first paragraph of a short email from Nigel Wright dealing with this issue.

Conclusion: Stephen Harper and his senior staff – just not ready … to tell the truth!

For further observations about Canadian politics, see richardtindal.weebly.com.