We have been discussing the rapid decline of free speech protections in Canada under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. A vivid example of the increasing authoritarian approach was evident this week with the arrest of David Menzies, a reporter for Canada’s conservative Rebel News Network. Menzies was attempting to interview Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland when her security clearly manufactured a criminal charge in front of cameras.
Menzies was attempting to ask Freeland about Canada’s refusal to label Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IGRC) as a terrorist organization. Freeland continues to walk as Menzies attempts get an answer by walking backwards. As he stays with Freeland, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stands in his way and the result is a slight bump. The officer then immediately carries out an arrest with an eventual charge that Menzies assaulted him.
Trudeau has had a long running feud with Rebel News. Last week, we discussed the irony of how a Russian dissident was denied Canadian citizenship due to a conviction in Russia for speaking against the Ukrainian war (from Canada). Since Canada has the same criminalization of speech laws, Maria Kartasheva was pulled from her ceremony pending further investigation into whether she is a criminal practitioner of free speech.
The arrest of Menzies raises the same comparison to the approach of governments like Putin’s to critics. Note in the video below how the officer positions himself directly in the path of Menzies as he walks back with his back to the officer.
You can judge for yourself on what countries come to mind:
O T (Ray Epps)
I assume that everyone has seen that Ray Epps, after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor, was sentenced to (get ready): one year of probation with a bit of “community service” (probably spying on the Trump campaign). Talk about “controlled demolition”. This was a nice fix. Hopefully, J T will have a comment.
DICTATORSHIP
Global communism and the “dictatorship of the proletariat” – the “dictatorship of the hired help” – are spreading rapidly.
I thought the American Founders got rid of dictatorship – the dictatorship of the monarchy.
I was wrong.
Menzies Was Released With No conditions
YRP told CTV News Menzies’ arrest was made by the prime minister’s RCMP security detail, and its officers assisted because the interaction took place in York Region. Once it was determined that no credible security threat existed, YRP said it released Menzies unconditionally.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/rebel-news-set-to-sue-police-freeland-after-journalist-s-arrest-1.6718488
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Professor Turley doesn’t mention that Menzies was released unconditionally. But that is a pertinent fact here.
No, it is not a major point. The arrest is political intimidation. Saying “sorry” later does change the thuggish aspect of the officer’s behavior.
Edwardmahl,
Yes. That is the MAJOR point.
Anonymous, are you telling us that you watched that video and you had no issue with it??
It’s irrelevant. He was being a mundane reporter asking questions and state police put their hands on him, put him in a police wagon and charged him with assault.
Canada either allows the questioning of public officials on a city street or it does not. I think the evidence is they do not.
That’s because the fake assault wasn’t convincing enough once everyone saw the video.
Nothing more.
Don’t be surprised when they try it again.
Thugs will be thugs and this RCMP officer is not worthy of the uniform. Or perhaps he is. It has been 20 years since I lived there.
You’re full of it.
This was political abuse of police power where both the politician and the police officer acted improperly. Those that think differently want to live in a police state.
@Anonymous:
Sure he was released. But only after the cops drove him to the back lot of a local school (school was done for the day) scaring the living crap out of him in the process. They initially told him he was being taken to the police station but it quickly became obvious to to him that that was not the plan. But they didn’t tell him that. Canada has a well documented history of police “arresting” people (usually native or homeless people) only to drive them to some discrete location to beat the shit out of them or abandon them in below zero conditions with no way home. Menzies has reported on some of these events so he had every reason to think the worst. What they did amounts to psychological terrorism. But yeh, “Menzies Was Released With No conditions” other than the condition of being scared shirtless.
Anonymous sez Professor Turley doesn’t mention that Menzies was released unconditionally. But that is a pertinent fact here..
What’s now a pertinent fact is that it is RARE for anyone charged with Assault PO to be released with ANY conditions, other than the usual PTA. Why anyone would think release on a simple PTA without any additional conditions is baffling? Very, very few summary conviction offense arrests and charges result on release with attached conditions.
It MIGHT have been worthy of mention if the officer who made the arrest took the journalist before a Justice Of The Peace/Magistrate to request that conditions be placed on the arrestee before he was released. And that would include providing the court with evidence that supported the claim that such conditions were necessary to prevent further offenses after release. That would have been very difficult.
As police only put together the Report To Crown Counsel that the Crown uses to lay the charge, looking at that video, it will be interesting indeed to see how the Crown attempts to portray this as an actual assault with that video evidence out there.
I saw the video. The RCMP jackleg thug assaulted the journalist. Journalist should file charges.
Living less than 30 miles from the Canadian border and hearing their news and talking with their visiting citizens, I am beginning to find that Canada is transmogrifying into the old USSR in so many ways.
Tom/Estovir as Whimsical Mama claims to live within 30 miles of the Canadian border.
This is yet another example of a Tom/Estovir puppet pretending to have some relevant insight regarding the featured topic.
Tom/Estovir pulls this stunt on a frequent basis. Just Sunday, Tom/Estovir’s puppet Ralph Chappell claimed to have had a law enforcement career and assured us that no veteran cop would have shot Ashli Babbitt.
“. . . her security clearly manufactured a criminal charge in front of cameras.”
Using law enforcement to criminalize the political opposition. Whoever would’ve imagined that such a thing . . .
Oh, wait.
A micro version of J6, as it were.
