Vigilance, Accountability and Security at Canada's Borders

Canada Border Services Agency's emblem. Photo: The Toronto Star/Border Officer Blows Coke Bust

Today's blog post is about a report of the same title, issued by the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence (hereafter referred to as "the Committee") that commenced a study on the policies, practices, and collaborative efforts of Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). The purpose of the study was to determine how the CBSA performs its responsibilities in identifying and denying entry to inadmissible persons, as well as the removal of individuals that have been discovered to be inadmissible after having gained entry to Canada.

Vigilance, Accountability and Security at Canada's Borders was a report that I initially discovered through the campaign of Kellie Leitch, leadership candidate for the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), who had encouraged the reading of this report on numerous occasions through social media, in her email messages, and on television.

It has only been through Kellie Leitch's campaign that the issue of Canada's open borders has come to the forefront of the CPC leadership race. No other candidate has been clear, complete, and forthcoming about this issue as Kellie Leitch has from day one of her campaign, which she has responded to and detailed in her Screening For Canadian Values policy proposal. 

If this is the first you have been alerted to Canada's open borders and are somewhat skeptical, perhaps you would find the following information cause for concern: 

• In 2013, 4,534 warrants were issued for the removal of foreign nationals or permanent residents, who had entered Canada, but were later discovered to be inadmissible.
• The CBSA database contains information on approximately 44,000 inadmissible individuals who failed to comply with removal orders, and the agency is unclear about the number of individuals who are still in Canada.
• It takes the CBSA an average of 851 days to remove a person found inadmissible, all at a cost to Canadian taxpayers.
• Currently, there is no tracking system in Canada for persons leaving the country who have been found to be inadmissible, and who have failed to comply with a removal order and are facing an outstanding immigration warrant, or those overstaying their limits such as temporary foreign workers.
• It is known that 145 Canadians have gone abroad to support terrorist groups and approximately 80 have returned. 
• Through its Liaison Officer program, the CBSA has confirmed that liaison officers are involved in approximately 6,000 cases of improperly documented travel each year.
• The targeting of Canada's immigration system by organized crime groups continues unabated.
• Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has reduced the visa immigration process to a "paper-based exercise" where very few face-to-face interviews are held.
• The Committee discovered that only between 9-15% of immigrants are interviewed by a visa officer before they come to Canada.
• Between 2009 to 2013, Canada received 386,698 temporary foreign workers and 495,191 foreign students, of which only a small percentage were screened by Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) based on referrals from CIC and CSBA.
• In 2012, Canada's busiest 50 airports saw the enplaning and deplaning of 23,609,330 passengers from countries other than the United States, an increase of 190% over the 12,660,777 passengers seen in 2003.

The Committee's report detailed many of the policy and operational challenges facing the CBSA and other government actors—Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), Canadian Security Intelligence Services (CSIS), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)—involved in the process of determining admissibility to Canada and removal of inadmissible individuals.

To properly ascertain how the CBSA performs its responsibilities the Committee conducting a fact-finding mission to the National Targeting Centre in September 2014, and held eight hearings over a four month period. During that time it heard witnesses and received written submissions from relevant institutions, groups, and individuals, both within government and from civil society.

The Committee's report resulted in ten recommendations that not only identified the problems with, but also provided the solutions to, the procedures and practices of the CBSA that, in my view, are logical, necessary, and urgent. The fundamental problem with Canada's open borders can be summed up in what the Committee referred to as its "primary belief"; that is, "...[I]t is necessary that relevant departments and agencies involved in the process of identifying and denying entry to inadmissible persons to Canada have access to timely, accurate and relevant information through clear information sharing arrangements and improved coordination." (iv)

Removals, Warrants and Entry/Exit Registration

Under the subheading, Removals, Warrants and Entry/Exit Registration, the Committee's report begins to seriously address the deficiencies within the CBSA's operations, specifically with respect to the inability to locate and remove inadmissible persons from Canada; those who have failed to comply with a removal order and are subsequently faced with an outstanding immigration warrant.

As to the procedure of how the CBSA operates, here is how the Committee explained it, drawing from Division 6 Detention and Release of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), "With regard to procedure, removal orders are issued when a foreign national or a permanent resident who has entered Canada has been found to be inadmissible. In instances where a person has failed to comply with a removal order, the CBSA is responsible for enforcement and issues immigration warrants, accordingly." (7) 

The Committee noted that the CBSA's warrants-database contains information on 44,000 inadmissible individuals who did not comply with their removal orders. The Committee went on to further note that the CBSA is unclear as to how many of these individuals still remain in Canada.

What further exacerbates this problem is that it takes the CBSA an average of 851 days to remove a person found to be inadmissible, all at a cost to Canadian taxpayers.

Currently Canada does not have a system to track and record who has left the country, nor any type of alert mechanism to ensure that the CBSA is informed when a temporary resident visa holder enters and leaves the country. This concerned the Committee with regard to temporary foreign workers who may decide to overstay their four year limits of working in Canada. 

To solve this problem the Committee provided its fourth recommendation which states, "...[T]he Government of Canada move, as soon as possible, to implement a system to register the entry and exit of all travellers, Canadians and non-Canadians." (9) Entry and exit reporting would solve the problem of knowing when inadmissible persons (and those who have overstayed their limits) have left the country, which would also prevent the current backlog the CBSA is faced with from growing.

All this points to an even bigger and more fundamental problem with Canada's open borders: the lack of proper and thorough screening of all immigrants and travellers to Canada.

