Trudeau's Waning Brand Likely to Crash Completely in Corruption Trial This Summer

Brace yourselves — the Mark Norman trial is about to overtake Lavscam

Lavscam is the name given to the SNC Lavalin scandal where, it appears, Justin Trudeau attempted to interfere in the Canadian justice system for political benefits. He lost, perhaps, his two best cabinet ministers over the botched affair and has dropped in the polls to the point where if an election were held today, the Conservatives would likely form a majority government in Canada.

Waiting to deliver the death-blow to Trudeau's ambitions is another affair having to do with leaking information on military ship-building contracts. The man who should be the Minister of Defence, Andrew Leslie, eminently more qualified than the current, has been thwarted in his career because he is that most unfortunate of people - a white male. In Trudeau's cabinet that drastically reduces your chances.

Anthony Furey

Vice-Admiral Mark Norman arrives at the Ottawa Courthouse on on April 17, 2019. Errol McGihon / Postmedia

When Liberal MP Andrew Leslie announced on Wednesday that he wasn’t running for re-election, there was considerable speculation about his motivations.

Was the retired lieutenant-general leaving politics after only one term because he no longer cared for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s agenda?

Or was the man, previously touted as a star candidate, frustrated to have been left out of cabinet while those with fewer accomplishments under their belts leapfrogged over him?

Or, maybe, the 61-year-old who represents a riding in the east of Ottawa is in fact leaving because of news that just broke concerning a far more scandalous matter.

On Friday, CTV News reported that Leslie is on the witness list to testify in the Vice-Admiral Mark Norman case and that he will be testifying in Norman’s defence and therefore against the government.

LtGen Leslie

Norman is defending himself against one criminal charge of breach of trust, alleging that he illegally leaked cabinet confidence news of a shipbuilding contract to the media.

Not only is Norman vigorously denying this, but the case is believed to be the first time someone in Canada has ever been criminally charged for a leak.

Since there are leaks all the time in Ottawa, the notion that a decorated and respected former head of the Navy and vice-chief of the defence staff would be the first to be charged with something that (even if true) is so minor in the grand scheme of things has infuriated military and veterans circles.

To add insult to injury, the government is refusing to shoulder the costs of Norman’s defence, as is sometimes done in cases like this. Because of this, Norman has had to remortgage his family’s home to pay his mounting legal bills.

An online GoFundMe account though has already raised over $360,000 for Norman. It’s believed to be the largest such defence fund of its kind and saw a spike in activity on Friday following the news about Leslie’s plan to testify.

That a Liberal caucus member is planning to take the stand against his own government in support of Norman will serve a lot to rally public opinion to Norman’s side.

He’s not the only retired senior military figure speaking out. “Mark Norman is a personal hero of mine,” Gen. Rick Hillier said in March at the Manning Conference. “I would stand by him anytime.”

A source familiar with the case told the Sun that Leslie notified the Prime Minister’s Office about his decision to testify many months ago. Leslie perhaps figured that this would make it almost impossible to advance in cabinet even if he was re-elected in October and even if the Liberals continue to hold government.

The Norman trial has the potential to be even worse than Lavscam. First, there’s the timing of it. While no dates are yet set — the case is currently in pre-trial — it’s believed it will unfold in August, during the lead-up to the election.

But more importantly, there is what’s at stake. The allegation behind Lavscam was that the Prime Minister and those around him attempted to interfere with the justice system to prevent a corporation from having to face criminal prosecution.

That is certainly not good. But this is different. It’s worse.

Norman’s defence team, headed up by Marie Henein, is now arguing that the charge against Norman was politically motivated because of how the leak caused trouble for the PM.

Think about what that claim actually says: The PMO worked behind the scenes to put the head of the Navy behind bars because he inconvenienced Trudeau.

Brace yourselves for a case that’s just getting started.