Alberta Car Dealers Association illegally supporting UCP?
BeaverFever @ Sun Oct 28, 2018 6:12 pm
$1:
UCP Candidate Steps Down After Receiving Illegal Corporate Donation from Alberta Car Dealership
wile-kenney_thumb
One of Jason Kenney’s United Conservative Party nomination candidates has withdrawn after taking an illegal corporate donation from a car dealership.
A document dated October 23 newly obtained by PressProgress reveals the Office of the Election Commissioner of Alberta sent a letter of reprimand to UCP nomination hopeful Haley Wile for accepting an “illegal contribution” from Red Deer Motors.
One day later on October 24, Wile announced on Facebook that she had decided to abandon her campaign for the UCP nomination in the riding of Red Deer South due to “unforeseen personal circumstances.”
“This matter was investigated (by) my office and it was determined that an offence was committed,” the election commissioner wrote to the complainant this week.
“Specifically, Ms. Wile was found to have violated section 35(1)(a) of the Act when she accepted an illegal contribution from Red Deer Motors. Further Red Deer Motors was found to have violated sections 15.1 and 16 of the Act as corporations are strictly prohibited from contributing to any political campaigns in Alberta.”
....The reprimand comes on the heels of another scandal involving Kenney’s party and big money flowing from Alberta car dealerships.
Earlier this week, a leaked letter revealed an association representing Alberta car dealers directed at least $170,000 in mostly corporate donations to a new pro-UCP political action committee called Shaping Alberta’s Future.
After meeting with Jason Kenney, the chair of the Motor Dealers Association wrote a letter to car dealers across Alberta stating that the board voted to give $100,000 to the new PAC in order to “assist in the UCP’s third party advertising campaign.”
The letter, which can found in its entirety here, goes on to say that “after winning the election, Mr. Kenney’s UCP government would address MDA’s concerns in the following areas,” including:
• Cancelling all recent labour code legislation;
• Cancelling all occupational safety legislation;
• Indefinitely freezing the minimum wage in Alberta;
• Tax cuts for business owners.
The letter urges every car dealership in the province to donate $5,000 to the PAC with the goal of raising $1 million before December 1, when election spending limitations take effect.
Many have noted the letter could represent a possible violation of the province’s campaign financing laws, which forbid PACs from working directly for a political party. The Alberta NDP have called on the elections commissioner to investigate the PAC, the MDA, the UCP and Kenney himself.
The MDA’s letter also suggests car dealers are resisting a recent change to consumer protection legislation brought in by the NDP government that bans false and misleading advertising from car dealers.
Kenney, the letter says, will revisit this change to the Consumer Protection Act and “rebalance the playing field.”
wile-kenney_thumb
One of Jason Kenney’s United Conservative Party nomination candidates has withdrawn after taking an illegal corporate donation from a car dealership.
A document dated October 23 newly obtained by PressProgress reveals the Office of the Election Commissioner of Alberta sent a letter of reprimand to UCP nomination hopeful Haley Wile for accepting an “illegal contribution” from Red Deer Motors.
One day later on October 24, Wile announced on Facebook that she had decided to abandon her campaign for the UCP nomination in the riding of Red Deer South due to “unforeseen personal circumstances.”
“This matter was investigated (by) my office and it was determined that an offence was committed,” the election commissioner wrote to the complainant this week.
“Specifically, Ms. Wile was found to have violated section 35(1)(a) of the Act when she accepted an illegal contribution from Red Deer Motors. Further Red Deer Motors was found to have violated sections 15.1 and 16 of the Act as corporations are strictly prohibited from contributing to any political campaigns in Alberta.”
....The reprimand comes on the heels of another scandal involving Kenney’s party and big money flowing from Alberta car dealerships.
Earlier this week, a leaked letter revealed an association representing Alberta car dealers directed at least $170,000 in mostly corporate donations to a new pro-UCP political action committee called Shaping Alberta’s Future.
After meeting with Jason Kenney, the chair of the Motor Dealers Association wrote a letter to car dealers across Alberta stating that the board voted to give $100,000 to the new PAC in order to “assist in the UCP’s third party advertising campaign.”
The letter, which can found in its entirety here, goes on to say that “after winning the election, Mr. Kenney’s UCP government would address MDA’s concerns in the following areas,” including:
• Cancelling all recent labour code legislation;
• Cancelling all occupational safety legislation;
• Indefinitely freezing the minimum wage in Alberta;
• Tax cuts for business owners.
The letter urges every car dealership in the province to donate $5,000 to the PAC with the goal of raising $1 million before December 1, when election spending limitations take effect.
Many have noted the letter could represent a possible violation of the province’s campaign financing laws, which forbid PACs from working directly for a political party. The Alberta NDP have called on the elections commissioner to investigate the PAC, the MDA, the UCP and Kenney himself.
The MDA’s letter also suggests car dealers are resisting a recent change to consumer protection legislation brought in by the NDP government that bans false and misleading advertising from car dealers.
