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The Hon. George Strathy, now Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Appeal who denied Del Mastro's final appeal, was a Harper appointee, as were most of the SCC Justices who denied his leave to appeal to them. #cdnpoli
The thing about Canadian judges - in stark contrast to the USA - is that they drop all politics and keep their own personal politics under close wraps the moment they are appointed to the bench. The ideology of Judges is almost impossible to see in decisions /...3
While some judges may be known for a slight bias on certain issues, it is usually only a matter of minor degree. It never comes out as support for partisan politics or policies. This was something even Harper learned, much to his chagrin. /...4
Harper attempted a permanent ideological shift to the Canadian judicial system with his judicial appointments, and he made a lot of them. Almost all of the SCC and 800+ of the 1200 or so federal judges. He wanted a more conservative judicial interpretation framework. /...5
The courts were his stumbling block to ideological sea change in Canada. Many of his core policies were contrary to the Charter. But a strange thing happened. Even with his hand-picked appointments, he kept losing Charter challenges. /...6
Once appointed (which in Canada is to age 75) judges owe nothing to the govt or party in power, and feel themselves bound by the law and precedent, not who appointed them. As new judges learn the ropes, this is impressed upon them. /...7
While there are some judges known for their narrower interpretation of certain Charter or other issues, unlike the USA where you can predict with certainty how the USSC will split on ideological grounds, in Canada it is almost impossible to. /...8
So when you read (almost always from Conservatives) that the courts are politically biased against them, not only is it not true, but it undermines an incredibly important principle of the Rule of Law - the independence of the judiciary. /9...
In Dean Del Mastro's case, he was sunk by not only the ironclad evidence against him (he wrote a personal cheque for $21,000 in violation of election laws), but by his constant insults to the court as if he was above the law. /10...
Which is where I will end my observations, except to note that this is part of the larger right-wing belief that the courts should be subservient to elected officials and not there to enforce the Rule of Law with the power to keep governments in check. #cdnpoli
And a politicized or subservient judiciary is one of the earmarks of tyranny. #cdnpoli
And finally, I see after my response to Dean Del Mastro's tweet had over 122,000 impressions, Dean has deleted his original tweet. Here is what he said about being tried & convicted by a Liberal appointee... 
