Of J.T. and expenses

Much is being made of the revelation that Trudeau made some inappropriate expense claims and only repaid Canadians after being found out

Let me start by saying I see no attempt to deceive or profit here, more a case of stunning ineptitude. Given the current climate over expenses not having closely re-examined ones prior expense claims and getting out in front of any issues is inexcusable.

While the media has been over the top in equating this to the Senate expense scandal so too is the claim by his supporters that Trudeau can't get a fair shake from the media, where have we heard that one before?

While it is important that individual MPs and senators are held to account when it is revealed they have misused public funds it must be done so in proportion to the misdeed, so in this case for me it is on one level, meh

The bigger issue here though isn't so much the behavior of individuals but more one of culture. It has become abundantly clear that a culture of blurring the lines between public and private business exists in both houses.

As much as I would like to lay all the blame on Harper, this culture predates his tenure and may be as old as parliament itself. This is where our focus must lie, we can call out as many individuals we want and it is important that we do so but until we change this culture of entitlement nothing will change.