From an outsiders perspective, the Bill C-38 vote-a-thon currently taking place in the House of Commons probably looks extremely asinine.

There you have 300 plus members of Parliament reading books, playing on their iPads, tweeting on their blackberrys and even messing around with Play-Dough while their colleagues vote on hundreds of opposition amendments to the controversial omnibus budget bill.

Moreover, MPs are allocated scheduled pee breaks.

[Related: MPs prepare for marathon Bill C-38 session]

And here's the kicker: all the opposition parties can do is delay the bill's passage, not prevent it.

It's  a foregone conclusion that all the opposition amendments will fail to pass because Stephen Harper leads a majority government.  With a majority, a Canadian prime minister can essentially do anything he or she wants to do.

In fact, Ralph Heintzman, a professor at the University of Ottawa says that a Canadian prime minister is probably the most powerful executive in the world.

"There is

Read More »from Bill C-38 vote-a-thon: Canadian democracy at work

Bob Rae shocked the nation on Wednesday by announcing that he wouldn't seek the permanent leadership of the Liberal Party. He told reporters in Ottawa he would continue as interim leader until next spring, when the party chooses a new permanent leader.

"I think it's the best for the party and it's a decision I feel very comfortable with," Rae said, adding that his health and personal life are in good shape and didn't factor into his decision.

So why did Rae make this decision and was it the right one for the much-maligned third party? Moreover, how does his decision affect the prospects of other potential candidates?

Here's what our panel of political experts thinks of it.

Tim Harper, Toronto Star political columnist:

"I think Rae was getting push back from

Read More »from Bob Rae’s reasons for not running for Liberal leadership: analysts weigh-in

Our Members of Parliament will be burning the midnight oil Wednesday night, as they stay up late to vote on some 159 opposition amendments to the budget implementation bill, C-38.

According to Kady O'Malley of CBC News, the 'festivities' are likely to get underway by 6pm (EST) tonight carry on through the night and wrap up approximately 24 hours later, likely early Thursday evening.

A test of stamina for MPs:

All parties will expect that their MPs be present for the full marathon session.

The Conservatives, with a 21-member majority, have a bit more leeway than the opposition parties who will have to have all their members around in a continued show of force if they want to have any hope of passing an amendment.

According to the Huffington Post, MPs will be allowed to leave their chair between votes to use the washrooms.

Food

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Bob Rae has officially announced that he will not seek the permanent leadership of the Liberal party but will continue his role, in an interim capacity, until a new leader is chosen.

"The way in which I can serve my party best is by not running for the leadership," Rae told reporters Wednesday.

"It hasn't been an easy decision, but I think it's best for the party and it's a decision that I feel comfortable with."

The news is shocking, especially considering it came hours before the party executive was poised to formally release Rae from his pledge, as interim leader, not to seek the permanent helm.

According to CBC's Hannah Thibedeau, Rae had intended to run, up to as late as last week, but was "shocked at the push back" he was getting from people who felt he should honour his original commitment not to run.

"He was setting up a campaign team, getting ready for the leadership," she said.

Rae's decision opens the field considerably for other leadership contenders.

Liberal MP Justin

Read More »from Bob Rae will not seek permanent Liberal leadership

Premier Kathy Dunderdale shakes Prime Minister Stephen Harper's hand after a campaign rally on March 31, 2011. There's widespread anger in Newfoundland and Labrador this week over a new bill which, critics argue, allows the government to rule in secrecy.

The Kathy Dunderdale Conservatives have introduced new legislation that would broadly reduce the public's access to information and expand the number documents that are off-limits to public disclosure.

Specifically, according to CBC News, cabinet ministers can now deny information requests that they judge to be "frivolous."  Moreover,  they can actually bar the auditor general from viewing certain documents.

According to the Canadian Press, the Tories claim they're simply providing clarity on the right to information and the use and disclosure of personal information.

But NDP leader Lorraine Michael called the legislation regressive while Liberal leader Dwight Ball dubbed it the "secrecy act."

"Former premier [Danny] Williams stated an effective freedom of information act is the best safeguard against the tendency of governments to descend into

Read More »from Newfoundland and Labrador government introduces a “secrecy act”

Canada's Minister of State Maxime Bernier speaks during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa June 7, 2012. REUTERS/Blair Gable (CANADA - Tags: POLITICS)It seems the NDP has now replaced the Bloc Quebecois as the party to most often play the 'French' card.

Earlier this month, her majesty's loyal opposition introduced a private member's bill called the Language Skills Act which would essentially require all Parliamentary officers and watchdogs, such as the auditor general, to speak both of Canada's official languages.

While the Conservatives - in theory - could undermine the Act by introducing their own version of the legislation, New Democrats have already succeeded in putting the Conservatives in a very uncomfortable position.

Last fall, to the dismay of many in French-speaking Canada, the Harper government appointed uni-lingual Michael Ferguson to the post of Canada's auditor general.  The argument, at the time, was that appointments were based on merit not language skills.

The Conservatives are now being forced to state their position again, and this time it's created some divisions within the Tory caucus.

According Michael Den

Read More »from NDP bilingualism bill creates divisions within the Tory caucus

Canada's 'peeler bars' might just get a little less 'exotic' with the passing of Bill C-38.

The Ottawa Sun is reporting that provisions included in the Conservatives' massive omnibus budget bill will mean the end of work visas for foreign strippers once and for all.

The controversial "stripper visa," which dates back to 1998, allowes hundreds of foreign-born exotic dancers into the country each year. In 2001 for example, 660 foreign dancers -- mostly from Eastern Europe -- were admitted to Canada.

All they had to do was provide a Canadian job offer and prove they were qualified to 'dance.'

While the Tories' essentially axed that program soon after taking office, roughly 100 of those visas have been renewed each year since 2006.

[ Related: Bill C-38: is it time for critics of the Bill to move on? ]

"The problem is, under the current Immigration Act we don't have the legal authority to deny people visas based on the industry they're working in," Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

Read More »from Bill C-38 to 'strip' foreign strippers of work visas

The Conservative government's controversial Internet surveillance legislation, Bill C-30, is back in the news.

Public safety minister Vic Toews says the online video of the gruesome killing of Lin Jun -- allegedly at the hands of Luka Rocco Magnotta -- shows the need for the modernizing of Canadian criminal code in order to make obscenity charges stick.

Specifically, Toews says C-30  would make prosecuting purveyors, of such content, easier.

"It's a difficult prosecution given the state of the law today. Of course, the police have been talking to me over the last six years about modernizing the law with respect to access," he told CTV News' Question Period on Sunday.

[Related: Best Gore owner defends hosting Magnotta video]

"We put forward legislation that attempted to balance the public interest with privacy interests and that bill is in fact going to the committee prior to second reading."

Bill C-30, introduced by the Harper government in February, would create additional

Read More »from Alleged killing video of Magnotta shows need for new Internet surveillance laws: Vic Toews