Rebel News Podcast - August 26, 2020


Erin O'Toole's first day as Conservative Party leader — and the Media Party's response

Topics
media reaction to Scheer praise True North documentaries
Mentioned
Erin O'Toole Peter McKay Andrew Scheer Justin Trudeau Andrew Lawton David Menzies Leslyn Lewis Jason Marcusoff Jay Ezra Candace Malcolm Jagmeet Singh Ken Paxton Nazanin Afshin Jam Wendy Mesley Steve Outhouse Stephen Harper Peter McCain Derek Sloan Aaron Atul David Akin and 21 more
Erin O’Toole beats Peter MacKay for the Tory leadership — and Leslyn Lewis has a strikingly strong finish Erin O'Toole won the leadership, but Dr. Leslyn Lewis emerges as rising star (GUEST： William MacBeath)

Episode Stats


Length

46 minutes

Words per minute

169.06

Word count

7,789

Sentence count

612

Harmful content

Misogyny

3

sentences flagged

Toxicity

3

sentences flagged

Hate speech

8

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

Aaron O'Toole's first day on the job, and the CBC goes in for the kill. Ezra goes over his press conference on Parliament Hill, and why he chose to focus on a great obsession. Plus, Ezra shows you the tapes.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
Toxicity classifications generated with s-nlp/roberta_toxicity_classifier .
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
Topics generated with Qwen2.5-3B-Instruct.
Hosts, guests, and mentioned names generated with spaCy (en_core_web_sm), reconciled against Wikidata.
00:00:00.000 Hello, my Rebels. Today, I go over Aaron O'Toole's first day on the job, in particular,
00:00:05.020 his first press conference, and more to the point, what the journalist chose to focus on
00:00:10.440 with a great obsession. I'll show you the tapes. Hey, before I do, let me invite you to become a
00:00:15.280 subscriber. And by that, I mean to our premium content behind our paywall. We call it Rebel
00:00:21.820 News Plus. It's these podcasts, but with the video part. It's just eight bucks a month,
00:00:27.020 which helps keep the lights on here and gives you, I think, the other side of the story. I promise
00:00:32.960 you that we have a different take than the media party did, and I'll prove it to you in today's
00:00:38.540 episode. So just go to rebelnews.com and subscribe and become a Rebel News Plus viewer. Okay, here's
00:00:45.120 today's show.
00:00:57.020 Tonight, Aaron O'Toole's first day on the job, and the CBC goes in for the kill. It's August 25th,
00:01:06.980 and this is the Ezra Levant Show.
00:01:10.760 Why should others go to jail when you're a biggest carbon consumer I know?
00:01:14.480 There's 8,500 customers here, and you won't give them an answer. The only thing I have to say to the
00:01:20.020 government of a wire publisher is because it's my bloody right to do so.
00:01:29.140 I'm not sure if you were one of the 100,000-plus people who watched our Sunday night special
00:01:34.740 live stream, co-hosted with Sheila Gunn-Reed, and we had guest appearances by Kian Bexte.
00:01:39.860 We were up all night and into the wee hours as the Conservative Party chose its new leader.
00:01:45.660 It went to three ballots, as you know. Aaron O'Toole won. Surprisingly strong showing by
00:01:51.640 Les than Lewis, or maybe not that surprising. Certainly, it was a surprise to the left and
00:01:56.540 the CBC. But of course, I repeat myself. Well, because it was such a late night, Aaron O'Toole
00:02:03.300 didn't have the same prime time moment to introduce himself to Canadians. So he tried again today
00:02:10.280 with a press conference on Parliament Hill, where he pretty much gave his speech again,
00:02:17.400 this time during daylight hours to the rather refreshed media, as opposed to those who were
00:02:24.280 yawning. I was yawning, I admit, on Sunday night. Here's a quick clip from his press conference today.
00:02:30.200 Here's all you need to know about me. I'm here to fight for you and your family. And Canada needs a
00:02:37.820 fighter because everything is not okay. From coast to coast to coast, Canadians are losing their jobs,
00:03:03.580 their homes, and their hope. Even before the pandemic, half of Canadian families were just
00:03:10.300 one surprise $200 expense away from not being able to pay their rent or their bills. Now millions of
00:03:17.580 Canadians are barely getting by. I know how many of you are more concerned about the future than ever
00:03:24.340 before. My family and I feel the same way. Parents are up late at night worrying about what might happen
00:03:31.220 during a second wave of COVID-19 or when emergency programs end. My wife, Rebecca, and I understand
