Del Mastro: Harper’s latest con

By Montreal Simon

Uh oh. Beat a drum slowly. Or if you’re in the Harper PMO beat a gong furiously.

The Deaner is DOWN !!!!

A judge has found Peterborough, Ont., MP Dean Del Mastro guilty of spending too much in the 2008 federal election and falsifying a document to cover it up. Del Mastro now faces the prospect of losing his seat in the House of Commons and possibly being sentenced to up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

And despite what the Office of the Commissioner of Elections says:

“Anyone convicted of having committed an offence that is considered to be an illegal practice under the act is not entitled to be elected or sit in the House of Commons for a period of five years from the date of conviction,” Michelle Laliberte, a spokeswoman for the Office of the Commissioner of Elections, told CBC News.

The Deaner is undaunted.

Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, Del Mastro indicated that he has no plans to vacate his seat. “I intend to still occupy it. I’ve got a mandate from people in the city of Peterborough.” The judge’s ruling “was not a final decision,” he added. “I’ve in no way broken any of the laws governing elections.” He seemed unfazed by the judge’s finding that his testimony wasn’t credible. “I know what the truth is. That’s her opinion. My opinion is quite different.”

And says he’s planning to appeal. Despite what his lawyer says:

His lawyer, Jeff Ayotte, appeared to downplay the likelihood of an appeal. “Issues of credibility are difficult to appeal,” he noted. “At this point it’s tough to say if we will appeal at all.… It’s certainly impossible to say at this time on what grounds we would appeal.”

And all I can say is it doesn’t look good eh?

And boy are we going to miss him.

For how can we forget the way as Stephen Harper’s PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY, charged with the ETHICS dossier, he defended the Con record…

Or the way he went after their enemies, like Adam Carroll in the famous Vikileaks case…

Or the hungry way he went after the CBC…

Who can forget the colourful way he answered questions in the Commons?

Or this moving moment…

But of course Canadians will draw their own conclusions. Like the judge did:

In her decision, Judge Lisa Cameron said that in her view, from the timing of the contract and its language, it “is plainly a contract for election services.” She also said that she found Del Mastro wasn’t credible, “frequently obfuscated” during his testimony and that there were a number of inconsistencies.

And I’m sure they will remember that the Deaner may be the latest Con to get in trouble…

But there are so many others…

And they were ALL appointed by Stephen Harper.

Who must be deeply worried about the effect all of this could have on his own good reputation.

If he had one.

For who can forget the way Boss Harper defended his faithful Parliamentary Secretary…

Until he dumped him like a sack of potatoes.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the government accepts the court’s decision. “Mr. Del Mastro has not been a member of the Conservative caucus for some time,” Jason MacDonald told CBC News by email.

And really what more can I say?

Except that I have a feeling that the Deaner is still going to play a BIG role in the next election campaign.

And that if after the Cons are defeated, they decide to hold a reunion.

I hope they invite me eh?

Because it should be a hell of a PARTY !!!!!!!