LYTLE: For the Liberals, there are no rules

I raised my children on the cusp of a shift in parenting styles that caused people to sniff at neanderthals like me who took a decidedly “spare the rod, spoil the child” approach to discipline. Fortunately I was aware that giving my kids a swat on the bum in a public place was not going to fly with the increasing number of hall monitors who prowled the malls. To get around them, I devised a carefully cloaked methodology that resulted in my kid’s compliance with my wishes. My technique shall remain a secret.Based on the training I received from my parents which they, no doubt, received from their parents, I believe that children are to behave with respect and decorum in the presence of adults. There are rules of conduct that, for the sake of an ordered society, must be obeyed..There are also rules of parliamentary conduct that, for the sake of an ordered society, must be obeyed. Our former black-faced prime minister with the bespoke socks preferred to flaunt those rules and did so from the beginning to the end of his reign. His most recent and last rule-breaking tantrum was the evisceration of what is known as the Caretaker Convention. This is how constitutionalist James Bowden defines the convention,At its core, the Caretaker Convention means simply that the incumbent government should restrict itself to routine and necessary business during the election and after an election if the results either do not yield a clear winner or if another party has won a majority. The incumbent government should not undertake any controversial or irreversible decisions that would bind a potential successor government.This convention covers situations when Parliament does not exist — like during an election. .Or like during prorogation. Parliament has been prorogued since January 6, but this did not stop Mr. Trudeau from filling up the Senate and every other vacant appointed position. If memory serves correctly, Mr. Trudeau was incensed when Prime Minister Stephen Harper filled some positions prior to the 2015 election even though Parliament was still in session. I also remember the lambasting that John Turner took from Brian Mulroney in a debate during the 1984 election for having accepted the appointments made by Mr. Trudeau senior. It is a habit with the Trudeaus apparently.This serial desire to ignore parliamentary decorum is not new, of course. Mr. Trudeau declared the Emergencies Act to hide his fearfulness of large, honking trucks. Someone told the RCMP to have the banks seize the accounts of seemingly random people who may have been in favour of the large trucks and those who pressed on the horns. Mr. Trudeau’s decision was later declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.In 2019 Mr. Trudeau passed the infamous C-69 legislation which, in part, incorporated a Bill of Pains and Penalties and was subsequently determined by the Alberta Court of Appeal to be irreparable in whole or in part. This decision was later softened by the Supreme Court who found only parts of the legislation to be unconstitutional.Perhaps the most egregious of Mr. Trudeau’s rule breaking tantrums was the attempt to influence a pending decision by his Attorney General, the Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould regarding an open file dealing with Quebec-based SNC Lavalin. As one of the adults in the room, the honourable Attorney-General resigned from her position and was joined by fellow cabinet minister and Treasury Board president, the Honourable Jane Philpott. Our feminist former Prime Minister has a record of undercutting strong women. At least that was the opinion of Celina Caesar-Chavannes, Mr. Trudeau’s parliamentary secretary, who complained of tokenism and being prevented from using her significant skills.But Mr. Trudeau is gone. Why revisit his questionable conduct? Our new prime minister may not have his predecessor's flair for socks, but he seems equally intent on parliamentary conduct that flouts the norms of an ordered society. He too, ignored the accepted restrictions of the Caretaker Convention by unilaterally hiding the carbon tax that, until a month ago, was the pinnacle of Liberal governance. Not exactly “routine business”. Nor did it stop him from rearranging the cabinet during prorogation and in the absence of a mandate. .I guess we will soon find out if Mr. Carney is more trustworthy than Mr. Trudeau. Our new and bland banker has demonstrated a flair for saying different things in different parts of the country. Some might call this childish and not respectful of practiced decorum.The “parents” in this contrived metaphor are, in my view, the members of the Liberal Party. Yes, even the fourteen-year-old ones. It is their responsibility to discipline their new leader to start behaving within the bounds of reasonable respect for longstanding practice. They have suffered a near death experience from a black faced leader with nice hair. It would be a pity if they repeat that experience with a pasty-faced leader with thinning hair.It is really on them.

LYTLE: For the Liberals, there are no rules

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