00:03:38.640 the challenges, fears, and hopes of the middle class because we live them and we have our whole lives.
00:03:46.680 We know what it is like to save for your first home, what it is like to save for things like
00:03:52.260 childcare, tuition, and family vacations. It was a fair enough introduction. He gave it partly in English,
00:03:59.240 partly in French, and that's fine. But then he opened it up to questions. And it was the same old,
00:04:06.740 same old media party. First of all, the overwhelming number of questions were en français, in French,
00:04:13.340 by the Quebec-centric Ottawa Media Party. Now I've got nothing against answering questions from Quebec or
00:04:20.020 in French. Quebec is a quarter of our population and there are some Quebec-centric issues. But the majority
00:04:27.620 of questions, the dominant majority of questions, were from Quebec journalists and they were particular
00:04:33.620 obsessions. Right away you saw some of the problem with the media party and Conservatives participating
00:04:40.880 in it. Just take a quick look. Question. This morning, once again, you said that you are a pro-choice MP,
00:04:47.340 but in 2016 you voted for Bill C-225 that wanted to give legal rights to the fetus. How can you reconcile
00:04:56.340 that vote with the fact that you say that you are pro-choice? Answer. That is incorrect. It was a bill on
00:05:05.340 public safety, in fact. And I voted in favour to have debate in committee on that bill, because it was
00:05:14.340 on public safety for women. And that is my approach. It's possible to listen to people and to be a pro-choice MP.
00:05:28.340 That is going to be my approach. Dominated not just by Quebec journalists, but by Quebec journalists
00:05:35.340 from the political activists at the French wing of the CBC called Radio Canada. And let me bring
00:05:42.340 your attention to this series of questions, again in French by a Quebec activist, asking Aaron O'Toole
00:05:49.340 about his views on social issues. Now I should tell you that Aaron O'Toole is as left-wing as Jagmeet Singh
00:05:56.340 when it comes to social issues. That's not my opinion, that's just who he is. He's all the way out there
00:06:03.340 on gay rights, gay marriage, gay pride, and further than most conservatives on LGBTQ. He's got no problem
00:06:12.340 with the bills that criminalize misgendering people, the kind of things that Jordan Peterson all warned us
00:06:19.340 about. In fact, he is rather proud of how pro-LGBTQ he is. Now, you know, take it or leave it, that's
00:06:27.340 who he is. But my point is, even that wouldn't save Aaron O'Toole from the media party. He is as pro-LGBTQ2 0.79
00:06:38.340 as Jagmeet Singh. But take a look at this.
00:06:45.340 Good morning, Mr. O'Toole. Your speech on the environment, pipelines, guns, and private members'
00:07:00.340 bills on abortion, that's the same thing as what Andrew Scheer says. Are you ready to change,
00:07:10.340 to sway the Quebec electorate? Answer. I received the support of thousands of Quebecers, and I am proud
00:07:19.340 of my team in Quebec. I won the leadership race as a pro-choice member, as someone who has a very clear
00:07:30.340 record on social issues. And that will be my approach as Leader of the Opposition and as Prime Minister.
00:07:36.340 I will be absolutely clear. I will defend people's rights, all Canadians' rights.
00:07:43.340 All right. Well, Aaron O'Toole answered, as he always has, that he ran as a fully pro-choice,
00:07:48.340 fully pro-trans candidate, and he won. All right. Well, the CBC wasn't done with him yet.
00:07:54.340 They came back a second time asking him about a particular vote he made four years ago. Here, take a listen to that.
00:08:01.340 Question. But women's rights advocates will tell you that that's the kind of bill that tries to open up cracks to reopen the debate on abortion. 1.00
00:08:14.340 How can you reassure people who may think that? Answer. That was a bill on criminal sentencing, actually.
00:08:21.340 And I have a completely clear track record on social issues as an MP. That's not the case for Justin Trudeau, because in 2013, I was the first of only 18 Conservatives who voted for a bill for the LGBT community.
00:08:43.340 Mr. Trudeau missed the vote for a fundraising activity for the Ontario Liberal Party.
00:08:55.340 But I have a clear record that Mr. Trudeau does not.
00:09:00.340 OK, so two questions in his debut press conference about his support for a particular law four years ago.
