Mulroney admits to taking cash
Dec 14, 2007 7:50:08 GMT -5
Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Dec 14, 2007 7:50:08 GMT -5
... but according to Mulroney he's done nothing wrong ... it's all Schreiber's fault. And he won't pay back the $2.1 million he received in compensation from the Canadian people.
Mulroney admits taking cash
Leaves loaded questions behind
By Martin O’hanlon, THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA - Brian Mulroney has broken 12 years of virtual silence on the Karlheinz Schreiber affair, admitting that he accepted cash-stuffed envelopes, kept the money in secret safety deposit boxes, and didn't claim it on his income taxes for years.
But the former Conservative prime minister insists he did nothing illegal and took no kickbacks.
Mulroney told the House of Commons ethics committee Thursday that it was a big mistake to take cash in the 1990s from Schreiber, a German-Canadian arms dealer.
"When I look back on it today, I realize I made a serious error of judgment . . . even though it was decidedly not illegal to do so," he said. " I apologize and I accept full responsibility for it."
But his contrition quickly turned to indignation.
With wife Mila and his four children dressed in black and sitting impassively behind him, Mulroney bemoaned the injustice inflicted on him and his family.
He said he thought the Airbus affair - involving allegations of kickbacks for the sale of Airbus jets to Air Canada - was put behind him in 1997 when the Liberal government paid him $2.1 million in an out of court libel settlement.
"But here we are again, my family and I, 10 years later."
Mulroney heaped scorn on Schreiber, calling him a desperate liar who will say anything to avoid extradition to Germany to face charges of fraud, bribery, and breach of trust.
He said Schreiber's recent affidavit and its allegations are totally false: "He got what he wanted. He got his get-out-of-jail card."
Mulroney flatly denied Schreiber's claim that the pair agreed to a business relationship in June 1993 while he was still prime minister.
"Not a word was breathed at Harrington Lake (the prime minister's retreat) about concluding any future business arrangements with him."
However, he said he did agree just a month later - after leaving office but still sitting as an MP - to lobby world leaders on behalf of Thyssen Industries, Schreiber's client, which was selling armoured peacekeeping vehicles. He added that he emphasized to Schreiber that he could not lobby the Canadian government.
As part of that deal, Mulroney said he accepted $75,000 in cash as a retainer, followed by two more payments of equal amounts for a total of $225,000.
Schreiber has testified that he gave Mulroney three cash payments totalling $300,000 during meetings in hotel rooms - shadowy transactions that are at the heart of the committee hearings.
Mulroney said he was concerned about taking cash, but that Schreiber only operated that way.
While he attempted to clear up the mystery of the cash payments, Mulroney made things a bit murkier with the revelation that he stored the cash in safety deposit boxes at his home and in New York.
He didn't explain why he used such boxes, which leave no paper trail, instead of bank accounts. He also said he has since "disposed" of his records on how the money was handled.
Mulroney never recorded the $225,000 on his income taxes until Schreiber was arrested in 1999 - six years after he received his first payment. He told the MPs that was because the arrest "put in serious doubt my relationship with him."
"I thought the best way to deal with this situation was to declare the entire amount as income, although I had only used it for expenses, absorbing the expenses myself and compensating myself for the fees to which I was entitled."
New Democrat MP Joe Comartin, a lawyer, said all his past clients recorded their financial transactions and filed tax returns in the same year. He wondered why Mulroney didn't.
Bloc Quebecois MP Serge Menard, also a lawyer, asked Mulroney why he accepted cash three times if he was so concerned about dealing that way. He said Mulroney acted like someone involved in an illegal transaction.
Mulroney said he was indeed concerned, but everything was legal.
New Democrat MP Pat Martin dismissed Mulroney's explanation: "I'm not calling you a liar Mr. Mulroney, but I want everyone here to know that I don't believe you."
Conservative MPs were far more gentle on Mulroney, even lining up after the hearing to shake his hand.
The former prime minister told the committee that his "biggest mistake in life" was ever agreeing to be introduced to Schreiber.
He called the Airbus affair "a near-death experience," and said he never received "a cent from anyone" in connection with the Air Canada purchase of 34 Airbus planes in 1988.
Mulroney also denied receiving any money from Thyssen or any other client of Schreiber while in office, and said he never had a bank account in Switzerland.
He accused the media of a witch hunt, but he has not filed any lawsuits over media reports.
Mulroney was greeted as returning hero by some Tory MPs and senators who shook his hand and embraced him as he emerged from a black limousine Thursday morning at the front entrance of Parliament.
