The Legislature Raids

.
GARY COLLINS DOES LUNCH WITH ...
Ex-Finance Minister Gary Collins meets Prem Vinning, former BC Liberal staffer caught in phony talk show call

EXCLUSIVE

By Bill Tieleman, 24 hours
26 April 2007

Former B.C. Liberal Finance Minister Gary Collins had a lunch meeting Wednesday with an ex-staff member of Premier Gordon Campbell’s office who resigned after being caught making a phony call to Campbell during a talk show ...

Read the full column at http://billtieleman.blogspot.com/
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

CAMPBELL'S CONE OF SILENCE A BAD STRATEGY

Zips lips on allegations of scandal, adviser's conflict of interest
Michael Smyth
The Province - Thursday, April 26, 2007

Things have been so downright stable at the B.C. legislature lately I'd begun to think the old Government Street snakepit was losing some of its venomous charm.

But then the convention centre went $300 million over budget, Gordon Campbell's lobbyist buddy Ken Dobell was outed for all his lucrative contracts and -- the juiciest of 'em all -- courtroom allegations of political dirty tricks exploded right inside the premier's office. {Snip} ...

But wait a minute. What about those leaked e-mails involving conversations between Insurance Corp. of B.C. president Paul Taylor and Victoria lobbying company Pilothouse Public Affairs, the very outfit at the centre of the B.C. Rail scandal?

Campbell's deputy ordered an investigation into that little stinker, but now he won't say whether he'll investigate the dirty-tricks affair.

Campbell has proved he's a smart politician. But he's making a crucial mistake this time. {Snip}

These kind of stinkbombs have a way of exploding later if you don't defuse them right away.

Keep your clothespins handy. This could get smellier.

Full story at:
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=b249fac2-11c0-48db-810a-c5fc5c77d30a
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
PREMIER TARNISHED BY TAWDRY TALK-SHOW CALLS
Carlito Pablo
The Straight: April 26, 2007


... political observer Norman Ruff told the Georgia Straight that the mood in Victoria has shifted following revelations of partisan media manipulation emerging from the trial of three ex–government aides.

Ruff, a retired UVic political-science professor, pointed out that {Snip} ... this was clearly noticeable during the April 24 question period when Campbell himself answered Opposition queries on alleged partisan media operations by B.C. Liberal staff, which included making fake calls to open-line radio talk shows. {Snip}

Source URL:
http://www.straight.com/article-87456/premier-tarnished-by-tawdry-talk-show-calls
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""