Committee News
Senate committees play a vital role in improving law and policy on behalf of Canadians. They work to scrutinize bills, study issues and examine government spending proposals. They also hold public hearings that help to inform the debate and build support for measures before they are considered by the full Senate. Each committee publishes its schedule and makes public any hearing it conducts. A complete transcript of a hearing is published in the Daily Digest portion of the Congressional Record. Once a bill has been considered by a committee, a report is written. The Committee Report describes the purpose and scope of a measure and provides reasons why it is recommended for approval. For more information, see Consideration by Committee in How Our Laws Are Made.
As the panel wraps up its investigation, several members are at a political crossroads. Two are leaving Congress after this year, and others face tough reelections. Some are eyeing leadership posts and one is even weighing a 2024 presidential run. But, for the most part, they remain committed to the work of their committee, which has uncovered extensive evidence that laid out former President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign to overturn his election defeat. The summary released on December 22, 2021, highlights that Trump’s top aides, including his own personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, knew he had no proof to back up his claims of widespread vote fraud. It details how Trump’s team tried to overpower and pressure anyone who questioned his claim of electoral victory, including state election administrators, the Justice Department and state lawmakers. It also reveals that some of those targeted by the Trump administration received death and rape threats, or were subjected to an avalanche of calls and emails from supporters. Finally, the report points to efforts by Trump appointees such as former acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Jill Clark to weaponize the Justice Department to overturn his election loss, with schemes ranging from seizing assets of voting machine companies to using presidential emergency powers to deploy the National Guard or invoke the Insurrection Act.