00:09:09.340 The bill failed, by the way. It was an opposition bill. It did not pass.
00:09:13.340 But take a look at how the Parliament of Canada itself, this is from Parliament's website, describes the law that Erin O'Toole voted for.
00:09:22.340 The law that French CBC is so obsessed with that they asked not one, but two questions about him on Erin O'Toole's first day on the job.
00:09:31.340 I quote,
00:09:40.340 That's what this law is.
00:09:50.340 It's not an anti-abortion law. It's not a pro-life law in terms of in any way inhibiting the mum's power to abort the child.
00:10:02.340 You heard from Erin O'Toole. He's 100% pro-choice, pro-abortion, with or without any reason.
00:10:09.340 Like he's just all, he's Jagmeet Singh on that stuff and he's proud of it and that's who the Conservatives voted for.
00:10:15.340 But even that isn't enough because he dared to vote for a bill that said if some robber or mugger on the street, God forbid,
00:10:25.340 punches a pregnant woman and injures the child or even kills it, that that is an offence.
00:10:31.340 And that goes to sentencing. Believe it or not, Justin Trudeau and the Jagmeet Singhs of the world voted against that bill.
00:10:38.340 Because Erin O'Toole voted to protect the baby in an assault, that's called by the CBC being too pro-life and disqualifying.
00:10:50.340 And the CBC is already campaigning against him.
00:10:54.340 Do you see my point? The CBC, they have the most pro-left-wing social policy guy they could ever find in Erin O'Toole.
00:11:05.340 He boasts about how he was the first Conservative to go all the way down the road.
00:11:09.340 Alright, that's who he is, but that's not enough for the CBC.
00:11:13.340 They won't let it go because he's a Conservative.
00:11:17.340 He pointed out in his answer that Justin Trudeau himself didn't vote for that bill.
00:11:21.340 He just found himself at a party fundraiser that day.
00:11:24.340 I want to show you one more thing, and I got this directly from the O'Toole campaign.
00:11:28.340 Here, take a look at this tweet.
00:11:30.340 Erin O'Toole did an interview with CBC Radio.
00:11:34.340 And the CBC published their exchange.
00:11:38.340 But according to the Erin O'Toole campaign, the CBC deleted this exchange from the interview.
00:11:45.340 So this was part of the interview.
00:11:47.340 It was a question asked by the CBC to Erin O'Toole about the CBC.
00:11:52.340 And it was deleted, edited out of the interview before it was broadcast.
00:11:57.340 Take a listen.
00:11:59.340 Mr. O'Toole, I can't have you on the CBC without asking you about your policy for the CBC.
00:12:04.340 You have some policy plans that includes defunding English Television and News Network,
00:12:10.340 though you say you will not touch CBC Radio, which this show runs on.
00:12:13.340 Why would you seek to reduce the number of journalism outlets in the country when the industry is widely seen as being in a bit of a crisis?
00:12:22.340 And we do have the rise of very discredited news sources online.
00:12:27.340 So why get rid of ones that Canadians have grown up knowing they can trust? 0.93
00:12:30.340 Well, I won't get rid of, as you said, radio.
00:12:33.340 And what we want to do with English television is privatize, David.
00:12:37.340 So I think what we don't need is Canadians spending millions of dollars to create the Family Feud Canada edition.
00:12:45.340 Is that where taxpayers' money really should be going?
00:12:48.340 That's not the total of the CBC television output, though.
00:12:52.340 I mean, that's a very selective example.
00:12:54.340 Well, the ratings show that very few Canadians watch CBC.
00:12:57.340 And so why should 100% of taxpayers subsidize it?
00:13:00.340 So it should be more of a public broadcaster model, David, with less commercials, less competition.
00:13:06.340 That's why I like CBC Radio.
00:13:08.340 As you know, I listen to this show regularly and have for years.
00:13:11.340 It doesn't compete with the Shaw and the choruses of the world.
00:13:14.340 So it's time for a modernization.
00:13:16.340 I also think CBC Digital has helped undermine private newspapers and other things.
00:13:23.340 And Trudeau's creating a $600 million media fund for that.
00:13:27.340 Why should government interference then lead to a private sector media bailout? 0.95
00:13:31.340 It's dumb policy again.
00:13:33.340 So I think it's time you will see a nimble and very effective CBC 0.95
00:13:38.340 because it will get to its public broadcaster roots.
00:13:41.340 And I think in an age of streaming where all of our kids are watching Netflix throughout this pandemic,
