Angry in the Great White North

Was Chuck Cadman offered a bribe?

The widow of former B.C. MP Chuck Cadman says two Conservative Party officials offered her husband a million-dollar life insurance policy in exchange for his vote to bring down the Liberal government in May of 2005.

The offer, which was summarily rejected by the dying man, is outlined in a biography of Mr. Cadman by Vancouver journalist Tom Zytaruk that is due to be released on March 14. A copy of the manuscript, including an introduction by former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin, has been obtained by The Globe and Mail.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is quoted in the book, Like a Rock: The Chuck Cadman Story, as confirming that a visit took place, and that officials were "legitimately" representing the Conservative Party. But he says any offer to Mr. Cadman was only to defray losses he might incur in an election.

Dona Cadman, who is now running for the Conservatives in the Vancouver-area riding of Surrey North, was not in the office at the time. But she says her husband was furious when he returned to their apartment. "Chuck was really insulted," she said in a telephone interview with The Globe yesterday. "He was quite mad about it, thinking they could bribe him with that."

So what really happened?  Perhaps we should consider the film evidence collected by CTV News:

Counting down to the House of Commons vote that will put the Liberal minority to the test this week, Independent MP Chuck Cadman is still weighing his options.

The ailing Cadman, who is undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer, flew to Ottawa from Surrey, B.C. to vote in Thursday's crucial non-confidence vote in the House of Commons.

In order to keep tabs on how the Independent MP may be leaning, the newest addition to CTV Newsnet's prime-time lineup, COUNTDOWN: With Mike Duffy, has set up a special webcam in Cadman's Ottawa residence.

Speaking, via the Internet, on what has been playfully dubbed the "Cadman Cam," the British Columbia MP said he is carefully monitoring his health ahead of the big vote.

"I have to be conscious of my health and not push myself too hard," said Cadman.

Duffy will be catching up with Cadman on throughout the run of COUNTDOWN: With Mike Duffy, which made its 2005 debut Monday, May 16 at 8 p.m. ET. It is repeated nightly at 11 p.m. ET.

Did the Cadman Cam catch a moment of Chuck's fury?  Did a furious Chuck deliver a message to the Conservatives through the Cadman Cam?

The whole point of the Cadman Cam was to chronicle the evolution of Chuck Cadman's decision on how to vote.

You'd think the fury from a clumsy and insensitive bribe attempt would have figured prominently in the video record that Chuck Cadman was keeping.

Funny, I don't remember anything about this hitting the news in 2005.  In fact, Chuck Cadman told Mike Duffy that there was no offer from anyone when it came on how to vote.

On May 19, after the alleged bribe, Cadman mentioned nothing to Mike Duffy via the cam.  In fact, the cam records his denial of any offer from anyone, explicitly mentioning a meeting with Paul Martin, but no one else:

Independent MP Chuck Cadman says his support doesn't hinge on any demands. He admits having coffee with Martin on Monday, but they only discussed their positions, not deals.

"No offers made, nothing put on the table," he told CTV. "I didn't demand anything."

Instead, Cadman says the primary factor that will sway his vote is still the will of voters in his Surrey, B.C. riding. Based on his most recent poll of constituents, he says two-thirds have indicated they don't want to go the polls anytime soon.

"I have put a lot of stock in what my constituents say," he said in an interview via CTV's exclusive "Cadman Cam" Wednesday night.

Furious?  Hardly.  No shots of Cadman leaning into the camera and venting?  Didn't think so.