His departure four hours later was decidedly less hospitable, with one heckler shouting "You're a crook" as Mulroney climbed back into his car.
Mulroney is to return to testify again in February, but given the committee's partisan nature and limited legal research resources, any final accounting of the decade-old saga will likely fall to a promised public inquiry.
Following are transcripts of key exchanges between former prime minister Brian Mulroney and members of the Commons ethics committee.
With Bloc MP Serge Menard on the question of Mulroney accepting cash payments from lobbyist Karlheinz Schreiber:
Menard: Do you realize, Mr. Mulroney, that the way in which you acted in this matter did not make it appear as if it were a legitimate transaction?
Mulroney: But Mr. Menard, the transaction was not only legitimate, it was perfectly legal. But I will concede that the circumstances may lead to some apprehension or some notion of impropriety.
Menard: You were acting like someone involved in an illegal transaction.
Mulroney: No, I was not acting like someone involved in an illegal transaction, but like someone involved in a legal transaction, but one which raised certain questions, however.
With New Democrat MP Pat Martin on the nature of Mulroney's arrangements with Schreiber:
Mulroney: It's an entirely legitimate business proposal that he proposed and I accepted. And the only . . . dubious part about it - which I've acknowledged - is that I ought not to have accepted the payment in cash.
Martin: If you said that you put the money that you took in New York City into a safety deposit box, do you have a safety deposit box in Switzerland? Do you have access or have you ever had access to a safety deposit box in Switzerland?
Mulroney: No sir.
Martin: You sued the government of Canada for $50 million for saying you took money from Karlheinz Schreiber and you received a $2.1-million settlement. Now, I believe that you did, in fact, take money from Karlheinz Schreiber and I believe that if the Government of Canada knew you had taken money from Karlheinz Schreiber, you would not have received that settlement. They probably would have fought that court battle to its logical end. Are you willing to give that $2.1 million back to the people of Canada now that we know that you did take money from Schreiber?
Mulroney: No. I took compensation from Schreiber for serious work done on his behalf around the world. I was paid to execute this mandate that he articulated in court. And I have also. . . .
Martin: Why did you deny even having any dealings with the man?
Mulroney: That's completely false.
Martin: Well, by omission you led us to believe that you had virtually no dealings with the man in sworn testimony.
Mulroney: I did not omit anything. I explained to you that in the province of Quebec the manner in which. . .
Martin: I think you're splitting hairs, sir.
Mulroney: I'm not splitting hairs.
Martin: You're splitting hairs and the country isn't buying it. . . . I'm not calling you a liar, Mr. Mulroney, but I don't want anybody here to think I believe you.
With Liberal MP Ken Dryden:
Dryden: Mr. Schreiber is at least a shadowy character and has been for a long time. I understand how first contacts happen and how mistakes can be made, but why did your association with Mr. Schreiber go on year after year? Why was the money exchanged in cash? Why in different cities? Why in hotel rooms? Why, Mr. Mulroney? Why?
Mulroney: He was known in Canada - Alberta, Ottawa, Montreal - he was known in Canada as a successful businessman, hard-driving but successful. So that's the Karlheinz Schreiber that I knew and met. His associates involved people like Marc Lalonde and Allan MacEachen, and this was reassuring because these are people of the highest quality. You ask, why in cash? It's because, as he has said to me and then said publicly, it's because he was an international businessman and as he said: 'I only dealt in cash.' I hesitated. He told one of the papers: 'Do you think Brian Mulroney would have accepted a cheque from me?' Of course I would have. Because in those days, 15 years ago, he was known to me only as a respectable businessman. But he said that he only dealt in cash. I've acknowledged, sir, that this was a mistake in judgment and I have apologized for it.
On assertions in an affidavit by Schreiber, who's facing extradition to Germany, that Mulroney promised to speak to Prime Minister Stephen Harper on his behalf:
Mulroney: I have not spoken to Mr. Schreiber in seven years. That's a complete fabrication and it's an indication of the entire affidavit that has generated this feeding frenzy. Look, he succeeded. He got what he wanted. He's succeeding. He's sitting in his mansion over in Rockcliffe, chuckling. He organized this 7th of November affidavit. It's all false, demonstrably false. But he got his get-out-of-jail card. He's sitting over there and he got what he wanted. But one thing that he did do, and I point out to all members, I think he seriously misled every member of this House and all of you with this false affidavit. And it is false and I'll conclude, sir by this: How do we know it's false? Because he has repudiated every single important provision of it in different testimonies given under oath.
