Canada’s political parties are standing firm in their positions during two days of weekend debates on the use of the Emergencies Act, ahead of a key vote on Monday on whether to ratify the extraordinary powers.
MPs, who have been sparring in the House of Commons hour after hour, are scheduled to sit from 7 a.m. ET to midnight on both Saturday and Sunday.
The at-times tense and personal debate has pitted the Liberal government against the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois, a combination Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux referred to as an “unholy alliance.” The New Democrats have said they will support the government’s use of the act but have urged the Liberals to tread carefully, while reserving the right to pull support at any time.
Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre, who has announced he is seeking the leadership of his party, accused Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of engineering the crisis for political gain.
“They have attempted to amplify and take advantage of every pain, every fear, every tragedy that has struck throughout this pandemic in order to divide one person against another and replace the people’s freedom with the government’s power,” he said Saturday.
Poilievre said the Emergencies Act was the “latest and greatest example of attacks on our freedom.”
Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair said Sunday that the “vigorous” debates over the Emergencies Act are a sign of a healthy democracy, casting the discussion in a positive light a day after a major police action cleared protesters away from Parliament Hill on Saturday.
“The fact that there has been a vigorous debate taking place in Parliament, that will come to a vote in our democratically elected House of Commons tomorrow … to me is an affirmation that our democracy is strong,” he said in an interview on Rosemary Barton Live.
Protests not an emergency: Conservatives
The Conservatives argue that the protests do not rise to the level of an emergency and do not warrant the use of extraordinary powers — claiming the government’s actions are “sinister” and politically motivated.
“There is no emergency, there is no threat to our democracy, and it’s a shame the government has not pulled this bill,” said Warren Steinley, a Conservative MP from Saskatchewan. Steinley was among several Conservative MPs who voiced support and visited with protesters earlier in the month. The party has since called for the end of the demonstrations.
Other Conservatives characterized the protests as a matter more appropriately dealt with by Ottawa police, not an emergency response.
“There’s no al-Qaeda, there’s no Taliban, there’s no North Korean special forces looking to take over the government. Mr. Speaker, this is a matter for local law enforcement officials, and it is wrong for this government to make it out to be anything more than that,” said Conservative MP Michael Kram. His characterization of the protests was criticized by Liberal MPs and Green MP Elizabeth May.
Yasir Naqvi, the Liberal MP for Ottawa Centre, made an impassioned speech on Sunday outlining the harms of the protest on the city’s downtown.
“I cannot overstate the profound impact this occupation has had on my community,” he said, adding it will take time to heal.
Liberals argue measures are restrained, limited
The governing Liberals have argued that the Emergencies Act was necessary to put an end to the protests in Ottawa and others across the country, pointing to such measures as cutting off financial supports and compelling the service of tow truck drivers.
The measures are automatically time-limited, expiring after 30 days, and Parliament has the power to revoke the emergency declaration either in initial votes this week or at any point during the month-long window.
** 4 Reasons Why the Emergencies Act was Required **<br><br>1. Children – Allowed for the lawful prohibition of children to be brought into the protest.<br><br>2. Restrict Entry – Allowed police to restrict access to downtown Ottawa of those whose sole intention was to join the protest.<br><br>1/2
Blair told CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton that the government was committed to maintaining the emergency only as long as needed to resolve the situation in Ottawa.
“We have said and made a commitment to Canadians that we brought these measures reluctantly because they were necessary, but they would only be in place and only where they are required for as long as is necessary,” he said.
WATCH | Bill Blair defends Emergencies Act measures:
Emergencies Act measures will ‘only be in place as long as they are needed,’ minister says
8 hours ago
Duration 9:54
Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair told CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton that the measures taken by the federal government have been effective in dealing with the situation in Ottawa. 9:54
That question is growing in importance as police have succeeded in dislodging protesters from their main encampment near Parliament Hill, establishing a secure perimeter with fencing and towing the vehicles that have occupied much of the city’s downtown core for more than three weeks.
In defending their decision, Liberals have repeatedly pointed to comments made by interim Ottawa police Chief Steve Bell on Friday, in which he noted the Emergencies Act had allowed police to set up barriers and secure an area in the city’s downtown.
Mixed support from premiers
The government’s use of the Emergencies Act received an uneasy response from premiers throughout, with some like Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaking out in support, while others were opposed.
In a separate interview airing Sunday, B.C. Premier John Horgan said while many premiers agreed the situation was serious, they were concerned with federal overreach.
“I think the premiers agreed that the events in Ottawa were just not tenable and something had to be done. But at the same time, we all expressed our concerns about the intrusion into provincial jurisdiction. We all expressed a concern that it be locally focused, geographically focused,” he told Barton.
WATCH | B.C. Premier John Horgan on invoking the Emergencies Act:
‘Something had to be done,’ B.C. premier says on invoking federal Emergencies Act
8 hours ago
Duration 8:36
B.C. Premier John Horgan told CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton the premiers agreed the protests in Ottawa were untenable, but they expressed concern about intrusion into provincial jurisdiction through the use of the Emergencies Act. 8:36
Premier Jason Kenney in neighbouring Alberta took a much harder line, saying on Saturday his government would challenge the use of the act and potentially join as an intervener in a separate case being launched by the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.
“That kind of extraordinary power I don’t think is justified,” Kenney told Barton in an interview that took place Friday, ahead of his announcement.
“I think they could have dealt with the situation in Ottawa using the same sort of laws they were using in Windsor and at Coutts,” he said, referring to blockades of border crossings in Windsor, Ont., and Coutts, Alta.
