Calls for Poilievre to apologize over RCMP comments

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OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons Monday afternoon to a chorus of calls from across the aisle asking him to apologize for comments he made last week about the RCMP.

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Government House Leader Stephen MacKinnon asked him twice during questioning to apologize “to the people of this House and this House” for accusing the RCMP of covering up for former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

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“Last week the Leader of the Opposition questioned the independence of our judiciary, the independence of our prosecutors, the police – in fact, the very police who risked their lives to protect him,” MacKinnon said.

Poilievre responded by saying that the Liberals are “trying to distract from inflation and the rising cost of living by talking about their corruption.” He didn't apologize.

In a YouTube interview published last week, Poilievre said Trudeau “probably” violated the Criminal Code during the SNC-Lavalin affair.

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“Normally this would have resulted in criminal charges, but of course the RCMP covered it all up,” he told Northern Perspectives.

Poilievre also said Trudeau broke the law when he took “a free vacation from a man with whom he had government affairs,” a reference to the Aga Khan scandal in 2016.

In an interview, Poilievre said the Trudeau-era scandals “would normally have resulted in criminal charges, but of course the RCMP covered it all up and the RCMP leadership, frankly, is just disgusting when it comes to enforcing laws against the Liberal government.”

He provided no evidence of a cover-up.

A spokesman for Poilevre sent a written statement on his behalf Monday afternoon, saying he stands “shoulder to shoulder with the brave men and women in uniform who put their lives on the line every day to protect and serve.”

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“My comments were directed at former RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki, who has a long history of publicly documented scandals, deceit and political interference on behalf of the Liberal government,” the statement said.

Green Party leader Elizabeth May held a press conference on Monday afternoon to call on Poilievre to retract his comments and apologize.

“You should know something about the law before you say a former prime minister should go to jail,” she said.

May noted that a former ethics commissioner found that Trudeau violated the ethics code when he vacationed on the Aga Khan's private island and said it was not a Criminal Code offense.

“So where is Pierre Poilevre's idea that the former prime minister should be jailed? It's deeply troubling because these are the kinds of things that are happening right now in (US President Donald) Trump's United States,” she said.

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Interim NDP Leader Don Davis said he believed the comments were “Trumpian” and had no place in Canada.

“Questioning the integrity of the RCMP is also reminiscent of Donald Trump, who is politicizing the justice system, politicizing the police. Not only are these irresponsible comments, but frankly, they undermine our democratic traditions and institutions, and they are wrong,” he said.

Reporters asked a number of Conservative MPs about Poilievre's comments when they arrived for question period on Monday. They all avoided questions, either by remaining silent or simply stating that they supported their leader.

Both Davis and May declined to say whether they think Poilievre should remain Conservative leader.

Conservative Party members will make the decision during a leadership review at the party's convention in Calgary in late January.

— With files from Emily Bergeron.

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