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Here’s what Canadians need to know about Trudeau’s proposed Online Harms Act

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From LifeSiteNews

On this week’s episode of The Van Maren Show, Jonathon speaks with Andrew Lawton about Canada’s proposed Online Harms Act, why Christians and conservatives would be the primary targets, whether or not it can be defeated, and more.

Andrew Lawton joins Jonathon on this week’s episode of The Van Maren Show to discuss the Online Harms Act, Canada’s proposed internet “hate speech” law.

Lawton begins the show addressing the confusion surrounding Bill C-63, pointing out that it does contain things “sensible” people would support, such as provisions concerning child sexual exploitation and terrorist content. However, the bill treats “online hate” in the same way as child exploitation and terror, Lawton observes.

He states that the “hate” portion of the legislation is a reintroduction of section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act – something the previous Conservative government of Canada managed to get rid of in 2013. The reintroduced section, however, “supercharges” the original proposal’s language, giving the Human Rights Tribunal the ability to prosecute people for “hate speech” online and forcing social media companies to take down offending content.

“As anyone who’s paid any attention to these sorts of issues can tell you, this is just a recipe for disaster when you give government that authority to define and then to execute,” says Lawton.

He also addresses the “Orwellian” aspect of the bill, observing that it allows people to be prosecuted while they have yet to commit an offense. In other words, if someone suspects someone else of future “hate propaganda” or a future “hate crime,” then any Canadian, whether it be an average Canadian or the attorney general, can appear before a judge and argue that a would-be perpetrator be arrested.

Lawton also notes that sentencing for “hate motivated offenses” – any crime such as vandalism or murder that is motivated by “hate” – can carry a lifetime prison sentence rather than the normal criminal sentence. While people have responded to this worry by saying that judges won’t use that power, Lawton says he doesn’t “like legislation where the only guardrail against abuse is just, ‘Trust us.’”

The language used by the bill itself is broad, Lawton says, maintaining that its drafters have no concern for free speech issues. “Justice Minister [Arif Virani] … was asked about this, and his only justification for how is this going to protect free speech was, ‘Oh well, the law requires that we respect the Charter,’” Lawton notes. “Well, yeah, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to do it. It just means you’re supposed to do it.”

Lawton further addresses an apparent enforcement problem, saying he does not expect the law to be enforced the same way for someone who commits arson against a synagogue or mosque as for someone who commits the same crime targeting a church. Lawton observes that the “political class” treats these offenses differently, and he suspects that since the “judicial class” is appointed by the “political class,” then it will follow the former.

“When you bring that into the speech realm … I don’t think that you’re right to make gender critical comments as a feminist, say, is going to be upheld as much as your right to make trans-friendly comments if you’re a trans activist. And I think right here we have the case of these administrative bodies, these tribunals that have to pick and choose the winners of whose free speech matters more than the other.”

When Jonathon asks Lawton if he suspects Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is pushing the legislation because of a potential Liberal defeat in the next election, Lawton responds by noting that Trudeau first tabled the legislation in 2021 the day before he dissolved Parliament and called for an election, suggesting that Trudeau believes in the legislation. He also believes that Trudeau sees it as a “political win.” He admits that this prospect unsettles him, observing that most are no longer likely to defend freedom of speech as they once did. Later in the episode, he also opines that criticism of the legislation will not stop Trudeau from pushing it.

Lawton further notes that “a lot of” Canadians have not given critical thought to the “edge cases of things that they care about,” observing that if one were to ask Canadians if they support free speech, most would answer positively, and that people would “generally agree” if they were asked if the government should regulate “hate speech.” The problem, he notes, is how to define “hate speech” and what it actually entails.

Lawton, looking at how the issue will pan out, believes that the bill will indeed pass one day, but he makes note of two issues. First, he says there is a question of what happens in parliamentary committee, stating that committees have a “significant role,” especially in minority governments. He says this has been made clear by parliamentary discussion on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD). What he would like to see happen is that the parties agree to split the bill in committee, one bill dealing with child sexual exploitation and the other dealing with “hate,” but suspects that there will not be opposition to it either way.

“The best that the Conservatives could hope for is some level of dilution in the committee stage, but it won’t be what it needs to be, which is just killing the bill outright,” Lawton suspects.

Should the bill pass, however, Lawton observes that regulations surrounding the legislation would still need to be written by the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), and that social media companies would have to respond to it. It would be in the Conservatives’ interest, he asserts, that it would not be fully implemented by the time of the next election, since it would be easier to undo it.