Mulroney's opening statement, in part:
My second biggest mistake in life, for which I have no one to blame by myself, is having accepted payments in cash from Karlheinz Schreiber for a mandate he gave me after I left office. I will tell you today how that came about.
My biggest mistake in life, by far, was ever agreeing to be introduced to Karlheinz Schreiber in the first place. I will tell you today what the involvement was. As a result, some Canadians are asking whether I was involved in improper or unethical conduct during or after my term in office.
Let me say here and now, clearly and unequivocally:
One, I never received a cent from anyone for services rendered to anyone in connection with the purchase by Air Canada from Airbus of 34 aircraft in 1988.
Two, I did not receive a cent from Thyssen Industries or any other client of Mr. Schreiber while I was in office.
Three, I have never had a lawyer in Geneva or elsewhere in Switzerland except to defend myself against the false charges laid against me in 1995.
Four, I have never had a bank account in Switzerland.
And five, neither I, nor anyone on my behalf, ever asked Mr. Schreiber or his lawyer to perjure themselves or otherwise lie about the payments (I) received from him . . .
When I look back on it today I realize I made a serious error of judgment in receiving a payment in cash for this assignment even though it was decidedly not illegal to do so. That mistake in judgment was mine alone. I apologize and I accept full responsibility for it. . . .
The truth is that I should have declined the offer. I should have insisted the payment in a more transparent or accountable manner. By not doing so I inadvertently created an impression of impropriety that I hope will not reflect adversely on the high office I was privileged to hold.
Mulroney's closing statement, in part:
I want to thank all the members of the committee, from all parties, for taking the time to examine this matter. You'll draw whatever conclusions you think are appropriate. This has been another very demanding and brutal time for my family and me and, only through courts or through the Parliament of Canada can the rights of individuals be protected.
And, it's up to you to judge the credibility of people who appear before you and swear to tell you the truth, which I have done. I've sworn to tell you the truth and I've told you the absolute truth.
I won't go into any of the stuff that was . . . . False affidavits, false statements and the letter of extortion and blackmail . . .
This has got to tell you something of the kind of person whom you're dealing with and the kind of man. What regard would he (Schreiber) have for your reputation if you were part of his "get out of jail" possibility? You'd be going down in flames. And, he tried to take me down in flames. And, he'll take anybody down.
He threw Elmer MacKay under the bus. Elmer MacKay was one of the most outstanding public servants, along with his son, whom I know.
He doesn't care about anything, except himself and staying away from Germany.
The link
Mulroney admits taking cash
Leaves loaded questions behind
By Martin O’hanlon, THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA - Brian Mulroney has broken 12 years of virtual silence on the Karlheinz Schreiber affair, admitting that he accepted cash-stuffed envelopes, kept the money in secret safety deposit boxes, and didn't claim it on his income taxes for years.
But the former Conservative prime minister insists he did nothing illegal and took no kickbacks.
Mulroney told the House of Commons ethics committee Thursday that it was a big mistake to take cash in the 1990s from Schreiber, a German-Canadian arms dealer.
"When I look back on it today, I realize I made a serious error of judgment . . . even though it was decidedly not illegal to do so," he said. " I apologize and I accept full responsibility for it."
But his contrition quickly turned to indignation.
With wife Mila and his four children dressed in black and sitting impassively behind him, Mulroney bemoaned the injustice inflicted on him and his family.
He said he thought the Airbus affair - involving allegations of kickbacks for the sale of Airbus jets to Air Canada - was put behind him in 1997 when the Liberal government paid him $2.1 million in an out of court libel settlement.
"But here we are again, my family and I, 10 years later."
Mulroney heaped scorn on Schreiber, calling him a desperate liar who will say anything to avoid extradition to Germany to face charges of fraud, bribery, and breach of trust.
He said Schreiber's recent affidavit and its allegations are totally false: "He got what he wanted. He got his get-out-of-jail card."
Mulroney flatly denied Schreiber's claim that the pair agreed to a business relationship in June 1993 while he was still prime minister.
"Not a word was breathed at Harrington Lake (the prime minister's retreat) about concluding any future business arrangements with him."
However, he said he did agree just a month later - after leaving office but still sitting as an MP - to lobby world leaders on behalf of Thyssen Industries, Schreiber's client, which was selling armoured peacekeeping vehicles. He added that he emphasized to Schreiber that he could not lobby the Canadian government.
As part of that deal, Mulroney said he accepted $75,000 in cash as a retainer, followed by two more payments of equal amounts for a total of $225,000.
Schreiber has testified that he gave Mulroney three cash payments totalling $300,000 during meetings in hotel rooms - shadowy transactions that are at the heart of the committee hearings.