Alberta is filing a Court challenge to the unjustified use of the Emergencies Act.<br><br>We may also intervene in support of other Court challenges.<br><br>As Tommy Douglas said about the use of the War Measures Act in 1970, it’s like “using a sledgehammer to crack a peanut. <a href=”https://t.co/lx53TNcaJb”>https://t.co/lx53TNcaJb</a> <a href=”https://t.co/QD98vKgc32″>pic.twitter.com/QD98vKgc32</a>
PARIS (AP) — French judicial authorities are investigating the disappearance of two Paralympic athletes from Congo who recently competed in the Paris Games, the prosecutor’s office in the Paris suburb of Bobigny confirmed on Thursday.
Prosecutors opened the investigation on Sept. 7, after members of the athletes’ delegation warned authorities of their disappearance two days before.
Le Parisien newspaper reported that shot putter Mireille Nganga and Emmanuel Grace Mouambako, a visually impaired sprinter who was accompanied by a guide, went missing on Sept. 5, along with a third person.
The athletes’ suitcases were also gone but their passports remained with the Congolese delegation, according to an official with knowledge of the investigation, who asked to remain anonymous as they were not allowed to speak publicly about the case.
The Paralympic Committee of the Democratic Republic of Congo did not respond to requests for information from The Associated Press.
Nganga — who recorded no mark in the seated javelin and shot put competitions — and Mouambako were Congo’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games, organizers said.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A linebacker at Division II West Virginia State was fatally shot during what the university said Thursday is being investigated by police as a home invasion.
The body of Jyilek Zyiare Harrington, 21, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was found inside an apartment Wednesday night in Charleston, police Lt. Tony Hazelett said in a statement.
Hazelett said several gunshots were fired during a disturbance in a hallway and inside the apartment. The statement said Harrington had multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said they had no information on a possible suspect.
West Virginia State said counselors were available to students and faculty on campus.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Jyilek’s family as they mourn the loss of this incredible young man,” West Virginia State President Ericke S. Cage said in a letter to students and faculty.
Harrington, a senior, had eight total tackles, including a sack, in a 27-24 win at Barton College last week.
“Jyilek truly embodied what it means to be a student-athlete and was a leader not only on campus but in the community,” West Virginia State Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Nate Burton said. “Jyilek was a young man that, during Christmas, would create a GoFundMe to help less fortunate families.”
Burton said donations to a fund established by the athletic department in Harrington’s memory will be distributed to an organization in Charlotte to continue his charity work.
West Virginia State’s home opener against Carson-Newman, originally scheduled for Thursday night, has been rescheduled to Friday, and a private vigil involving both teams was set for Thursday night. Harrington previously attended Carson-Newman, where he made seven tackles in six games last season. He began his college career at Division II Erskine College.
“Carson-Newman joins West Virginia State in mourning the untimely passing of former student-athlete Jyilek Harrington,” Carson-Newman Vice President of Athletics Matt Pope said in a statement. “The Harrington family and the Yellow Jackets’ campus community is in our prayers. News like this is sad to hear anytime, but today it feels worse with two teams who knew him coming together to play.”
DETROIT (AP) — Joe Schmidt, the Hall of Fame linebacker who helped the Detroit Lions win NFL championships in 1953 and 1957 and later coached the team, has died. He was 92.
The Lions said family informed the team Schmidt died Wednesday. A cause of death was not provided.
One of pro football’s first great middle linebackers, Schmidt played his entire NFL career with the Lions from 1953-65. An eight-time All-Pro, he was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973 and the college football version in 2000.
“Joe likes to say that at one point in his career, he was 6-3, but he had tackled so many fullbacks that it drove his neck into his shoulders and now he is 6-foot,” said the late Lions owner William Clay Ford, Schmidt’s presenter at his Hall of Fame induction in 1973. “At any rate, he was listed at 6-feet and as I say was marginal for that position. There are, however, qualities that certainly scouts or anybody who is drafting a ballplayer cannot measure.”
Born in Pittsburgh, Schmidt played college football in his hometown at Pitt, beginning his stint there as a fullback and guard before coach Len Casanova switched him to linebacker.
“Pitt provided me with the opportunity to do what I’ve wanted to do, and further myself through my athletic abilities,” Schmidt said. “Everything I have stemmed from that opportunity.”
Schmidt dealt with injuries throughout his college career and was drafted by the Lions in the seventh round in 1953. As defenses evolved in that era, Schmidt’s speed, savvy and tackling ability made him a valuable part of some of the franchise’s greatest teams.
Schmidt was elected to the Pro Bowl 10 straight years from 1955-64, and after his arrival, the Lions won the last two of their three NFL titles in the 1950s.
In a 1957 playoff game at San Francisco, the Lions trailed 27-7 in the third quarter before rallying to win 31-27. That was the NFL’s largest comeback in postseason history until Buffalo rallied from a 32-point deficit to beat Houston in 1993.
“We just decided to go after them, blitz them almost every down,” Schmidt recalled. “We had nothing to lose. When you’re up against it, you let both barrels fly.”
Schmidt became an assistant coach after wrapping up his career as a player. He was Detroit’s head coach from 1967-72, going 43-35-7.
Schmidt was part of the NFL’s All-Time Team revealed in 2019 to celebrate the league’s centennial season. Of course, he’d gone into the Hall of Fame 46 years earlier.
Not bad for an undersized seventh-round draft pick.
“It was a dream of mine to play football,” Schmidt told the Detroit Free Press in 2017. “I had so many people tell me that I was too small. That I couldn’t play. I had so many negative people say negative things about me … that it makes you feel good inside. I said, ‘OK, I’ll prove it to you.’”
