Suspended senator Patrick Brazeau barred from joining parliamentary press gallerySen. Patrick Brazeau’s fledgling career in political journalism looks to be in trouble. The parliamentary press gallery has denied the suspended senator’s bid for accreditation as a freelance reporter for Halifax-based Frank Magazine. Press gallery president and Radio-Canada reporter Daniel Thibeault told The Canadian Press that Brazeau wasn’t eligible for membership because he’s still a senator. “We feel that the fact that Sen. Brazeau is still a senator – he’s still listed on the website, he still has access to benefits, he’s still entitled to a pension, he hasn’t resigned from the Senate, he was suspended and the suspension will be over as soon as there’s a new session,” Thibeault said. “So we feel as an executive that it’s incompatible. You can’t be a senator and a member of the press gallery at the same time.” The Halifax edition of Frank – not to be confused with another publication in Ottawa with the same name – caused a stir this month by announcing Brazeau as its newest contributor. The satire and gossip magazine said the senator would be a “pain in the arse” to his former Senate colleagues, who voted to suspend Brazeau and fellow former Conservative caucus members Mike Duffy and Pamela Wallin over their questionable expense claims. The suspension from the upper chamber – which lets Brazeau keep his health, dental and life insurance benefits – is to last for the rest of the parliamentary session, which could continue for the next two years. Freelance journalists must submit letters of assignment from two publications with their press gallery application. Thibeault said Brazeau had letters from Frank and The First Perspective, a publication which focuses on aboriginal news and views. Word that the press gallery had rejected Brazeau’s application apparently caught the senator by surprise. “(N)ews does travel fast, I wasn’t even aware!” he tweeted. It’s not clear if Brazeau will still write for Frank. A message left with the magazine wasn’t immediately returned, and Brazeau didn’t respond when asked the question on Twitter. Meanwhile, Brazeau faces charges of assault and sexual assault stemming from an incident earlier this year. His next court date is in mid-February. None of the allegations has been proven in court. SourceCommentary by the Ottawa Mens Centre The fact is the RCMP aka the Government can't wait for the RCMP to do their own press release and is attempting to make political mileage out it.. and that, raises the question of just how objective the RCMP investigation is and whether or not the charges are being laid at the direct or indirect direction of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister has repeatedly told us they are frauds and now he wants a rubber stamp from the RCMP. Surely he could have just let the RCMP do their own press release and appear to objective? What is amazing is the length of time that this "investigation" has taken and again, the Government's endless pre-emptive strikes with press releases that stink. Politicians expenses are a very complicated business and it takes an expert with ethics and accounting and even then, even prime ministers get it wrong and who is going to tell the police to go after them. While the Government wants it's political criminal prosecutions, they FAIL to prosecute the worst of the worst, those who commit Criminal Offences against Children and " Administration of Justice" For offences against Children, the Ottawa Police have Failed to Charge Marguerite Isobel Lewis, the lawyer for the Children's aid Society of Ottawa who personally fabricated evidence to unnecessarily keep a child in their kiddy jail system. Then there is CAS worker Phillip Hiltz-Laforge, caught blatantly fabricating evidence and obstructing justice, and the Ottawa Police refused to act. Then there is the worst of the worst of the worst, Ottawa Police Detective Peter Van Der Zander who fabricated evidence and obstructed justice to protect a child abuser and to get a child abuser off charges. The Members of the Government reside in Ottawa , the nation's capital where real criminals are protected because of their political connections and we never ever hear a word from Peter MacKay the Attorney General of Canada regarding criminal charges against those whose duty it is to protect children and uphold the Rule of law. What we have in Ottawa is a horribly corrupt police and Child Protection System that costs the Ontario and Federal Government Billions of dollars and that does not seem to raise an eyebrow in the Government. www.OttawaMensCentre.com |