Mulroney said he was concerned about taking cash, but that Schreiber only operated that way.
While he attempted to clear up the mystery of the cash payments, Mulroney made things a bit murkier with the revelation that he stored the cash in safety deposit boxes at his home and in New York.
He didn't explain why he used such boxes, which leave no paper trail, instead of bank accounts. He also said he has since "disposed" of his records on how the money was handled.
Mulroney never recorded the $225,000 on his income taxes until Schreiber was arrested in 1999 - six years after he received his first payment. He told the MPs that was because the arrest "put in serious doubt my relationship with him."
"I thought the best way to deal with this situation was to declare the entire amount as income, although I had only used it for expenses, absorbing the expenses myself and compensating myself for the fees to which I was entitled."
New Democrat MP Joe Comartin, a lawyer, said all his past clients recorded their financial transactions and filed tax returns in the same year. He wondered why Mulroney didn't.
Bloc Quebecois MP Serge Menard, also a lawyer, asked Mulroney why he accepted cash three times if he was so concerned about dealing that way. He said Mulroney acted like someone involved in an illegal transaction.
Mulroney said he was indeed concerned, but everything was legal.
New Democrat MP Pat Martin dismissed Mulroney's explanation: "I'm not calling you a liar Mr. Mulroney, but I want everyone here to know that I don't believe you."
Conservative MPs were far more gentle on Mulroney, even lining up after the hearing to shake his hand.
The former prime minister told the committee that his "biggest mistake in life" was ever agreeing to be introduced to Schreiber.
He called the Airbus affair "a near-death experience," and said he never received "a cent from anyone" in connection with the Air Canada purchase of 34 Airbus planes in 1988.
Mulroney also denied receiving any money from Thyssen or any other client of Schreiber while in office, and said he never had a bank account in Switzerland.
He accused the media of a witch hunt, but he has not filed any lawsuits over media reports.
Mulroney was greeted as returning hero by some Tory MPs and senators who shook his hand and embraced him as he emerged from a black limousine Thursday morning at the front entrance of Parliament.
His departure four hours later was decidedly less hospitable, with one heckler shouting "You're a crook" as Mulroney climbed back into his car.
Mulroney is to return to testify again in February, but given the committee's partisan nature and limited legal research resources, any final accounting of the decade-old saga will likely fall to a promised public inquiry.
Following are transcripts of key exchanges between former prime minister Brian Mulroney and members of the Commons ethics committee.
With Bloc MP Serge Menard on the question of Mulroney accepting cash payments from lobbyist Karlheinz Schreiber:
Menard: Do you realize, Mr. Mulroney, that the way in which you acted in this matter did not make it appear as if it were a legitimate transaction?
Mulroney: But Mr. Menard, the transaction was not only legitimate, it was perfectly legal. But I will concede that the circumstances may lead to some apprehension or some notion of impropriety.
Menard: You were acting like someone involved in an illegal transaction.
Mulroney: No, I was not acting like someone involved in an illegal transaction, but like someone involved in a legal transaction, but one which raised certain questions, however.
With New Democrat MP Pat Martin on the nature of Mulroney's arrangements with Schreiber:
Mulroney: It's an entirely legitimate business proposal that he proposed and I accepted. And the only . . . dubious part about it - which I've acknowledged - is that I ought not to have accepted the payment in cash.
Martin: If you said that you put the money that you took in New York City into a safety deposit box, do you have a safety deposit box in Switzerland? Do you have access or have you ever had access to a safety deposit box in Switzerland?
Mulroney: No sir.
Martin: You sued the government of Canada for $50 million for saying you took money from Karlheinz Schreiber and you received a $2.1-million settlement. Now, I believe that you did, in fact, take money from Karlheinz Schreiber and I believe that if the Government of Canada knew you had taken money from Karlheinz Schreiber, you would not have received that settlement. They probably would have fought that court battle to its logical end. Are you willing to give that $2.1 million back to the people of Canada now that we know that you did take money from Schreiber?
Mulroney: No. I took compensation from Schreiber for serious work done on his behalf around the world. I was paid to execute this mandate that he articulated in court. And I have also. . . .
Martin: Why did you deny even having any dealings with the man?
Mulroney: That's completely false.
Martin: Well, by omission you led us to believe that you had virtually no dealings with the man in sworn testimony.
Mulroney: I did not omit anything. I explained to you that in the province of Quebec the manner in which. . .
Martin: I think you're splitting hairs, sir.
Mulroney: I'm not splitting hairs.
