Three-dimensional Contempt

It's been interesting to watch the Conservative war machine in full evasive mode as it seeks to convince Canadians that the fall of this government and the subsequent election had nothing to do at all with the Harper government's contempt of Parliament charges. These are serious charges that might register heavily with Canadians just prior to visiting the polls, so the best they can do is hope to distract you.In these past five years there has been a growing contempt of the media by the present government that often escapes our notice because no one really likes it when media plays the victim card and so the practice goes on in obscurity.It all started from the get-go, shortly after Stephen Harper became PM, and came to a head in mid-2006 when members of the press gallery got up and walked out moments before the PM walked into the room, in an act of defiance concerning how the PMO had imposed strict rules on access to both the PM and his cabinet. It was an unusual step that went largely unnoticed so early in Harper's mandate. The timing of cabinet or caucus meetings were no longer published so that media couldn't wait in the halls for interviews. Then media were barred from the runway during the repatriation of slain Canadian soldiers killed in the line of duty, just as had been the practice with George W. Bush. And in a move that likely prompted the media walk-out, the PMO stated there would be no more opportunities for questions during photo ops with the PM in his office and that in future news conference PMO staff would begin selecting which reporter could ask questions.This pattern of obstruction has repeated itself in numerous forms throughout the Harper years. The PM is famous for his desire to control people and messages - something the media is hardly required to accommodate. But now it has spread across all departments of the government and the bureaucracy. And presently this kind of clandestine operation has spread its tentacles across the globe. Retiring ambassadors and foreign service officers have spoken of the total message control imposed upon them by the government. In previous times, these seasoned observers were permitted more leeway, given their renowned diplomatic expertise and seasoned observations. Not any more. Now they are instructed from the ideological centre in Ottawa what to say and how to keep media in the dark. This has been primarily managed through the Privy Council Office with negative effects.The media had known of these tendencies in Stephen Harper for years prior to his ascension to power, but with his campaign promise of a new era of transparency and accountability in government they gave him the benefit of the doubt. It didn't last long, as the PM's desire for total control emerged with a vengeance following the 2006 election. In my initial by-election victory later that year, my Conservative opponent - an upstanding and principled former mayor - was never permitted to campaign as she desired to and it was difficult to witness her frustrations.Just do a Google search on the Conservative government's use of Message Event Proposals (MEPs) and you'll find numerous examples of how this practice has effectively choked the life out of governmental accountability. It is not unique to the Conservatives but has nevertheless been turned into an art form with Machiavellian undertones for the future of Canadian democracy.Which brings us to you, the public. If a government is managing effectively, accountability shouldn't be a problem. Information should be flowing back and forth in efficient manner. But when a government shuts down open information the media becomes vital to the democratic process. But when they, too, are facing information blackouts, it's difficult for democracy itself to find any solid ground on which to operate.All of this is especially important in an election. According to Jonathan Rose, a political scientist from Queen's University, "You've got bureaucrats who are doing the government's partisan work and political staffers who are doing bureaucrats' work. So there's this huge blurring of the lines between the two." If this is permitted to continue it will amount to the death knell of this country's internationally respected objectivity concerning our civil service. These lines have been blurring for years, but now the political and bureaucratic worlds are melding into one operational unit under the control of a hyper-partisan government.All of this is contempt by another manner. It is all designed to keep you from knowing what you should discover if you are to make an informed vote. Michael Ignatieff will be in London tonight holding an open town hall, welcoming all questions, whether informed or not. I'll be there introducing him. There are no tightly controlled scripts, no filtering of questions in advance, no keeping media at a distance. The other opposition leaders are using the same practice. But not Stephen Harper. His contempt of Parliament charge resulted from his attempting to do an end-around past the regular parliamentary accountability. Now he's attempting to replicate the same practice, getting around responsibility to the media and accountability to the public. It's three-dimensional contempt and it's sucking the democratic life out of the nation.Update: Special thanks to the Toronto Star's Susan Delacourt for reminding me that some reporters would never walk out of a PM's press conference because it's a public responsibility to be there. I appreciate the clarification.