This…
Anonymous the stupid is acting even more stupid today. Bush did not institute free speech zones. Colleges did that in order to restrict the right of protest and free speech on college campuses . Luckily that has slowly been dispensed with as the supreme courts and others are removing protected people from protection and making it possible for them to suffer the slings and arrows that all the rest of us have to endure. The constitution free zones were imposed by federal courts in an attempt to give federal police officers total immunity. I don’t see G.W. Bush mentioned in any of the those reports. Unlimited immunity for police officers and federal agents is more and more a thing of the past and would likely not survive true scrutiny in an unbiased DOJ, unlike the thugs that are operating out of the DOJ under the BIDEN administration. Bush’s crime was the Patriot Act which needs to be revoked and/or pared down to a constitutional appropriate law. The FISA Court also needs to be eliminated . It’s abuse is well documented and needs to be stopped.
The CBC should be reprimanded for showing this video. It has all the earmarks of Russian disinformation.
This is third world police harassment. This is not a laughing matter. Little by little, citizens are losing their rights. Breathtaking.
This was an illegal pick and roll by the “officer”. he was not in uniform nor had he identified himself as law enforcement. 2 shot foul
Flagrant 2 and he loses his job
good catch
I’m Canadian and I am a journalist, and for many years owned a newspaper in Ontario. This, what I’ve just seen here, is heartbreaking. Menzies was set up for this, the officer knows perfectly well he’s pulling a fast one, and I have no doubt that the Minister’s office co-ordinated this move.
Menzies is an aggressive reporter, always has been, but that’s his job – and it’s also his right to get in Freeland’s face with his questions.
I myself was even more aggressive with former finance minister Michael Wilson, getting into a face to face interview/argument with him and being pulled away by an MP when it got heated. I wasn’t arrested and my behaviour was well beyond what Menzies did here. But that was in 1989, before Canada went full on fascist, and under Mulroney’s Conservative government.
The CBC is a very liberal news agency, as well as Canada’s “national” broadcaster. That means they are funded by the government.
That means the CBC is in a tight spot here, reporting on what was done. You could see it in the awkwardness of the reporter. It seemed to me that she wanted to be more forthright about what happened, and realized she didn’t dare to.
Seems that freedom of the press is on Canada’s endangered species list.
W. Moran – What are the Free Press News Papers/Websites available today in Canada ?
W. Moran – Why did you stop Publishing Stories?
Wally, we’ve never seen your name before. You just dropped to comment today?
Trump at a campaign rally told his supporters to “Beat the hell out of them” when dealing with legal First Amendment speech. Trump cultists then beat up the non-Trump protesters at the rally.
Bush also violated First Amendment speech protections, also betraying his Oath of Office.
Apparently the Canadians are following America’s Conservatives!
Any facts to back this up, Anonymous?
Trump Tump Trump Trump Tump Trump Trump Tump Trump Trump Tump Trump
Whatabout, whatabout, whagtaboutm whatabout Whatabout, whatabout, whagtaboutm whatabout
Spew on the hour to, feed TDS
Amen I so sick of that!
Anonymous, any comment on the fascist tactic the RMCP guy took? Come on pal, reply to the actual content of the story Turley raised today. FOrget about Trump for 1 minute, this isn’t even in the US. Cripes you are lame.
Left wing trash are liars.
Strawman argument.
Bold faced LIARS should stay Anonymous. @$$HAT.
The gestapo was hiding behind the cement pole and then pretended he was with the Raptors and did a illegal pick when he shot his arm out. He deliberately acted like a Gestapo thug. Do get them David. One of Canadas best. Our main paper in Canada. Globe and Mail had no mention of it. They are as sick as the gestapo thug. The Rebel is main stream and CBC is th Alt left.
That truly was one of the most despicable police moves I have seen in a long time. That violent goon’s agency needs to be sued into oblivion.
That had to have been planned in advance.
Freeland’s decision to not intervene and prevent this miscarriage is a failure of leadership and judgment. She was not only a witness to the abuse of power, but effectively condoned it by not calling off her taxpayer funded thug.
What would clearly be put down as trying to draw a charging foul in basketball, but when your opposing team is a totalitarian regime it becomes a crime. What the hell is happening in Canada? And how far behind are Democrats in the US?
Conservatives were silent when George W. Bush established “Free Speech Zones” on taxpayer-owned public streets. The purpose was purely political to silence legal First Amendment activity. Only Bush-friendly reporters were allowed to participate in the photo-op event.
Bush also created “No Constitution Zones” – a no rights zone 100 miles from America’s borders. Critics pointed out that the majority of America’s 330 million citizens (most of us) resided in this “No Constitution Zone”.
American Conservatives effectively dismantled the U.S. Constitution and constitutional due process for most Americans – without the legally required constitutional-amendment process. Our rights only existed on paper.
After watching the video, it appears the Canadian protective guard didn’t move – he didn’t take one step. The reporter walked into the government official. I’m guessing if this same scenario happened in the USA, the Secret Service or other protective detail would likely react in a similar way – including Trump or Bush’s protective detail.
It’s actually worse when it happens in the USA because we have a First Amendment/Bill of Rights and all taxpayer-owned public spaces are free-speech zones!
Americans differentiate ourselves as “exceptional” from other nations, because our officials are oath sworn to not do what George W. Bush did by subverting the constitutional rule of law.
Kind of ironic that Mr. Free Speech Absolutist Turley abhors the arrest of a Canadian but didn’t spare a word for American Owen Shroyer who was arrested, tried, convicted and locked up for 45 days, most of that in solitary, for reporting from the steps of the Capitol, which he never entered.
See https://jonathanturley.org/2021/08/26/who-watches-the-watchmen-infowars-case-raises-difficult-question-for-both-the-biden-administration-and-the-media/
God help us!
Gestapo.