00:13:48.340 we don't need to be doing things the way they were done 50 years ago just for the sake of the status quo.
00:13:54.340 I think it's time for a shakeup, and that's what I'm offering.
00:13:57.340 Okay. Aaron O'Toole, good luck with the rest of the campaign.
00:14:00.340 Thank you so much for your time.
00:14:02.340 Thank you, David.
00:14:03.340 Why didn't they broadcast that?
00:14:05.340 It was a question asked by the CBC and answered by Aaron O'Toole.
00:14:09.340 Why would they censor that?
00:14:11.340 Why did they delete that from the record?
00:14:13.340 That's like what Stalin did. 0.72
00:14:15.340 He would edit out people from a historical photograph if they became inconvenient.
00:14:20.340 There's hubris, there's arrogance, there's a lack of self-awareness in the question,
00:14:26.340 oh, how can you allow online news sources that are untrustworthy?
00:14:31.340 We've got to stay with the trustworthy CBC.
00:14:34.340 There was a lot of condescending snobbery and self-unawareness there.
00:14:39.340 But the fact that Aaron O'Toole gave an answer they didn't like, they simply hit the delete button.
00:14:44.340 That's the CBC.
00:14:46.340 That's the media party.
00:14:47.340 Aaron O'Toole's first day on the job.
00:14:50.340 Most of the questions in French.
00:14:52.340 Most of the questions attack-oriented.
00:14:54.340 No questions about communist China.
00:14:57.340 No questions about getting the two Michaels back from China.
00:15:00.340 No questions about banning Huawei.
00:15:03.340 No questions about how to increase trade with the United States.
00:15:07.340 No questions about our civil liberties during the pandemic.
00:15:10.340 But lots of questions about LGBTQ2+.
00:15:15.340 Even though Aaron O'Toole's already all the way down there,
00:15:18.340 the CBC planned a total war against him.
00:15:23.340 Because he's a conservative.
00:15:25.340 I guess all that's left to be known is,
00:15:28.340 will Aaron O'Toole bend the knee to this pack of haters like Andrew Scheer did?
00:15:35.340 And if he does, does he think it's going to end any better than it did for Andrew Scheer?
00:15:41.340 Stay with us for more.
00:15:54.340 Welcome back.
00:15:55.340 Well, as you know, from our eight-hour marathon livestream coverage on Sunday night,
00:16:00.340 which bled into Monday morning, Aaron O'Toole won the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada.
00:16:07.340 Not on the first ballot, nor on the second, but on the third.
00:16:11.340 Where, overwhelmingly, Aaron O'Toole was the second or third choice of candidates
00:16:17.340 who had marked Leslyn Lewis as their first choice, or Derek Sloan.
00:16:22.340 It's obvious now, and I think it was even obvious back then,
00:16:26.340 that if Peter McKay didn't win or come very, very close to winning on the first ballot,
00:16:31.340 he would be in deep trouble.
00:16:33.340 And let me put a second theory, a hypothesis,
00:16:37.340 of why it was that McKay lost so badly.
00:16:41.340 The Toronto Star was startled by it.
00:16:43.340 I didn't know what to make of it, but here's my theory.
00:16:48.340 When Peter McKay refused to come to the independent press gallery debates
00:16:54.340 that were moderated by our friend Andrew Lawton of True North,
00:16:59.340 he sent a signal to the other candidates' supporters
00:17:06.340 that he did not think they were worth his time.
00:17:11.340 And so it is my hypothesis that actually the key strategic error for the McKay campaign
00:17:21.340 was to snub the independent press gallery's debates in a manner that was so high-handed
00:17:27.340 that every supporter for Derek Sloan or Leslyn Lewis said,
00:17:31.340 oh, he doesn't just disrespect Andrew Lawton and Candace Malcolm.
00:17:36.340 He disrespects all independent media, and through them, me.
00:17:42.340 Thousands of Canadian conservatives would have thought he disrespects me.
00:17:47.340 And joining us now via Skype to talk about my hypothesis
00:17:51.340 is our friend Candace Malcolm, the president of the independent press gallery.
00:17:55.340 You were on the line there while I laid out my hypothesis.
00:17:59.340 Maybe you're too modest to acknowledge it.
00:18:03.340 But I put it to you that your debate, which was so excellent,
00:18:07.340 and I've told you this before, Andrew Lawton did such a magnificent job.
00:18:11.340 It was truly a career highlight.
00:18:13.340 But the manner in which Peter McKay snubbed you, your event, Andrew Lawton,
00:18:18.340 and everyone who watched, I think people remembered that
