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Jody Wilson Raybould was at the centre of attention during a Justice committee meeting in Ottawa on Wednesday.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press

Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Try to keep letters to fewer than 150 words. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com

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Re ‘An Effort To Politically Interfere’ (Feb. 28):

I followed Jody Wilson-Raybould’s testimony with fascination and growing respect as it proceeded. Now the pundits are pulling everything apart, and lining things up as a great battle between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. I see it differently. This is not simply about personalities but rather reflects a clash of cultures.

On the one hand, Ms. Wilson-Raybould is championing a culture of integrity, transparency and respect. Ironically, this is Mr. Trudeau’s own platform and its time has come.

On the other, the Liberal establishment is reflecting the culture of political dance that has driven Canadian politics for many years. That is truly what is threatened. The Conservatives’ claim of “deep corruption” is laughable given what we have seen from them. I hope Ms. Wilson-Raybould survives the bumpy road ahead, and flourishes. She is exactly the kind of person the world looks for as a Canadian. We need her in Parliament.

R. Anthony Hodge, Victoria

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I have taken to my bed. I am depressed, disheartened, dejected and disillusioned. I very much believed Mr. Trudeau when he said he and his government would do politics differently. After 10 years of the Harper government, that should not have been very difficult.

Yes, “sunny ways” was a bit of an overstatement. And there is no question that Mr. Trudeau’s India trip was a public relations disaster. But neither were really politics or policy. The pipeline seemed to be a principled decision, ill-advised in my opinion but at least principled.

But this. This is beyond the pale. Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s testimony was clear, concise, backed up with documentation and entirely believable. And one can only conclude there is more to come. Her time in government has been marked by integrity. It’s a very sad day for all Canadians that our Prime Minister and his closest advisers could not have acted with the same. I just don’t know when I will be able to get up.

Don Rutherford, North Vancouver, B.C.

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Ah. So, that’s what integrity looks like. You’ll have to forgive me. It’s been a while.

Lawrence Scanlan, Kingston

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As a lifelong Liberal, I welcomed Mr. Trudeau’s commitment to the three key anchors of the government he formed after the 2015 election: gender equity, Indigenous reconciliation and a commitment to do politics differently. Unfortunately, as a consequence of his treatment of our first female Indigenous attorney-general and justice minister, and his attempt to politically interfere in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, the Prime Minister has struck out on all three counts. He should resign, both as Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal party. It is time for a leadership convention.

Ray Argyle, Kingston

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It would seem that the Liberal Party of Canada has a choice to make: Does the party stand for jobs first, even at the expense of integrity? In his reply to Ms. Wilson-Raybould when she was attorney-general, the Prime Minister very clearly stated his mandate to be: jobs for Canadians.

He gave no reply to the very clearly stated charge of his attempt to manipulate his appointed attorney-general. He denied the intricately documented testimony given by Ms. Wilson-Raybould. He is not innocent of the charge. Does the Liberal Party stand behind his choice to put Canadian jobs before Canada’s integrity?

Nancy Russell, Toronto

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I don’t know what’s more annoying, this so-called scandal or the fake outrage of opposition politicians and journalists to the news that governments take political considerations into their decision-making process. Who knew?

This news is not a surprise to the average voter and I doubt that this tempest in a teapot will have much effect on the next election. There were two paths to take: one, bankrupt a Canadian company leading to the loss of 9,300 jobs, or punish the company with a large monetary fine and a new code of conduct. I know which one I would choose.

William O’Meara, Toronto

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Pardon me if I sound a tad cynical, but from where I sit in the peanut gallery, the so-called SNC-Lavalin scandal really doesn’t seem to be such a big deal away from Parliament Hill or out of the glare of the media spotlight. Nor should it be.

The sort of backroom dealings, political manipulation and outright bullying by the Prime Minister’s Office that has the chattering classes and Conservative leader Andrew Scheer in such a lather has been happening in Ottawa for many years now. Too many years. Lobbyists lobby. Politicians look after their pals, dirty work happens, and those who demand their entitlements belly up to the trough. Ho, hum.

The real news in the SNC-Lavalin scandal is that, for once, a cabinet minister has refused to play the game or to be quiet about it. And she has paid a steep price. There’s no end of irony in the fact that the elected official who refused to do as she was told and who insisted on holding Ottawa to a higher standard is a woman of First Nations heritage.

Ken Cuthbertson, Kingston

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Let’s face reality. It is impossible to compete in North Africa and the Middle East without engaging in behaviour that would be illegal in Canada. Should we cede all of the markets in that region to the foreign companies who are already very active there?

The wailings of Ms. Wilson-Raybould and Mr. Scheer sound to me like the cries of poorly informed Champagne socialists.

Bob Publicover, Waterloo, Ont.

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Let’s not be hypocritical in thinking that SNC-Lavalin is the first company (and surely won’t be the last) to allegedly use bribery in a bid to secure multibillion-dollar contracts.

Britain and the United States both have deferred prosecution legislation on the books to protect the survival of such companies whose employees may have deviated from the law. Sadly, this is new to Canada and we’ve royally mucked it up. Ms. Wilson-Raybould chose to sit on a moral pedestal, interpreting discussion and reason as political interference. I understand the legal context and the role of the attorney-general, but why did she refuse to use the tools at her disposal to mitigate potential harm to SNC-Lavalin, its stakeholders and the economy at large? She has not answered this question.

Tom Clement, Toronto

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Hmmm … let’s see. From what I have read so far, it sounds like there were many phone calls to take, meetings to attend, complex factors to consider and conflicting priorities to weigh. Pressure from all-round. Sounds like a normal day at the office for most of us.

Stuart Brindley, Burlington, Ont.

Read more

Opinion: The impossible position: Canada’s attorney-general cannot be our justice minister

Wilson-Raybould on SNC-Lavalin and Trudeau: What you missed from her bombshell testimony, and what it means

Opinion: Jody Wilson-Raybould and the paradox of reconciliation in Canada

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