Screening of Immigrants and Travellers to Canada

Under the subheading, Screening of Immigrants and Travellers to Canada, the Committee detailed their concerns about screening and pre-screening of non-Canadians who enter Canada, either as immigrants or on temporary visas. They responded to these concerns with their fifth, sixth, and seventh recommendations.

The Committee's Recommendations 5, 6, and 7.

The thrust of this section of the report focused primarily on a preventative approach; that is, improving upon the pre-screening process. This included placing priority on acquiring a foreign national's admissibility to Canada prior to boarding a plane or ship from their country of origin. The Committee also noted that this would be beneficial to Canada, ensuring that our resources would not be spent on the appeals and removals processes.

Implementing such a preventative approach involves more than just the CBSA. The Canada Border Services Agency works together with CIC, CSIS, and the RCMP. The Committee noted that both the CIC and CBSA are jointly responsible for administering the admissibility provisions of the IRPA. The report goes on to state that, "CIC establishes immigration policy and is responsible for issuing visas enabling foreign nationals to enter Canada. For its part, the CBSA enforces IRPA and is responsible for providing IRPA–related intelligence. In this regard, the CBSA draws upon intelligence and information from other departments and agencies, including CSIS and the RCMP." (11)

One of the most important points the Committee spotlighted was the need to make effective use today's technology. Here is what the Committee stated:

In this day and age, it is reasonable to assume that CIC and the CBSA should be able to request a query of permanent resident and temporary visa applicants against RCMP criminal and CSIS intelligence databases, and a consolidated Canadian intelligence community list of persons of interest, to see if they generate a hit. Verifying applicant names through applicable security and foreign intelligence databases could provide an essential backstop to checks for criminal records maintained in the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC). As previously noted, not all human threats have criminal records. However, their names (or aliases) might well be known to intelligence agencies. (13)

Perhaps what is most telling about Canada's open borders is the fact that only 9-15% of immigrants are interviewed by a visa officer before they come to Canada. The Committee heard from witnesses who expressed concerned that, "...CIC has subsequently turned the immigrant visa application process into a 'paper-based exercise' where very few face-to-face interviews are held." (14) 

The importance of face-to-face interviews cannot be overstated! This point was reinforced by former ambassador Martin Collacott, now the spokesperson for the Centre for Immigration Policy Reform, who expressed the following concerns:

Such interviews are important for a number of reasons. A face-to-face interview not only assists a Canadian visa officer to get a better idea of whether an applicant is likely to constitute a security threat to Canada – whether they are likely, for example, to have extremist views which are in conflict with Canadian views, values and objectives – but such an interview also provides an opportunity to give a prospective immigrant important and accurate background on what to expect in terms of job opportunities and integration into Canadian society. (14)

The Committee affirmed the importance of face-to-face screening by stating that, "...[G]iven the complexity in screening potential citizens to Canada, face-to-face interviews may provide an important opportunity for assessment." (14)

Another individual that further spotlighted Canada's deficient screening process was retired ambassador James Bissett. The Committee noted the following about his statement:

...[T]he CBSA and CIC are overwhelmed by the large number of people seeking to come to Canada, either as immigrants or visitors. He states: “because of high volumes, we are not paying attention to the personal interview and for human intelligence to play a role in screening. More importantly, Mr. Bissett told the Committee, “the security screening itself is minimal” and noted that visitors and temporary resident applicants are “not being interviewed or very few of them screened for security.” He added, “I think [Canada is] taking a serious risk. (15)

Bissett's statement brings to the forefront what appears to be another major problem with securing our borders: not enough CBSA/CIC personnel to accommodate a proper and thorough screening process.

Some of the Committee's other findings

To counter the use of genuine documents generated in fraudulent circumstances or used by those other than the rightful owner, the Committee explored the options of: improving the CIC screening referral process; the increased use of CSIS and the RCMP information for screening; better intelligence sharing and interagency cooperation; more face-to-face interviews; and the collection of biometric data. 

The Committee also learned of the need for stronger intelligence capabilities within the CBSA, and in particular, the leveraging of regional intelligence capabilities and greater availability of "lookouts" (part of the CSBA's intelligence products that inform, support and enhance the agency's screening and targeting capabilities) to provide accurate, up-to-date actionable intelligence in the databases, that includes the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) database for use by CBSA Border Services Officers.

The CBSA and its role in securing Canada's borders

Created after the World Trade Center attacks on September 11, the CBSA was formed out of border and enforcement personnel from Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the former Canada Customs and Revenue Agency and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

The CBSA is responsible for, "...[P]roviding integrated border services that support national security and public safety priorities and facilitate the free flow of persons and goods, including animals and plants that meet all requirements under the program legislation. (3) 

As the front-line agency, the CBSA with its 13,000 employees (which includes 7,200 uniformed officers) administers the entry and exit of approximately 100 million travellers, 70 million of whom come directly from the Canada-US land border. The report notes that, "The agency collects, analyzes and disseminates information and intelligence about individuals and shipments at borders, air terminals and ports. The CBSA also administers more than 90 statutes, regulations and international agreements, and enforces the IRPA. (3)

The CSBA has a shared responsibility with other agencies and departments in protecting Canada's borders:

Citizenship and Immigration Canada processes immigration applications for permanent residents and temporary resident visas for visitors, students and workers. The Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS) reviews all citizenship applications of permanent residents, as well as all refugee claims made in Canada; the Service will review visa applications of persons of interest as required, while the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) enforces relevant laws and provides criminal background checks. The Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD), Transport Canada, and the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) gather intelligence relating to immigration and border transit. (3)

The CBSA is responsible for managing 117 land border crossings, all thirteen international airports in Canada, major marinas, mail processing centers and rail sites.