Further, Lawton says it would send a “chill” and that people will become “leery” of what they say, while others like himself will look at the CHRC and say “come at me,” and still others will not wish to deal with it. He once again points to the reaction of social media companies, however, and says that their response will be “fascinating,” given how Facebook blocked news in Canada rather than abide by government regulations.

Lawton closes the interview observing that the legislation targets speech that is “likely to foment detestation or vilification” of people based on a “prohibited ground of discrimination,” while offensive, disdaining, humiliating, hurtful, or speech expressing dislike, is allowed.

“What I would tell Canadians is that if you think that your speech at some point will not be targeted by this, you listen to that definition and tell me where the line is between disdain and detestation, or the line between dislike or vilification, and ask whether you trust the government to draw that line fairly,” he says.

Lawton adds that the fight against the bill is “winnable” and notes there is more discussion on the issue now than there was when it was last introduced, given events in Great Britain and Ireland over “hate speech” policy, and hopes that people in Canada don’t have to experience prosecution in order to know why the bill was a bad idea.

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Trump’s Hollywood envoys take on Tinseltown’s liberal monopoly

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Quick Hit:

President Trump has appointed Jon Voight, Sylvester Stallone, and Mel Gibson as “special envoys” to Hollywood, aiming to restore a “Golden Age” and challenge the industry’s entrenched liberal bias. According to RealClearPolitics’ Ethan Watson, the move highlights the necessity of reclaiming cultural institutions from leftist control.

Key Details:

  • Trump’s Truth Social post described the trio as his “eyes and ears” in Hollywood, advising on business and social policy.

  • Hollywood’s leftist dominance, as seen in Disney’s political agenda and the cancellation of Gina Carano, has alienated conservatives.

  • Watson argues that Trump understands “politics is downstream from culture” and that influencing Hollywood is vital to shaping American values.

Diving Deeper:

President Trump’s latest move to reshape Hollywood has the entertainment industry buzzing. By appointing Jon Voight, Sylvester Stallone, and Mel Gibson as his “special envoys” to Tinseltown, Trump is signaling that conservatives no longer need to cede cultural institutions to the left. As RealClearPolitics’ Ethan Watson writes, “Donald Trump understands something many right-wingers haven’t for a long time: It’s time to take back institutions.”

Trump, who has long criticized Hollywood’s liberal slant, sees the entertainment industry as a battleground for shaping public opinion. “Although studies have shown that many Americans, particularly younger people, are unaware of the biggest news story of the day, nearly all of them consume media produced by Hollywood,” Watson notes. This cultural dominance, Watson argues, has been exploited to push a left-wing agenda, alienating conservative voices.

The case of Gina Carano exemplifies Hollywood’s intolerance toward dissent, Watson writes. The former “Mandalorian” star was fired by Disney in 2021 after posting a historical comparison on social media. “In truth, her cancellation was most likely due to her mocking pronoun virtue signaling and COVID-19 precautions that were essentially an entrance fee into the upper echelons of Hollywood,” Watson states. The politicization of entertainment didn’t stop there—Disney executive Latoya Raveneau openly admitted to inserting a “not-at-all-secret gay agenda” into children’s programming.

Watson pushes back against the idea that conservatives should simply “build their own” Hollywood, arguing that the industry is too integral to American culture to be abandoned. “Casting it aside would be like trying to create an alternative to Mount Rushmore or baseball – it’s irreplaceable,” he writes. Trump’s decision to highlight conservative-friendly stars like Stallone, Voight, and Gibson sends a powerful message: conservatives in Hollywood no longer have to stay silent.

Trump’s envoys are a step toward restoring balance in an industry that has become a one-party echo chamber. “Hollywood, along with social media, has become the ‘town square,’ the medium by which Americans share ideas,” Watson explains. With leftist cancel culture stifling dissent, Trump’s initiative is not just about entertainment—it’s about ensuring freedom of expression in America’s most influential industry.

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Trump’s dismantling of USAID is his biggest blow against the Deep State yet

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From LifeSiteNews

By Frank Wright

Elon Musk’s DOGE has shut down USAID, immediately ceasing U.S. government funding of NGOs backing digital tyranny, mass migration, the ‘LGBTQ’ agenda, abortion – and a host of ‘regime change’ operations.

Donald Trump’s new administration has begun to dismantle globalist network funding of the policies of social revolution across the West – and beyond. With the revelations on the shuttering of USAID, Americans now know whose money is behind the Deep State: theirs. 

