>Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
>Website: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/
>by Tim Naumetz
>Date: 2005 July 9 Page A9

GRITS STUDY PUTTING PARLIAMENT ON HOLD

Proroguing House would buy time before next federal election

Liberal insiders are debating whether the government should
prorogue Parliament during the summer recess and launch a
new session late this fall, with a throne speech outlining
the main elements of the next Liberal election campaign
platform.

JCT: Yes, yes, yes, yes.

The move, which Conservatives fear could delay a resumption
of the House of Commons sitting as late as November or even
further, would deprive the opposition of a chance to topple
the minority government soon after the Sept. 26 scheduled
date for Parliament's return.

JCT: So the Liberals would like it too.

It could also serve as an opportunity for the Liberals to
set the stage for a campaign on their own terms, with issues
they hope would over-shadow the findings of Justice John
Gomery's commission of Inquiry into the sponsorship scandal,
scheduled to be released Nov. 1.

As well, prorogation would kill a controversial bill
proposing to decriminalize offences for possession of small
amounts of marijuana.

JCT: And there would be no new Section 7(1) cultivation
prohibition and Krieger will still rule!!!!!

The legislation has been on hold for several months,
following U.S. signals it could harm bilateral relations and
cause security and commerce problems at the border.

JCT: "Several years" following Turmel's House of Commons
bust while Parker [2001] and Krieger [2002] ruled.

Two government insiders indicated opinion is mixed about the
prorogation strategy, and no decision will be made prior to
the Liberal caucus retreat in August in Regina and a
subsequent cabinet retreat to finalize the parliamentary and
legislative strategy for the fall.

JCT: You know where my prayers are. It was to stop the
introduction of the new legislation that would have to be
challenged all over again that I raided Parliament Hill to
frighten the Government out of introducing the new
legislation the next day. It worked. I much preferred
dealing with laws that had been declared invalid and never
re-legislated by Parliament.

Some Liberals believe the Conservatives, who have slumped in
the polls since the government survived the confidence
crisis in May, do not have the appetite for a fall election.
They do not believe the Conservatives would force an
election until Judge Gomery reports on testimony that
hundreds of thousands of dollars of government money were
secretly funneled to the Quebec wing of the Liberal party
for campaign financing as late as 1997.

Others are uncertain how secure the government's status will
be in the fall, following passage of the $4.5-billion budget
package the government drafted in return for NDP confidence
support last May. The bill, C-48, is expected to be passed
by the Senate next week.

"I would put my money on prorogation," Liberal MP Roger
Gallaway said yesterday in discussing the internal debate.
"It seems to be the case that makes a whole lot of sense,
from a strategic point of view."

JCT: First money is on prorogation. Good sign.

Even though the main elements of the last Liberal election
platform have been fulfilled in the budget, and the $41-
billion health accord with the provinces, more than two
dozen bills remain in either the House or the Senate. They
include the marijuana bill still in the Commons, a public
service whistleblower bill, Competition Act changes to
criminalize bid-rigging and predatory pricing, telemarketing
controls, a bill limiting parole eligibility for inmates and
Criminal Code amendments against human trafficking.

JCT: As long as they don't re-legislate Section 4(1) that
was struck down by the Parker Court of Appeal of Ontario and
Section 7(1) that was struck down by the Krieger Court of
Appeal of Alberta, we're someday going to have to win.


--
Abolitionist Slave Leader John C."The Banking Systems Engineer" Turmel
for UNILETS interest-free time-based currency in U.N. resolution C6
to Governments in the http://www.un.org/millennium/declaration.htm
http://www.cyberclass.net/turmel 519-753-0645 USENET: can.politics