Kenney, the letter says, will revisit this change to the Consumer Protection Act and “rebalance the playing field.”
https://pressprogress.ca/ucp-candidate- ... ealership/
Coach85 @ Sun Oct 28, 2018 8:00 pm
And?
herbie @ Sun Oct 28, 2018 8:12 pm
They supported the BC Liberals here got rewarded when you now have to pay 12% PST to transfer a car on a private sale.
Ya know, fair is fair.
If you're a car dealer, they need to keep up their reputation (as scum).
The ban on RHD vehicles is complete and total bullshit though. AS IF the handful of JDM collectibles is actually hurting them. No reason for that other than ass-holiness.
Thanos @ Sun Oct 28, 2018 8:13 pm
Kind of hard to get animated over usual mundane politics like this when the prancing Nazi/gibbering fuckwit takeover of the United States is so entertainingly train-wrecky and time consuming. 
BeaverFever @ Mon Oct 29, 2018 3:56 pm
Coach85 Coach85:
And?
Just didn’t know car dealerships were such a shadowy and politically active interest group
herbie @ Mon Oct 29, 2018 7:40 pm
Thanos Thanos:
Kind of hard to get animated over usual mundane politics like this when the prancing Nazi/gibbering fuckwit takeover of the United States is so entertainingly train-wrecky and time consuming.
Sleeping with the elephant.
But the elephant is now Dumbo and spastic to boot...
I'd like to know WTF their gripe against RHD vehicles is. Doubtless the same gripe they have against any private sales.
Coach85 @ Mon Oct 29, 2018 8:26 pm
BeaverFever BeaverFever:
Coach85 Coach85:
And?
Just didn’t know car dealerships were such a shadowy and politically active interest group
Any business group that accounts for billions in sales within our economy is active politically. They would be stupid not too.
DrCaleb @ Tue Oct 30, 2018 5:17 am
Coach85 Coach85:
BeaverFever BeaverFever:
Coach85 Coach85:
And?
Just didn’t know car dealerships were such a shadowy and politically active interest group
Any business group that accounts for billions in sales within our economy is active politically. They would be stupid not too.
There are election laws specifically to stop the corporate donations to political parties, and the UCP is encouraging people to donate to AMVIC and make it a PAC specifically to get around this legislation.
Used Car dealers are already a reviled group, they would be stupid to encourage that prejudice further.
Coach85 @ Tue Oct 30, 2018 8:13 am
DrCaleb DrCaleb:
There are election laws specifically to stop the corporate donations to political parties, and the UCP is encouraging people to donate to AMVIC and make it a PAC specifically to get around this legislation.
Used Car dealers are already a reviled group, they would be stupid to encourage that prejudice further.
Used Car dealers are already a reviled group, they would be stupid to encourage that prejudice further.
The same thing happens in Ontario with 'Working Families Coalition' or 'Working Canadians'. One funded by unions the other by business.
Car dealers need a seat at the table when it comes to lobbying. They are a huge part of our economy.
bootlegga @ Tue Oct 30, 2018 8:32 am
DrCaleb DrCaleb:
There are election laws specifically to stop the corporate donations to political parties, and the UCP is encouraging people to donate to AMVIC and make it a PAC specifically to get around this legislation.
I'm not defending this, but their are left wing PACs funded by unions and environmental groups that do the exact same thing as Shaping Alberta's Future.
https://edmontonjournal.com/news/politi ... committees
I don't like the idea of PACs, but I suspect the NDP left them alone because they still wanted a way for unions and eco groups to support their policies.
DrCaleb DrCaleb:
Used Car dealers are already a reviled group, they would be stupid to encourage that prejudice further.
The MDA is an association of all kinds of car dealerships around the province, not just used cars.
https://mdaalberta.com/about-us/
BartSimpson @ Tue Oct 30, 2018 9:02 am
This is kind of silly. The point of a PAC is to work for their particular interests and that means supporting platforms that will likely align with one or more political parties.
That doesn't mean that those PACs are controlled by a party.
I hate and loathe SEIU but I've never once made the allegation that they're controlled by the Democrats or that they control the Democrats.
Seems to me the NDP is weaponizing the election and campaign finance laws against their political opponents.
DrCaleb @ Tue Oct 30, 2018 10:04 am
BartSimpson BartSimpson:
This is kind of silly. The point of a PAC is to work for their particular interests and that means supporting platforms that will likely align with one or more political parties.
We know what PACs are, and the idea of the legislation is to stop them before they do to our politics what we see they've done to yours.
Bypassing the spirit of this legislation is what the UCP and AMVIC are doing.
herbie @ Tue Oct 30, 2018 10:34 am
$1:
The MDA is an association of all kinds of car dealerships around the province, not just used cars.
That is working to limit your options, maximize your costs, force you to buy within their framework. It is not a cooperative working in YOUR best interest, nor a marketing board formed by public input or consensus.
It has already stated one intent to prove as much, the next will work to reduce the number of vehicles you can sell privately.
Why in hell would you as a consumer support their political influence at all?