The CBSA is also vested with powers of arrest, detention, search and seizure. All CBSA officers can, under Canadian law, stop travellers for questioning, take blood and breath samples, search, detain and arrest citizens and non-citizens without a warrant.

Vigilance, Accountability and Security at Canada's Borders is certainly a timely report given the fact that our open borders are increasingly making Canada a very popular international destination that brings with it increased security risks.

We all read the headlines of the demographic nightmares in Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, Belgium, Holland and other European countries; not to mention what has happened in United States in the past few years. We do not need, nor do we want any such scenarios developing in Canada! 

Canada needs political leadership to ensure that our borders are properly secured, and that our Canadian identity is protected and promoted. The call for that leadership has been answered with the candidacy of Kellie Leitch, who is adamant about correcting Canada's open borders.

I respectfully encourage you to support her by Becoming a Conservative Member for Kellie Leitch. By doing so, you will be eligible to vote for her in May and help secure Kellie's victory as the new leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. The deadline is March 28, only a few days away!

God bless Canada.

Kellie Leitch's Support is Not a Function of Polls But Based on Common-Sense Policy Proposals

Kellie Leitch during the Conservative leadership debate in Saskatoon, November 9, 2016.
Image by iPolitics via The Canadian Press/Liam Richards

Since my first post on Kellie Leitch, Kellie Leitch: Canada's Compliment to President-elect Donald Trump, which included statistics from a poll conducted by Mainstreet Research, several polls have been released from other polling firms, drawing my attention to the polls game with the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) leadership race.

I can not help but draw a parallel between the CPC leadership race and my experience following the American general election of 2016; that is, how polls did not accurately reflect the reality of President Donald Trump's support.

As one who watched the Republican Party (Grand Old Party or GOP) leadership race, and the general election that followed with great interest, the polls game became abundantly clear especially in the latter part of the general election when President Trump's support grew stronger. The growth of that strong and consistent support increasingly and noticeably put the mainstream media, or to quote Pamela Geller, the "enemedia," into a panic! They were desperate to report skewed statistics—and other fake news—in their efforts to derail his campaign and discourage voter turnout.

On a lesser scale, this is what we are experiencing here in Canada; the enemedia's panic over Kellie Leitch and their attempts to prevent her victory in May, which I wrote about in my previous blog post, The Trump-effect in Canada and the Enemedia's Attempt to Stop Kellie Leitch.

Kellie Leitch's support is not a function of polls 

If you take another look at the above photo, the text, "Leitch surges in the latest Mainstreet Tory leadership poll," is the title of an article by written by BJ Sierkierski who reports on iPolitic's CPC Leadership Tracker (powered by Mainstreet Research). The report was published on February 17, and is one of three listed at iPolitic's Data Tracker.

Statistics from BJ Sierkierski's February 17 report.
Image by iPolitics 

Although Mainstreet Research and iPolitics seem to be above board, following their polls and reports doesn't make understanding the CPC race any easier. Case in point, the aforementioned article in which Sierkierski included statistics for "first-ballot preference as percentage of vote" which had Kellie Leitch at 20.09%, about 1% behind Kevin O'Leary.

In that article, Sierkierski wrote on the first line, "Kellie Leitch is now the first choice for over one-fifth of Conservative party members, passing Maxime Bernier and nipping at the heels of an increasingly polarizing Kevin O’Leary campaign..." Such wording has an emotional appeal to anyone supporting Kellie Leitch, but that "positive news" was short lived.

One week later on February 23, another iPolitic's CPC Leadership Tracker article written by Sierkierski was published, Scheer climbs, top three slide in latest Mainstreet Tory leadership poll. Sierkierski again reported on the "first-ballot preference as percentage of vote" which had Kellie Leitch at 16.2%, behind O'Leary by about 4%.

Tomorrow, there will be a CPC leadership debate in Edmonton and you can bet that another poll will be released and a subsequent article published at iPolitics within a few days time; not to mention polls and articles from other firms as well. God only knows what the numbers will be and what they will say about them!

Following these polls plays upon one's emotions; a truth that requires one to be very cautious and prudent. In the end analysis, polls are nothing but a "best guess" that do not serve as an assurance of what the reality will, in fact, be. That can only be determined by the vote count in May!

I don't pay any heed to polls; nor, do I put much stock in them as an indication of what is to be understood about the reality of any candidate's support. After vividly recalling the American election experience of 2016, coupled with the knowledge I have acquired about Kellie Leitch and her campaign, polls are, not to put too fine point on it, redundant!

Kellie Leitch's support is a function of common-sense proposals that reflect what she has heard from Canadians 

One of the biggest assets that comes from the Leitch campaign is Kellie's own personal ability to connect with Canadians. Kellie has done this (and continues to do so) during her many months of travelling across the nation, listening to the needs and concerns of Canadians, and speaking on their behalf.

Leitch has responded by developing policy proposals that address those needs and concerns which she has published in detail at her Policy page: Screening for Canadian Values; Cap on Government Spending; No National Carbon Tax; Dismantle the CBC; Against the Legalization of Marijuana; Safer Canadians; Let the People Speak Act; Natural Resources Development; UNRWA/Hamas Funding; Supply Management; Mexican Visas; Israel; Budget Policy; and Firearms Regulation.

The result of which has seen two-thirds of Canadians support Kellie Leitch's vision for Canada! It is a vision that encompasses a bold common-sense approach to fixing the many problems we have in Canada; first and foremost, the failed immigration policies and procedures that have in effect, turned Canada into a country with open borders.