00:18:22.340 when it came to marking their second and third choice.
00:18:24.340 What do you think of my hypothesis?
00:18:26.340 Well, it's certainly interesting. I hadn't heard it before just now.
00:18:29.340 And I think that the one thing that I will agree with you on
00:18:33.340 was that Peter McKay seemed uncomfortable.
00:18:36.340 He didn't seem interested in connecting with the base,
00:18:38.340 connecting with, you know, the sort of true blue conservative members,
00:18:43.340 people in Western Canada, people in Alberta.
00:18:46.340 He never really seemed comfortable.
00:18:48.340 He seems much more comfortable with the sort of Toronto liberal crowd,
00:18:52.340 the Toronto Star who endorsed him, the CBC.
00:18:55.340 Those are sort of more his people. 0.60
00:18:57.340 And, you know, the example of him not showing up at the very last minute to our debate
00:19:02.340 kind of exemplified who he is, which is that he doesn't really feel comfortable
00:19:07.340 and he isn't really amongst the conservative base.
00:19:10.340 He's not really one of us.
00:19:11.340 He's sort of not quite an outsider, but just someone who doesn't really feel comfortable,
00:19:15.340 doesn't really know how to communicate, doesn't know what to say.
00:19:17.340 And so we saw like a lot of missteps and a lot of sort of flip-flops
00:19:21.340 when it came to him trying to communicate that message.
00:19:24.340 And perhaps there is something to that idea
00:19:27.340 because the independent press gallery debate happened sort of right at the end.
00:19:31.340 It was right at the last moment where you had the opportunity to change your mind
00:19:34.340 right before mailing out your ballot.
00:19:36.340 So we did time it that way to make it an important event.
00:19:40.340 And, you know, credit and props to Aaron O'Toole for showing up,
00:19:45.340 even with the, you know, switched sort of new agenda that we had.
00:19:50.340 We didn't do it in a debate.
00:19:51.340 We did fireside chat.
00:19:52.340 So he was adaptable to that.
00:19:54.340 He sat down.
00:19:55.340 He had a long form interview and conversation with Andrew Lawton,
00:19:58.340 which I think people appreciated his willingness to engage with us,
00:20:01.340 to talk to the media.
00:20:02.340 And by virtue through talking to independent media,
00:20:05.340 talking to the conservative base,
00:20:07.340 who obviously they're the ones making the decision.
00:20:09.340 It's not the Toronto star.
00:20:11.340 It's not all the fancy people in Toronto
00:20:13.340 who determined who's going to be the leader of this party.
00:20:15.340 It was, it was the base.
00:20:17.340 It was the members.
00:20:18.340 And like you said,
00:20:19.340 they put Aaron O'Toole as their second or their third choice.
00:20:21.340 And that's why he won.
00:20:22.340 Yeah.
00:20:23.340 Well, I remember talking with you that day
00:20:25.340 when you were sandbagged by Peter McKay.
00:20:28.340 I mean, first Leslie Lewis said she had an earache
00:20:31.340 and her doctor advised her.
00:20:32.340 And I think a few eyebrows were raised.
00:20:34.340 But look, you got to take a woman at face value. 0.94
00:20:36.340 When she says, my doctor said I have an earache.
00:20:38.340 And the fact that her campaign manager,
00:20:40.340 Steve Atthouse showed up in person to basically say, look, we're sorry.
00:20:44.340 That made it credible.
00:20:45.340 And I want to take Leslie Lewis at face value.
00:20:48.340 That's a real excuse that apparently, you know, was backed up with proof.
00:20:53.340 And and I don't think anyone took it as a snub.
00:20:56.340 But when McKay opportunistically said, oh, well, she's not going.
00:21:01.340 I'm not going in solidarity with her earache.
00:21:03.340 At which point Steve Atthouse said, yeah,
00:21:06.340 we don't want that kind of solidarity from from you, bro.
00:21:09.340 It was it wasn't just that he canceled.
00:21:11.340 It said he said, yes, I'll be there at the last minute for a fake excuse delivered fakely.
00:21:17.340 And that said everything.
00:21:19.340 This guy.
00:21:21.340 So you use the phrase uncomfortable.
00:21:23.340 He's uncomfortable with grassroots populist nationalists.
00:21:26.340 I don't think discomfort is the word.
00:21:28.340 I think there was a condescension, a any excuse to bail.
00:21:36.340 He let me put it this way.
00:21:38.340 If it were the Globe and Mail that were sponsoring that fireside chat.
00:21:42.340 If it were the CBC, do you think he would bail so cavalierly?
00:21:45.340 No, he would not.