Martin: You're splitting hairs and the country isn't buying it. . . . I'm not calling you a liar, Mr. Mulroney, but I don't want anybody here to think I believe you.
With Liberal MP Ken Dryden:
Dryden: Mr. Schreiber is at least a shadowy character and has been for a long time. I understand how first contacts happen and how mistakes can be made, but why did your association with Mr. Schreiber go on year after year? Why was the money exchanged in cash? Why in different cities? Why in hotel rooms? Why, Mr. Mulroney? Why?
Mulroney: He was known in Canada - Alberta, Ottawa, Montreal - he was known in Canada as a successful businessman, hard-driving but successful. So that's the Karlheinz Schreiber that I knew and met. His associates involved people like Marc Lalonde and Allan MacEachen, and this was reassuring because these are people of the highest quality. You ask, why in cash? It's because, as he has said to me and then said publicly, it's because he was an international businessman and as he said: 'I only dealt in cash.' I hesitated. He told one of the papers: 'Do you think Brian Mulroney would have accepted a cheque from me?' Of course I would have. Because in those days, 15 years ago, he was known to me only as a respectable businessman. But he said that he only dealt in cash. I've acknowledged, sir, that this was a mistake in judgment and I have apologized for it.
On assertions in an affidavit by Schreiber, who's facing extradition to Germany, that Mulroney promised to speak to Prime Minister Stephen Harper on his behalf:
Mulroney: I have not spoken to Mr. Schreiber in seven years. That's a complete fabrication and it's an indication of the entire affidavit that has generated this feeding frenzy. Look, he succeeded. He got what he wanted. He's succeeding. He's sitting in his mansion over in Rockcliffe, chuckling. He organized this 7th of November affidavit. It's all false, demonstrably false. But he got his get-out-of-jail card. He's sitting over there and he got what he wanted. But one thing that he did do, and I point out to all members, I think he seriously misled every member of this House and all of you with this false affidavit. And it is false and I'll conclude, sir by this: How do we know it's false? Because he has repudiated every single important provision of it in different testimonies given under oath.
Mulroney's opening statement, in part:
My second biggest mistake in life, for which I have no one to blame by myself, is having accepted payments in cash from Karlheinz Schreiber for a mandate he gave me after I left office. I will tell you today how that came about.
My biggest mistake in life, by far, was ever agreeing to be introduced to Karlheinz Schreiber in the first place. I will tell you today what the involvement was. As a result, some Canadians are asking whether I was involved in improper or unethical conduct during or after my term in office.
Let me say here and now, clearly and unequivocally:
One, I never received a cent from anyone for services rendered to anyone in connection with the purchase by Air Canada from Airbus of 34 aircraft in 1988.
Two, I did not receive a cent from Thyssen Industries or any other client of Mr. Schreiber while I was in office.
Three, I have never had a lawyer in Geneva or elsewhere in Switzerland except to defend myself against the false charges laid against me in 1995.
Four, I have never had a bank account in Switzerland.
And five, neither I, nor anyone on my behalf, ever asked Mr. Schreiber or his lawyer to perjure themselves or otherwise lie about the payments (I) received from him . . .
When I look back on it today I realize I made a serious error of judgment in receiving a payment in cash for this assignment even though it was decidedly not illegal to do so. That mistake in judgment was mine alone. I apologize and I accept full responsibility for it. . . .
The truth is that I should have declined the offer. I should have insisted the payment in a more transparent or accountable manner. By not doing so I inadvertently created an impression of impropriety that I hope will not reflect adversely on the high office I was privileged to hold.
Mulroney's closing statement, in part:
I want to thank all the members of the committee, from all parties, for taking the time to examine this matter. You'll draw whatever conclusions you think are appropriate. This has been another very demanding and brutal time for my family and me and, only through courts or through the Parliament of Canada can the rights of individuals be protected.
And, it's up to you to judge the credibility of people who appear before you and swear to tell you the truth, which I have done. I've sworn to tell you the truth and I've told you the absolute truth.
I won't go into any of the stuff that was . . . . False affidavits, false statements and the letter of extortion and blackmail . . .
This has got to tell you something of the kind of person whom you're dealing with and the kind of man. What regard would he (Schreiber) have for your reputation if you were part of his "get out of jail" possibility? You'd be going down in flames. And, he tried to take me down in flames. And, he'll take anybody down.
He threw Elmer MacKay under the bus. Elmer MacKay was one of the most outstanding public servants, along with his son, whom I know.
He doesn't care about anything, except himself and staying away from Germany.
The link