Trump’s war on the Deep State has shocked the establishment. Elon Musk’s DOGE has shut down  USAID, immediately ceasing U.S. government funding of NGOs backing digital tyranny, mass migration, the “LGBTQ” agenda, abortion – and a host of “regime change” operations including the funding of the origins of COVID-19 and the impeachment of Donald Trump himself.  

These projects, and many more, were all paid for with U.S. taxpayer’s money through USAID. 

This Deep State network of finance, influence and the subversion of democracy in the U.S., Britain, Europe and beyond remained unchanged in every election – until this one.  

USAID, The U.S. Agency for International Development, “disbursed over 72 billion dollars last year,” according to a Newsweek report in October 2024, which described the now-defunct agency as “by far the world’s largest provider of humanitarian aid.” 

So where is this “aid” going? 

 

… and what sort of “humanitarian” projects has it been aiding? 

“USAID is notorious for funding the most horrifying projects known to mankind,” as Mike Benz explains.   

USAID’s “humanitarian” work included funding and directing the template for global digital governance in Ukraine, with its DIIA app, and funding the World Economic Forum which promotes the same agenda:  

Its humanitarian efforts extended to sponsoring anti-Catholic propaganda in Ireland: 

 

As Glenn Beck has pointed out, USAID was a major sponsor of abortion:  

Here is a picture of ISIS terrorists in Syria in a USAID tent:

USAID was also funding “globalist propaganda” on the U.K.’s state broadcaster:

Independent journalist Michael Shellenberger reported, “From 2004-2022, USAID was the largest U.S. government funder of EcoHealth Alliance, the group that funded the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), which likely started the COVID pandemic.” 

 

USAID sought to undermine and overthrow traditional and conservative national governments in Eastern Europe – and replace them with liberal-globalist ones:  

 

Dmitry Arestovich, the former right-hand man to Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, now says USAID pressured the Ukrainian President into the war: 

 

USAID funded “sterilization projects” in Peru: 

 

And as LifeSiteNews reported in December 2024, USAID pressured African nations to change pro-life laws and promote mass abortions, but that did not stop Fr. James Martin from bewailing its demise. 

 

USAID also paid “race rioters” to engage in violent protests in Africa: 

 

At home, USAID sponsored the prosecution of U.S. citizens by “Soros-funded prosecutors”:

 

…and, as former Trump State Department staffer Mike Benz also asks, “Why did USAID pay $20 million to hit piece journalists to dig up dirt on Rudy Giuliani and use that dirt as the basis to impeach the sitting U.S. President in 2019?” 

 

USAID was also giving “millions of dollars to Bill Kristol,” arch-neocon and founder of the permanent war “Project for a New American Century.”

 

The populist leader of El Salvador Nayib Bukele summed up the happy ending for the world that is the end of USAID.  

“Most governments don’t want USAID funds flowing into their countries because they understand where much of that money actually ends up. While marketed as support for development, democracy, and human rights, the majority of these funds are funneled into opposition groups, NGOs with political agendas, and destabilizing movements.” 

He explained how only “maybe 10% of the money reaches real projects that help people in need,” adding that “there are such cases” – but the remaining ninety percent, he says, “It is used to fuel dissent, finance protests, and undermine administrations that refuse to align with the globalist agenda. Cutting this so-called aid isn’t just beneficial for the United States; it’s also a big win for the rest of the world.” 

Donald Trump’s war on the Deep State has just begun. It is not merely concerned with saving America, but his “common sense revolution” is a cure for a world made sick by a global network of death, deception and digital tyranny. He is uprooting the hidden international system which has promoted “LGBT, open borders and war” – as Hungary’s Viktor Orbán defined the values of the former regime. 

This has been described as a “counter-revolution” by Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, who says these are serious moves against the “Deep State… and its mirror image, the Deep Church.”

With a serious campaign underway to destroy the business model of the globalist system it is hard to see how the rainbow “church” of Fr. James Martin can survive its isolation in a world without the patronage, propaganda and power of a corrupt Deep State and its globalist networks. 

And the revolution does not stop with USAID. With moves to “purge” the FBI, audit the U.S. Treasury and all the agencies of the U.S. government, Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency is set to undertake a thorough cleanup of the White House and all it commands.  

You might say the swamp is being drained. 

However you frame it, what is happening here has never been seen in our lifetimes.  

The secret state which directed politics and policy in the West despite elections is being exposed, defunded and shut down. We may not only have meaningful elections in future, but a Western society free of the propaganda of social revolution whose toxic “new values” had one thing in mind: the replacement of Christian civilization with a global government no one could ever escape.  

Finally, after decades of destruction by design, things have really changed. For good. 

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