Unanimous Decision

The Supreme Court has ruled that security certificates violate some Charter rights. This was an easy decision, and it makes for very interesting times. I would've liked to have seen the Liberals take the lead on this one, but at least our path is clear from here.

The question is how might the government react to the ruling. The recent debate over the Anti-Terrorism Act suggests absolute intractibility. Harper has declared his willingness to take "any action necessary" to maintain Canada's post-911 national security regime. If he's serious, this could only mean the notwithstanding clause. This is still a relatively remote possibility, but the alternative is scuppering what has been the major definining effort of the past two weeks (i.e. 'strong' leadership on national security). Whether the security certificates were specifically debated or not, words will have to be eaten.

This could mean turning the tide of an argument we seem to be losing. Those who opined that our security regime doesn't violate the Charter were wrong outright. I wish that hadn't included so many Liberals, but alas. Our message now: strong leadership means standing up for the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.