00:21:46.340 And people saw that and they saw.
00:21:49.340 I call that contempt.
00:21:52.340 And I remember talking with you, Candace, that day and you were, you know, perturbed by what had happened.
00:21:58.340 Rightfully so.
00:21:59.340 It was a last minute sandbagging.
00:22:01.340 But in my view, with the passage of a few weeks time, I think that crystallized in the minds of thousands of people the true nature of McKay.
00:22:11.340 I don't know what the total viewership of your debate was between our live stream and your live stream.
00:22:17.340 And I think true north had it and like there was a lot of eyeballs on that.
00:22:21.340 It wouldn't surprise me if a hundred thousand party members watched it or the clips from it.
00:22:26.340 A hundred thousand people saw the true nature of McKay.
00:22:30.340 That's my hypothesis.
00:22:32.340 Well, and it went even further than that as we're just on Twitter alone, which in Twitter, isn't a very good representation of the Canadian general public at large.
00:22:40.340 But a lot of political activists on there are a lot of people who are members of the party.
00:22:44.340 You know, the independent press gallery hashtag was trending.
00:22:47.340 It had over five million impressions that night.
00:22:50.340 So even if you weren't watching the actual footage, you know, people were talking about it.
00:22:55.340 People knew about it.
00:22:56.340 People saw it.
00:22:57.340 So I think that everyone was aware.
00:22:59.340 I would say it was a major strategic error on behalf of Peter McKay.
00:23:03.340 I mean, obviously, his strategy was, hey, look, I'm a conservative who would appeal to liberals.
00:23:08.340 So that's that's my brand.
00:23:10.340 And if I'm running, I'm kind of like Justin Trudeau, but without the scandals and without the baggage just yet.
00:23:15.340 Right.
00:23:16.340 I haven't even gotten into office yet.
00:23:17.340 And that was sort of his appeal.
00:23:19.340 I know the CTV show The Social, which everyone was making fun of them after the Don Cherry thing, because a woman went on a rant about how white boys are very nice or whatever.
00:23:30.340 So anyways, a bunch of liberal ladies that are kind of like the Canadian knockoff of The View. 1.00
00:23:35.340 And they were all talking today about how disappointed they were that Peter McKay lost, because even though they're lifelong liberal voters, they might have voted conservative if Peter McKay had won.
00:23:44.340 So that's kind of the audience that Peter McKay was going after.
00:23:47.340 And I think it was a major strategic error because that's not what conservatives want.
00:23:51.340 That's not what conservative members want.
00:23:53.340 Sure, there are a couple of people, a handful of the of the party that says, you know, anyone who can win, let's just put forward anyone who can win, regardless of what they stand for, what they believe in.
00:24:02.340 But I think there's a bigger population of conservatives out there who who really believe in conservative values.
00:24:08.340 They want Canada to be a strong, stable country.
00:24:11.340 They want balanced budgets.
00:24:12.340 They want all these things that conservatives believe in.
00:24:15.340 They truly want these things for our country.
00:24:17.340 And so it's not just about who can win an election.
00:24:19.340 It's really about who's the best torchbearer for these ideas and who can defend them against the many people that come after conservatives, be it liberals, partisans, the media, all these kind of things.
00:24:30.340 So I think that McKay made that strategic error.
00:24:33.340 And where he made that error, Aaron Atul did the opposite.
00:24:37.340 He engaged with us and he was much more open minded to real conservatives.
00:24:42.340 Yeah.
00:24:43.340 Well, you know, I watched, of course, the marathon on Sunday night.
00:24:46.340 You know, I told the missus, oh, I'll just be out for an hour and a half.
00:24:50.340 It's just going to be a quick announcement.
00:24:51.340 Yeah.
00:24:52.340 Eight hours later, I come home at 1 a.m.
00:24:54.340 She said, where were you?
00:24:56.340 She was watching, too, actually.
00:24:58.340 I watched and there was one moment there where they showed Peter McKay's lovely family.
00:25:03.340 And you may recall that he married a beautiful human rights advocate, a model.
00:25:08.340 Actually, her name is Nazanin Afshin Jam, an outstanding woman, human rights actor.
00:25:17.340 Like, I just very much admire her.
00:25:19.340 And they've got a young family.