Amongst all of Kellie's policy proposals, what most resonates with Canadians is the Screening For Canadian Values proposal! During Leitch's travels across the country, thousands of Canadians have expressed their belief in a unified Canadian identity that is grounded in shared values:

• Equal opportunity – We must strive to ensure that everyone has as much of an equal opportunity to succeed as possible, especially our youth
• Hard work – Everyone must work hard and provide for themselves and their families
• Helping others – Once people become prosperous, we all are expected to give back to our communities to help others
• Generosity – Canada is a place that shows what is possible when hard work and generosity come together
• Freedom and tolerance – A Canadian identity that is based on freedom and tolerance to allow each of us the chance to pursue our best lives and to become our best selves

Part of Kellie's common-sense solutions to promote and protect these Canadian values includes screening all immigrants, refugees, and visitors to Canada for these values with face-to-face interviews with a trained immigration officer. This is the most effective way to ensure that those who desire to come to Canada accept and agree with our Canadian values!

Canada cannot be a country with open borders! As Kellie notes on her web site's Screening For Canadian Values page, "Currently, fewer than 1 in 5 immigrants receive a face-to-face interview with a trained immigration officer. That’s something that should be of concern to all Canadians, especially as the government plans a massive increase in immigration levels."

There is indeed great cause for concern with respect to our immigration policies and procedures. Proof of which comes to us directly from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose Liberal government fast-tracked 25,000 Syrian so-called "refugees" into Canada between November 4, 2015, and February 29, 2016. The Government of Canada has listed the total number of Syrian "refugees" that have entered into Canada at 40,081. All this has been done at a cost to Canadian tax payers of $400 million and growing!

Screen shot of the Government of Canada's refugee key figures. Notice the disclaimer message? It is new since I last published my January 31, post that also referenced the above numbers. Image by Government of Canada/#WelcomeRefugees: Key figures

Canadian immigration offices should not be omitting face-to-face interviews with the overwhelming majority of applicants; this is not nation-building! Kellie stresses the importance of nation-building at her Screening For Canadian Values page:

Since 2001, governments have become obsessed with immigration numbers. Pressure is placed on immigration officials to approve more and more applications every day. Immigration officials are expected to make decisions on seventy-five applications a day. That means less than five minutes per application. That’s not the way to build a nation based on shared values.

Kellie Leitch is absolutely adamant about correcting our immigration policies and procedures and she is the only candidate who has been willing to talk about it and stand up for our Canadian identity that is based on shared, historic Canadian values!

If this blog post resonates well with you, consider Becoming a Conservative for Kellie! By doing so, you will be eligible to vote for Kellie and help secure her victory in May. The deadline to join the CPC for Kellie is March 28.

Above all, if you are not doing so already, do keep Kellie Leitch and her campaign in your prayers.

The Trump-effect in Canada and the Enemedia's Attempt to Stop Kellie Leitch

Kellie Leitch and President Donald Trump, a perfect compliment to a united, strong North America.

One of the many lessons that we here in Canada can draw from the American election experience of last year, is that the mainstream media or to quote Pamela Geller, the "enemedia" cannot be trusted. Not that this wasn't already known, but it became better understood and was certainly brought to forefront during President Donald Trump's campaign.

As one who watched the Republican Party—also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP)—leadership race and the election that followed with great interest, that truth became abundantly clear each day as President Trump's popularity and support grew stronger. It eventually reached a point where President Trump began to openly refer to mainstream media as the "dishonest media."

The dishonesty of the mainstream media was further spotlighted by the reporting of skewed statistics from poll, after poll, after poll; none of which proved to accurately represent the will of the American people. It was at best, a feeble attempt to change the minds of voters and discourage voter turnout.

Public trust is an important and essential aspect of any news media company, and once lost, it is extremely difficult to recover the credibility needed to regain that public trust again.

Here in Canada, we are going through a somewhat similar situation, but on a lesser scale: the dishonest media reporting on the leadership race for the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), specifically with respect to their attempts to stop Kellie Leitch at all costs!

Why does the enemedia seek to stop Kellie Leitch?

Leitch has been the only candidate in the leadership race for the CPC, who is unafraid to challenge the status quo and the political correctness that the mainstream media and elites continue to impose upon Canadians. 

Leitch's boldness coupled with her common-sense-conservative solutions does not bode well with the mainstream media and the elites, many of whom are on the far left of the political spectrum.

Truth be told, the Canadian left are in a panic over the very real possibility of the Trump-effect becoming a political reality here in Canada; that is, Kellie becoming the new leader of the CPC and the next Prime Minister in 2019. That panic is heightened by the fact that Leitch is Canada's compliment to President Donald Trump, which I have written about in my previous post, Kellie Leitch: Canada's Compliment to President-elect Donald Trump.

There is also another major reason why the mainstream media have targeted her as part of their ongoing and increasing panic: Leitch's policy position on those who want to come to Canada, which stipulates that all visitors, refugees, and immigrants be screened for Canadian values. It is a policy position that resonates very, very well with two-thirds of Canadians!

Leitch's immigration policy position is part of her vision for Canada, which she has made very clear: creating more freedom and more prosperity by promoting a unified Canadian identity that is based on historic Canadian values.

Leitch states on her web site, "If we want continue to grow and develop that identity, we need to make sure that those who want to come to Canada share those values."

