Fraudulent ArriveCan Contractor Received Millions in Additional Contracts
The Story: An Ontario company, which received a multi-million dollar contract for the ArriveCan app despite performing no direct work on the project may have received multiple similar contracts under the Trudeau government. GC Strategies reportedly has been awarded $258 million in contracts since the Trudeau Liberals took power.
After the Auditor General’s scathing report that highlighted, in her words “glaring disregard for some of the most basic and fundamental policies of rules and controls,” attention has turned to an IT firm named GC Strategies. The firm not only received the $20 million ArriveCAN contract, but also had been consulted on writing the rules and requirements for the proposals.
The Significance: Of all the Liberal scandals, the ArriveCAN app scandal is one of the most significant, and it is still growing.
On one hand, Canadians were forced to hand over private and personal information to the Federal Government through an app that divided Canadians by vaccine status. On the other hand, Liberal insiders with deep connections to political officials received hundreds of millions of dollars in seemingly-unnecessary contract work.
While some may just roll their eyes at corrupt people doing corrupt things and say it’s “just politics,” this brazen act of defrauding Canadians of their tax dollars may have serious implications. The Auditor General has already spoken with the RCMP and this story may end up with people in very serious trouble.
Before the app’s problematic production was uncovered, the constitutionally questionable app had already become a problem for Prime Minister Trudeau. If this can of worms continues to spill out, it might be the final nail in his political career.
Read More: Isaac Lamoureux, True North, “Firm responsible for ArriveCan received $258 million in government contracts since 2015”
Report: Liberal-NDP Pharmacare Deal to Include Birth Control
The Story: Earlier this month, reports emerged that the NDP have threatened to remove support from the Liberal minority Government if an agreement is not reached on a national pharmacare plan. Separate reports indicate that the Liberals and NDP are divided over how many drugs will be covered under the first stage of the plan. However, according to The Canadian Press, both parties have agreed to cover birth control under the plan’s initial stage and are still negotiating the inclusion of other medications such as insulin.
The Significance: The Liberal-NDP Government’s decision to cover birth control before agreeing to cover life-sustaining drugs such as insulin demonstrates their commitment to “bodily autonomy” over every other priority. Even when discussing a pharmacare deal to ostensibly improve healthcare, Canada’s secular progressive Government is preoccupied with preventing childbirth in a nation facing catastrophically low birth rates. The Liberal-NDP coalition values “consequence-free” sex to such a degree that they would rather pay for free access to birth control than pay for free access to life-saving medication.
Furthermore, many of the birth control drugs that would be covered under the new agreement are abortifacients, meaning they actively kill an already-conceived child rather than simply preventing fertilization. As such, the Liberal-NDP agreement to improve healthcare access starts with the improvement of deathcare access. If the Liberal-NDP coalition falls apart over disagreements over the pharmacare framework, voters should punish both parties for prioritizing death over life.
Read More: Laura Osman, CTV News, “Birth control, diabetes meds could be covered if Liberals clinch NDP pharmacare deal”
Historic Regina Catholic Parish Set on Fire
The Story: In the early morning of February 9, an arsonist set fire to Blessed Sacrament Parish, Regina’s oldest Catholic church building. In a security video posted online, a masked man can be seen pouring a full can of gasoline into one of the building’s entryways, using a lighter to start the fire before fleeing the scene as flames engulfed the entryway. The Regina Fire Department responded quickly and put out the fire before it destroyed the building, but the parish has closed until further notice to deal with damage—primarily from smoke.
Reverend James Hentges, the parish’s priest, stated that the building had previously suffered graffiti tags and a dumpster fire.
In the House of Commons, Saskatchewan MP Corey Tochor asked for a unanimous condemnation of the attack, which was denied by members of the governing Liberal Party.
Police have not yet named suspects or issued any warrants for the attack.
The Significance: This is the 97th church building in Canada to be attacked since the unproven 2021 allegation of secret graves for 200 children at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. These dramatic claims caused Parliament to proclaim a genocide and sparked a summer of fire.
These attacks should be dominating the national conversation and be universally condemned. But like other recent anti-religious attacks, they are being swept under the rug or even justified by our political leaders. The refusal by at least one government MP to condemn these arson attacks would be truly unbelievable if it were not for a long string of anti-Christian actions by authorities.
The residential schools may be the excuse, but the truth is that Canada is becoming increasingly unwilling to abide public Christianity because of Christians’ refusal to celebrate the sins of our nation. As such, we should not be surprised that, as Christ promised, the world will hate all who witness to Him: “you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matt. 10:22).
Read More: Quinn Patrick, True North, “Police investigate arson of Regina church set ablaze by man in balaclava”
Liberal Minister “Retracts No More Roads” Statement
The Story: Earlier this week, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault stated that, “our Government has made the decision to stop investing in new road infrastructure.”
The Minister continued by claiming that current road networks were “perfectly adequate,” causing concern from municipal leaders still awaiting federal funds for large projects. Pressed to clarify his comments, Guilbeault said, “of course we’re funding roads…I should have been more specific, we don’t have funds for large projects.”
However, the Minister’s attempts at clarification have not satisfied Canadians concerned with the Liberal government’s push for a “net-zero” future and their plan to phase out gas-powered cars altogether.
The Significance: Two factors make Minister Guilbeault’s statements more than simple virtue signaling. First, Guilbeault is not simply catering to the “net-zero” crowd: he is their leader. A former climate activist who was willing to get arrested for his deeply held climate beliefs, he is speaking from his heart. Second, this Government has made “climate change” the one issue they are willing to act on no matter how unpopular.
Will Canada actually end all funding for road development? Because of its political unpopularity, probably not. But is that the direction Trudeau’s close friend and influential minister wants to take? Take him at his word.
Christians and all Canadians who desire a government that will simply fulfill their duty to govern justly and peaceably should be rightly displeased. Supporting basic national infrastructure is one area that the government may rightly be involved in. Eschewing this responsibility while meddling in provincial affairs and fighting parental rights is another sign that this government has lost sight of their God-given duty to Canadians.
Lastly, Canadian Christians—no matter their views on the environment—should be concerned with the push towards an electric-only future. There is one group of Canadians who will surely suffer from this aggressive push toward net-zero: the poor.
Read More: Naomi Barghiel and Touria Izri, Global News, “Will Ottawa stop funding roads? Minister pressed after contentious comments”
Quick Hits
New poll shows high levels of support for assisted suicide: According to a new Leger poll, 77% of Canadians support the current legal framework on assisted suicide—a framework that has led to numerous egregious abuses and is considered one of the most permissive in the world. Support for expanding assisted suicide to those with mental health conditions is considerably lower at 42%, but is still greater than the mere 28% who oppose doing so.
The Liberals recently passed a bill delaying assisted suicide expansion until 2027, but some Senators, including Harper-appointee Pamila Wallin, are threatening to block that bill. If the bill is not passed by March 17, eligibility will automatically be extended to those with mental health conditions.
Read More: Laura Osman, The Canadian Press, “Fewer than half of Canadians support assisted death exclusively for mental illness: poll”
Charges dropped against Calgary Pastor who silently prayed inside City Hall: Calgary Pastor Derek Reimer, who received a trespassing ticket in March 2023 for silently praying inside the Calgary Municipal Building without a permit, announced via video that the trespassing claim has been dropped. Reimer received legal support from The Democracy Fund (TDF), which filed a constitutional challenge on his behalf. Reimer celebrated the decision by kneeling in silent prayer at the same location he received the ticket last year.
Read More: Jonathan Bradley, The Western Standard, “Charge dropped against Calgary pastor for praying inside city hall”