00:25:21.340 And I watched that and I thought, you know, the big winner was Aaron Atul.
00:25:25.340 Well, Leslie Lewis had a heck of a show, but Nazanin Afshin Jam and her kids won because 1.00
00:25:34.340 now Peter McKay can go back to his happy life as a well-paid lawyer at a large law firm in
00:25:42.340 Toronto.
00:25:43.340 And he doesn't have to be on the road 200 days a year gritting his teeth when he meets
00:25:47.340 farmers from Alberta or gun owners from Northern Ontario.
00:25:51.340 He can hang out in the fancy parts of Toronto and live his fancy life and good for his wife
00:25:57.340 and kids.
00:25:58.340 I'm not saying any of this ironically.
00:26:01.340 I am really happy for them.
00:26:03.340 And I bet they're sort of happy, too.
00:26:05.340 Well, that's the thing, Ezra.
00:26:06.340 People think of politics as sort of this glamorous lifestyle.
00:26:09.340 You look at the Trudeaus and all their houses and all the money that they get to spend, all 1.00
00:26:13.340 their nannies and everything.
00:26:14.340 But the reality is that being a political leader takes a huge sacrifice.
00:26:18.340 And most of the time, it's not very glamorous.
00:26:21.340 It's giving speeches in church basements and, you know, talking to 10, 15 people at a time.
00:26:26.340 I think this was a bit of a different campaign just because we were all locked down.
00:26:30.340 So it's not like Peter McKay really had to make a big sacrifice to his family.
00:26:34.340 It's not like he had to travel all over the country.
00:26:36.340 He was probably sitting at home in Toronto for most of the time.
00:26:40.340 But I second the notion that I do admire Peter McKay's wife.
00:26:45.340 I think she's a lot more outspoken and principled than anything I've ever seen.
00:26:51.340 She should have run.
00:26:53.340 Yeah, that would have been interesting.
00:26:55.340 Now, I want to play a clip from the other night.
00:26:58.340 I'm not a big fan of Andrew Scheer because I don't think he was authentic.
00:27:02.340 I've told the story many times of when he was first elected.
00:27:06.340 He invited me to meet with him in his Parliament Hill office.
00:27:10.340 And I was happy to meet with him.
00:27:13.340 And his father was there and his whole family was there.
00:27:17.340 And they really had a clear message for me.
00:27:20.340 This was way back in the day when he was just elected.
00:27:23.340 And the message is, I'm the true conservative, social conservative, fiscal conservative all the way.
00:27:29.340 And having his dad there sitting next to him sort of was like a guarantor saying, I know my youngster, Andrew, is just in his 20s.
00:27:39.340 But I'm here to tell you I'm going to keep an eye.
00:27:42.340 I'm going to keep an eye.
00:27:43.340 It was sort of a strange thing to meet with an MP and his dad.
00:27:48.340 I thought it was nice.
00:27:50.340 It felt sort of family-ish.
00:27:51.340 And they were trying to telegraph to me, we really are the real deal conservatives.
00:27:57.340 And I left that thinking, oh, that's sort of cool.
00:27:59.340 And I remember one of the things that he told me about was that he was going to be a part of a secret, actually,
00:28:07.340 multi-partisan group of MPs, liberals and conservatives.
00:28:12.340 And maybe there'd be a bloc or New Democrat in there, too, who were pro-life.
00:28:16.340 So he was so hardcore conservative that he was going to set up this secret club.
00:28:22.340 I don't know why it would be secret if you're loud and proud about it.
00:28:25.340 So that's who he really wanted me to know he was.
00:28:29.340 But when he was the conservative leader in the debate, Candace, he didn't fight.
00:28:35.340 And I'm not even talking about pro-life or gay marriage.
00:28:37.340 Let's not even talk about that.
00:28:39.340 I mean, just can you fight for conservative ideas at all?
00:28:42.340 Can you show me some of that backbone and we're going to be true blue that you told me about in private with your dad?
00:28:51.340 I think Andrew Scheer's failure in the last election was largely because he didn't have the courage of his convictions.
00:28:58.340 He probably in his heart was conservative, but he lacked the courage to say so.
00:29:04.340 And I say all that, sorry for this super long preamble, but look at this quick clip from Andrew Scheer's never ending speech on Sunday night.
00:29:14.340 He makes specific reference to you, Candace, or at least to True North. Take a look at this.
00:29:19.340 In times like these, it is even more important for every single conservative to stay united and do everything you can to work together to spread our message of hope.