Screening for Canadian values is what has really set Leitch apart from the other candidates, which she makes known on her web site, "Many in the media, the out-of-touch elites, most of the Trudeau Liberals, and even some Conservatives, including all of the other candidates in this leadership race have come out against my policy that would require all immigrants, refugees, and visitors to Canada to have a face-to-face interview with a trained immigration officer."

Just what exactly are those values you ask? Leitch lists and expands upon each one at her web site's Screening For Canadian Values page: equal opportunity, hard work, helping others, generosity, freedom, and tolerance.

To top it all off, Kellie Leitch is a solid candidate, both in terms of her private and professional life, her education and work experience. Add to this her widespread support, coupled with a well executed campaign, and Leitch has emerged as a candidate that threatens the party establishment, the mainstream media, and the elites. The following additional realities of Leitch and her campaign just adds to the panic:

• The enormous support she received in April'2016 after she registered as a candidate, that has been growing ever since. 
• The army of volunteers of 1,500 people and growing.
• Kellie's ability to connect with Canadians and to speak on their behalf, which has led her campaign in the signing up thousands of new members to the party.
• Kellie's qualities of unparalleled work ethic and compassion for others, has attracted many long-time members into the campaign as supporters, donors and volunteers.
• The building of a significant national campaign and broad coalition across the nation.

Much of what is going on with the mainstream media was predicted and made known by Leitch's Campaign Manager Nick Kouvalis in his January 2, campaign update email. 

The enemedia's strategy of attack to stop Kellie Leitch

The strategy that the enemedia will continue to employ in their attempts to try and stop Kellie Leitch includes: personal attacks on Leitch and her campaign; reports that are at best, opinions; questionable reporting of untrustworthy polls; support any other candidate that they think can beat Kellie; and try to create a narrative that suits their agenda.

A large part of the enemedia's effort will be in the form of "news" articles, both in print and on the internet, which they will use in an attempt to implant their narrative upon the hearts and minds of Canadians with headlines and details that can only be described as, and to borrow from President Donald Trump's description of Buzzfeed's fake news reporting, "A pile of garbage."

To date, I have seen several articles that qualify as such! I will not elaborate on each one due to the fact that in order to properly address those articles, I would have to write and publish separate blog posts in the form of rebuttals, just to deal with the amount of "garbage."

Here is what Kouvalis noted about the dishonest media's portrayal the leadership race and Kellie Leitch during the months of November and December'2016: no one wants to be the leader of the Conservative Party because Justin Trudeau cannot be beaten in 2019; Leitch cannot win the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada; Leitch is using wedge and dog whistle politics; Leitch is a fraud, racist, and xenophobe that will never win. None of this is true!

Kouvalis went on to point out that the mainstream media also made similar statements about former Prime Minister Steven Harper, and yet he was elected twice! Kouvalis put a fine point on the matter when he stated:

It doesn't matter what the media and the elites say. The only thing that matters is what Kellie Leitch says. She will seek out the media at every opportunity to speak directly to Canadians. Kellie will continue to use the media to let Canadians get to know her on a personal level. That's the way to build trust with the electorate.

This is exactly what Kellie has done! She has mastered the art of ignoring the hate and has focussed on delivering the message that most Canadians—two-thirds of whom share Kellie's vision for Canada—are desperate to hear!

Perhaps what was most prophetic about Kouvalis's email was his warning that the enemedia will get behind any candidate that they think can beat Kellie. He went so far as to state that, "By February the media will likely settle on Kevin O'Leary as the leading contender to win the race." This is exactly what we have been experiencing for about ten days already.

I have every confidence in and great respect for Nick Kouvalis, that he will successfully get Kellie Leitch elected as the new leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.

Kouvalis has certainly proven himself in the past—beating the mainstream media in the process—with the successful campaigns he ran for former Prime Minster Steven Harper, the former and late Mayor of Toronto Rob Ford, and Premier Christy Clark of British Columbia.

The enemedia settling for the status quo, establishment candidate Kevin O'Leary

One of the key shortcomings of O'Leary's candidacy is his lack of specificity and clarity with any identifiable policy position. Just visit his web site: it is intentionally vague and does not even have a policy page. Trying to acquire information on where he stands on the key issues facing Canadians today, is the equivalent of going on a scavenger hunt with no "treasure" to be found! More than anything else, I find his web site to be quite annoying and bombastic!

With such vagueness and so many unknowns about O'Leary and his candidacy, it only begs the question, can Canadians afford to gamble with such a candidate? I think it is fair to say that the answer to that question is rather obvious: no!

One of America's enemedia news companies, CNN, and the article written about Kevin O'Leary. The fact that O'Leary
proudly publishes this article on his web site speaks volumes about him and his candidacy.

Here are a few other things you may find interesting about him. O'Leary lives in the United States; he calls Boston "home." He does not speak French and has neglected French Canada as was evidenced by his intentional absence at the Quebec City CPC leadership debate. It was only after that debate did O'Leary launch his campaign! Although he is now taking French lessons, it was only a few months ago that he stated that he didn't need to learn French.

Add to all this O'Leary has called Leitch's immigration policy position of screening for all immigrants, refugees, and visitors with face to-face interviews for Canadian values, "crazy." O'Leary has no immigration proposals to address Canada's growing immigration problem!

It is foolish for O'Leary to consider Leitch's immigration policy position "crazy," given the fact that after the Liberal Party of Canada won the general election in the Fall'2015, Prime Minister Trudeau fast-tracked the emigration of more than 25,000 so-called Syrian "refugees" between November 4, 2015, and February 29, 2016, into Canada. According to the Government of Canada, as of January 2, 2017, the total number of Syrian "refugees" that have entered into Canada is 39,671. All this has been done at a cost to Canadian tax payers of $400 million and growing!

