Patricia Adams joins Global News’ Shaye Ganam to dig deeper into Canada’s role as an easy mark for manipulation by a foreign power.
In the wake of the so-called public inquiry into China’s interference in our democracy, many are left wondering: how was a foreign dictatorship able to influence the politics of our country?
Probe International’s Patricia Adams joins Global News’ Shaye Ganam to dig deeper into Canada’s role as an easy mark for manipulation by a foreign power.
Co-author of the recent Globe & Mail commentary, “Trudeau’s focus isn’t on making our elections secure, but making Canadians think they are,” Adams describes the various security agencies and offices Prime Minister Trudeau established when he was elected in 2015 as, essentially, a performative act.
“[These institutions] were supposed to protect our national elections, they were supposed to protect us from foreign interference,” but they were not independent, she says. Members were appointed by Mr. Trudeau and he was able to control what information they were given and what information they were able to publish. Adams describes the prime minister’s control over these institutions as “a lock on intelligence information”.
Although, election interference “clearly occurred” in 2019 and 2021, “nobody knew.”
“Not even opposition members, or indeed, members of the House of Commons targeted by the Chinese Communist Party. But,” says Adams, “the Liberal administration knew.”
Listen to the full discussion here: