This Shouldn't Take Long

When I first heard that Prime Minister Brian Mulrooney would be called before a parliamentary ethics committee for allegations from Karlheinz Schreiber, I thought this would lead to a chain of events that would stretch on for months or years. It's already been a controversy for long enough, but given Mulrooney's testimony today, I just can't see it lasting.

Mulrooney submitted two contradictary affadavits from Mr. Schreiber to the Commons Committee:

"You don't have this one. Take a look at it, it's interesting," Mulroney said, holding up the two affidavits. "Which one is perjury? … They can't both be true."

Mulroney quoted from Schreiber's past court filings and media interviews throughout his testimony, using them to support his allegations that Schreiber had lied and to support his own statements.

MPs asked Mulroney how they were supposed to know which ones to believe.

"If you can figure that out, you're going to heaven," said Mulroney, drawing laughs from the packed room.

Mulrooney summed up Schreiber's claims against him simply:

"All of the allegations in the affidavit are completely false. He will say anything, sign anything and do anything to avoid extradition."

That's about it. Mr. Scrhreiber is a liar and a wanted criminal in Germany. He has zero credibility. It won't take long for the committee to conclude that there's better ways to spend their time.