To make matters worse, Prime Minister Trudeau twitted the following on Saturday, January 28 (after President Donald Trump issued an executive order temporarily halting U.S. refugee resettlement), "To those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength,” Trudeau tweeted along with the hashtag, “#WelcomeToCanada.”

With such a reckless immigration policy in place can members of the CPC and all Canadians, in good conscience, throw their support behind O'Leary. The answer is quite clear: no!

Of what I do know about O'Leary—which I find quite disturbing—is that he has made other disparaging remarks about Kellie earlier in the race, not to mention his position that Canada should not be fighting ISIS and terrorism.

In addition, O'Leary supports legalized marijuana and proposes increased funding for Canada's largest mainstream media company, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), from $1.2 billion to $1.6 billion per year. The CBC's annual funding and the increase O'Leary proposes, is Canadian tax payer money!

After careful review of O'Leary's candidacy, what emerges is a status-quo, establishment candidate, who differs from Prime Minister Trudeau's economic policies—as do most of the other candidates—but has himself claimed many times that he could easily run as a Liberal!

It is my perception that the elites and the mainstream media have settled on O'Leary because he is a successful businessman, and a television personality who is popular with some Canadians.

I firmly believe that O'Leary is not the best candidate to lead the Conservative Party of Canada!

Interested to know more about why I don't consider O'Leary "the" candidate for the CPC leadership? Here is an article from Arlene Dickinson of Maclean's Magazine, that paints an accurate picture of who Kevin O'Leary really is, and probably always will be, Why I wouldn’t vote for Kevin O’Leary—and neither should you.

The enemedia's other option Maxime Bernier

Maxime Bernier, was a Foreign Affairs Minister under former Prime Minister Steven Harper's government, who was forced to resign in May'2008 due to his leaving sensitive classified documents at his former girlfriend's (Julie Couillard) apartment, a woman with former ties to biker gangs/organized crime.

Maxime Bernier and Julie Couillard. Photo: Huffington Post Canada/Julie Couillard, Maxime Bernier's Former Flame, Broke Lobbying Rules, Watchdog Says

What does this say about a man who knowingly gets involved with a woman who was connected to such "organizations." It certainly speaks to a lack of moral judgement, which his position as Minister of State for Small Business, Tourism, and Agriculture, and his candidacy for the CPC leadership, seems to further spotlight.

Bernier has been known to say one thing, and then do another. This doesn't bode well with the Canadian public especially when his candidacy is also a run for the highest office in the land: the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). 

Case in point, he has stated in an email approximately two weeks ago that, “It’s time to end the practice of a big fat government in Ottawa buying votes with debt, inflation, and tax dollars.” As Minister of State for Small Business, Tourism, and Agriculture from 2011, to 2015, Bernier handed out at least thirty-five cheques totalling more than $42 million. Here are some examples of where that money went and what it was used for:

• $1 million to Hotel Forestel Val-d'Or Inc. for improvements to common areas and renovations of forty-five rooms.
• $87,500 to Granit National Inc. to acquire Computer Numerical Control machining center.
• $108,100 to Saint-Henedine Recreation Commission for the renovation of a recreation cottage.
• $350,000 to Immobilisation 2010 Inc. for the acquisition of leading edge equipment
• $126,300 to Montoneige Beauce Sud Inc. for the purchase of a new snow grooming machine.

There are many other examples that speak to Bernier's lack of ethics and loss of credibility. When it comes to respecting taxpayers, he has been quoted as saying, “What I want to offer is a government that will respect taxpayers...” Here is how Bernier proved this point in the past; he spent several thousands on flights including $7,367.28, on a trip from Ottawa to Calgary and Edmonton, and $22,573, on a flight to attend a two-day conference in Laos with a stopover in Paris.

As Leitch pointed out in her January 17, Facebook release, "Maxime Bernier is in no position to give anyone lessons on consistency and authenticity. To beat Justin Trudeau you cannot act like Justin Trudeau and unfortunately, with Maxime Bernier, that’s just what you will get. Winning in 2019 will require hard work and honesty — not inconsistency and hypocrisy."

As for some of his policy positions: Bernier supports legalized marijuana; does not support supply management; and most noteworthy of all, Bernier does not support the screening of all immigrants, refugees, and visitors with face-to-face interviews, for our historic Canadian values!

To put it quite simply, Maxime Bernier is another establishment candidate and; therefore, not the candidate the CPC should be voting for in May.

Vote for Kellie Leitch and help secure her victory in May

As of this post, there are fourteen candidates running for the leadership of the CPC, one of whom will be elected by the members of the party. So where does that leave non-members who are interested in voting for Kellie Leitch. Those individuals who seek to get involved with the CPC and vote, can do so by joining the party.

To become a Conservative Member for Kellie, it will only cost $15.00 for an annual membership. Once you become a member, you will then be eligible to vote for Kellie Leitch. Take note, the deadline to do so is March 28. 

The voting process is actually quite simple:

1. As previously mentioned, you must join the Conservative Party of Canada by March 28.
2. Check your mail after April 28 for a voter ballot that will be mailed to all members.
3. Fill out the voter ballot with a copy of your identification and mail it back. Note that only ballots received before 5:00pm ET on May 26, will count.
4. Alternatively, ballots can be delivered in person, with proper identification, to one of the polling stations, which will be announced by early February.

For the complete details and further information on the voting process, including what are acceptable pieces of identification, please view the on line document (pdf) Conservative Party of Canada Leadership Voting Procedure.

If we, as Canadians, are serious about making Canada a better place to live for ourselves and for future generations, we need to get involved and do what Christian Evangelist Franklin Graham promoted during his Decision America Tour, "Pray, vote, and engage in the political process."

If you are not doing so already, pray for Kellie Leitch and all who are involved in her campaign! 

Kellie Leitch: Canada's Compliment to President-elect Donald Trump

Dr. Kellie Leitch, Member of Parliament for Simcoe-Grey (Ontario) and leadership candidate for the
Conservative Party of Canada. Photo: National Post/John Ivison

Back in mid-November'2016, I wrote a blog post, Donald Trump's Election: A Call to Christians to Get Back Into The Political Arena, expressing my elation over the election of Donald Trump. It was at the end of that same post that I also expressed my hope that Canadians would draw from the American experience—what is now referred to as the Trump-effect—and seek out common-sense-conservative Christians who would be willing to change the political landscape, first and foremost, beginning with a candidate for the Prime Minister of Canada.

That individual has emerged in the leadership race for the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), Dr. Kellie Leitch, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon, Member of Parliament for Simcoe-Grey (Ontario), and fellow Catholic.

Leitch formally registered as a candidate in early April'2016, and together with her assembled team, worked very hard in preparation for her official campaign launch, which she held in mid-October at her home riding. Leitch's campaign launch speech is on YouTube and is well worth watching, especially for those who are considering joining the Conservative Party of Canada to support her campaign.

For those seriously considering joining the CPC to vote for Kellie Leitch, there is a deadline! In order to vote for the new leader, you must hold an active membership to the Conservative Party. If you’re not a member, you must buy a membership before March 28! 

Since April, Leitch has been considered the front-runner and her support has been growing ever since, both in terms of membership and fundraising. By November, Mainstreet-Postmedia's national poll had Kellie leading the pack with 19% which put into perspective is an extremely significant lead, considering there were eleven other candidates. 

Mainstreet-Postmedia poll published on November 9, 2016, showing Kellie Leitch in the lead. Photo: Mainstreet-Postmedia/‘Canada’s Donald Trump’ Leads Conservative Leadership Race

The growing support has been confirmed by Nick Kouvalis's (Kellie Leitch's Campaign Manager) campaign update email that I received on January 2, 2017. As of that email, Leitch has 1,500 registered volunteers, which in of itself is an excellent indication of her support base, and as Kouvalis puts it, "...[I]s an important metric in any political campaign and very significant in this leadership race."

That significance becomes even better understood when considering that the leadership race will be decided on May 27, 2017, and that the maximum contribution by any individual cannot exceed $1,500. This further spotlights just how valuable and needed volunteers are because much of the important and necessary work ahead, in large part, will be accomplished by Leitch's volunteers.

If you are wondering what some of that important volunteer work is, Kouvalis supplied that information further in his email. He listed the five essential aspects of a successful campaign, of which three, four, and five on the list are not possible without at least 1,000 or more volunteers:

1. Propose policies that resonate with the large existing base of legacy CPC members
2. Propose policies that clearly differentiate their candidate from the other candidates
3. The ability to raise and spend at least $1 Million from January to May'2017, to put forth a serious and comprehensive campaign in every part of the country
4. The ability to sell tens of thousands of memberships, and
5. To ability to GOTV (get out the vote) of tens of thousands of identified supporters.

Based on the necessity of the volunteer work for a successful campaign, Kouvalis firmly believes that due to Leitch's strong support base, she will be on the final ballot and win the leadership race!

Other factors that have been a big bonus in drawing support for Kellie's campaign are her unparalleled work ethic and compassion for others. Together these two qualities have attracted many long-time members into the campaign as supporters, donors and volunteers.

Add to this Leitch's ability to connect with Canadians and to speak on their behalf, has led her campaign in the signing up thousands of new members to the party. As Kouvalis pointed out in his email, no other campaign has signed up the number of members that Leitch's campaign has so far.

Kouvalis went on to point out that Leitch has built up a significant national campaign and broad coalition across the nation, indicated by the following:

• Leitch is leading in support among "Decided" Members on the first ballot
• Leitch is leading in support among "Undecided" Members who are leaning toward a candidate
• Leitch is leading in support among "Decided" Members' second ballot choice
• Leitch continued to show steady growth in every region, month after month, from September to December
• December was the best month for both membership sales and fundraising.

As recently as of January 13, Kellie has stated in an interview with Stephen LeDrew on CP24, that two-thirds of Canadians support her vision for Canada.

Kellie Leitch's Education and Work Experience

Leitch's life accomplishments are a litany of impressive details. Although born in Winnipeg, Leitch lived in Fort McMurray, Alberta, as a youth, where her father started a construction company and built a significant part of the city during the early days of Canada’s oil sands.

Leitch learned the value of hard work early when she ran her own moving and courier company; she gained an understanding of how to deal with clients, manage staff and balance the books.

Leitch's educational achievements are quite outstanding: she graduated from Queen's University in 1991, with her undergraduate degree; she received a medical degree from the University of Toronto in 1994; an MBA from Dalhousie University in 1998; completed the Orthopedic Surgery Residency Program in 2001, at the University of Toronto; and she pursued special training as a fellow of clinical pediatric orthopedics at the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, an affiliated hospital with the University of Southern California.

Leitch is considered among the best of her generation, acknowledged as such when she was selected as one of Canada's Top 40 Under 40, for her work in both medicine and business in 2005. Leitch has also received the Order of Ontario for her work advocating for children and youth, an honour bestowed upon remarkable Ontarians who effortlessly give back to their communities.

First elected as a Member of Parliament in 2011, for Simcoe-Grey, Ontario, Kellie gained respect among her peers for being smart, tough, and hardworking. Leitch served as Minister of Labour and the Minister for the Status of Women in the previous Conservative government, under former Prime Minister Steven Harper.

Leitch has been involved with many aspects of the Conservative Party of Canada since she was fourteen: installing lawn signs, running a campus club, managing campaigns, and serving on the Party executive.

It is the combination of Leitch's education and experience, both on a personal and professional level, in the private sector and in public life, that has made Kellie an ideal candidate for the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.

Leitch's five priorities that will create more freedom, prosperity, and protect our unified Canadian identity

Kellie Leitch's five priorities. Image by Kellie Leitch.

As of this post, Leitch has twelve policy statements that can be found at her web site, under the Policy menu item, five of which are her priorities for creating more freedom, more prosperity, and for the protection of our unified Canadian identity: screening all visitors, refugees and immigrants for Canadian values; putting a cap of government spending; no national carbon tax; dismantle the CBC; and against the legalization of marijuana.

Of the five priorities, screening all visitors, refugees and immigrants for Canadian values, first caught my attention and drew me to Leitch's campaign. This is partly due to the reckless immigration policy and procedures of the Liberal government, who after winning the federal election in October'2015 began to fast-track the emigration of more than 25,000 so-called Syrian "refugees" between November 4, 2015, and February 29, 2016, into Canada.

The numbers continue to increase! According to the Government of Canada, as of January 2, 2017, the total number of Syrian "refugees" that have entered into Canada is 39,671. All this has been done at a cost to Canadian tax payers of $400 Million and growing!

Confirmation of an increase in refugees for 2017, was recently given by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who stated on January 12, during a town-hall meeting from his cross-country tour to meet with Canadians, that his government's intention is to increase the number of refugees into Canada, and that he is determined to do this regardless of other countries closing their borders out of fear of the impact mass migration might have on their societies.

Immigration should be a concern for all Canadians especially in light of Europe's ongoing migrant crisis and the demographic nightmare it has visibly created in countries such as: Germany, Sweden, France, UK, Italy, and many others as well. 

Canadians need only look to the United States to see how a similar situation has been created by the Obama administration's unwanted Syrian refugee resettlement program.

Much in the same manner that President-elect Donald Trump was the sole candidate who introduced America's immigration problem into the GOP leadership race, making it a central issue to which all the other candidates had to address, so too has Kellie Leitch done likewise in the leadership race for the CPC. Like President-elect Donald Trump, she is the only candidate with an effective plan to tackle the immigration issue; the screening of all immigrants, refugees, and visitors for Canadian values.

Screening Visitors, Refugees, and Immigrants For Canadian Values

Leitch has been talking about Canadian values and a unified Canadian identity for months; a message that has resonated well with millions of Canadians. Like President-elect Donald Trump, she has been the only candidate who has been unafraid to challenge the status quo, and the political correctness that the mainstream media—or to quote Pamela Geller, the "enemedia"—and the elites have imposed upon Canadians.

Kellie Leitch on January 13, 2016, in an interview with CP24's Stephen LeDrew, where she talked about
Canadian values and a shared Canadian identity, that two-thirds of Canadians agree with and aspire to.
Photo: CP24/Leitch on immigration screening

In her travels across the country, Leitch has spoken to thousands of Canadians, many of whom believe in and aspire to a unified Canadian identity that is grounded on shared values: 

• Equal opportunity - We must strive to ensure that everyone has as much of an equal opportunity to succeed as possible, especially our youth.
• Hard work – Everyone must work hard and provide for themselves and their families.
• Helping others – Once people become prosperous, we all are expected to give back to our communities to help others.
• Generosity – Canada is a place that shows what is possible when hard work and generosity come together.
• Freedom and tolerance – A Canadian identity that is based on freedom and tolerance to allow each of us the chance to pursue our best lives and to become our best selves. 

Leitch's policy statement, Screening For Canadian Values, referred to these common values as what makes our country great. She stressed that growing and developing our Canadian identity entails that we protect our values by screening those who want to come to Canada. It is for this reason that Leitch has proposed screening immigrants, refugees, and visitors, for anti-Canadian values.

In order to this do properly, face-to-face interviews are mandatory! Sadly in Canada, only one in five applicants receive such interviews. This fact alone should concern all Canadians, especially since Trudeau's government plans to increase immigration to 300,000 for 2017.

To further spotlight how this should concern all Canadians, Leitch provided some interesting facts about immigration procedures. Since 2001, governments have become obsessed with immigration numbers, so much so, that immigration officials are faced with increased pressure to approve many applications each day. The expectation has been that immigration officials make decisions on seventy-five applications each day! 

This amounts to less than five minutes for each application! It only begs the question, what compromises are being made during the decision making process? Whatever the answers may be to that question, one thing is for certain, this is not the way to build a nation based on shared values.

Leitch feels very strongly about nation-building, and that is why she is running to be the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, and the next Prime Minister in 2019. 

If you have yet to discover Kellie Leitch, I respectfully encourage you to visit her campaign web site, Kellie Leitch. There you will find important details on: Leitch's biography, a concise summary of her impressive education and work experience that is further detailed at her Profile on line document; her twelve policy statements; opportunities to become a Conservative member for Kellie; volunteer and donate to her campaign; and connect with Leitch on social media.

Above all, do keep Kellie Leitch in your prayers.