00:29:31.340 So it doesn't matter what kind of conservative you are.
00:29:34.340 Our party needs all of you.
00:29:36.340 And we need you to go out and find more people who share our beliefs.
00:29:41.340 Please stay involved.
00:29:42.340 Be bold.
00:29:43.340 Think.
00:29:44.340 Challenge the mainstream media.
00:29:45.340 Don't take their narrative as fact.
00:29:47.340 Check out smart, independent, objective organizations that are growing all the time, like the Post Millennial or True North.
00:29:55.340 There are other places to get information.
00:29:58.340 That's a nice shout out to you and to Post Millennial.
00:30:01.340 And I agree with that advice, by the way.
00:30:04.340 I very much enjoy your work and those of your colleagues.
00:30:07.340 I think Andrew Lawton is one of the finest journalists in Canada.
00:30:11.340 Certainly one of the smartest.
00:30:13.340 And I've praised him before.
00:30:15.340 I think the Post Millennial is interesting and they're building up a lot of traffic. 0.71
00:30:19.340 I support them.
00:30:20.340 I'm a paying member of theirs.
00:30:22.340 I just don't think Andrew Scheer lived that when he says, quote, challenge the mainstream media.
00:30:29.340 Did he actually do that?
00:30:31.340 Don't take their narrative.
00:30:33.340 I don't think what he just said there in his dying minutes as leader.
00:30:38.340 If he would have actually lived that in the campaign, he might be prime minister right now.
00:30:44.340 Yeah.
00:30:45.340 So I agree with a lot of the things that you just said.
00:30:47.340 I think that Andrew Scheer sort of struggled to come out of his shell.
00:30:50.340 He had never really before becoming leader.
00:30:53.340 He had never been in a position where he had to be combative.
00:30:56.340 You know, he was the Speaker of the House, which is a more neutral role during the Harper years.
00:31:00.340 You know, you have some ministers that really play the attack and they're good at sort of being partisan and doing the political stuff.
00:31:07.340 You know, think of Pierre Polyev or in the Harper government, it was John Baird and Jason Kenney.
00:31:12.340 And those are the kind of people who are just really naturally aggressive and they've had a lot of experience doing that.
00:31:17.340 Andrew Scheer didn't really have that experience during that time because he was put in this sort of neutral position.
00:31:22.340 It was actually really unprecedented that someone who had been a speaker would go on to become the leader.
00:31:27.340 So I'm a little bit more forgiving than you are, Ezra, about Andrew Scheer because I think that, you know, deep down he had the conviction.
00:31:35.340 He had the values and he really was a good person to lead the party, but he just didn't have the experience.
00:31:40.340 He kind of had his work cut out for him. And maybe, you know, if he was five, ten years older or if he was able to stay in the role in the position for longer, he would have come out of his shell.
00:31:50.340 We started seeing that more and more. There's been a couple of instances like five or six instances where I've seen his performance in the House or I've seen him come out and actually be combative against the media.
00:32:00.340 That's obviously very unfair and biased and trying to put words into his mouth and kind of punch back.
00:32:06.340 And, you know, every time it happens, it's like, where was this guy during the 2019 election?
00:32:10.340 That's what conservatives want to see. That's what Canadians want to see is someone who defends themselves and pushes back.
00:32:16.340 Whereas, you know, Andrew Scheer was a little bit more shy, more reluctant.
00:32:20.340 He would kind of, you know, try to change the channel by making a joke or be funny or be charming and smile and that kind of stuff.
00:32:27.340 And that didn't really cut it. And so you kind of did see him learning on the job as it's sort of unfortunate as he was going out.
00:32:33.340 You know, he put forward a pretty strong speech. He talked about how, you know, the ideology on the left is not actually compassionate.
00:32:40.340 How the conservative ideology is the one that we should be promoting and projecting and talk about all the success stories.
00:32:47.340 And you kind of just feel like it's a shame for him personally that he didn't really come to that place where he was really confident and doing the things that he needed to do until after it was too late.
00:32:58.340 Because I do agree that he didn't really do that in 2019.
00:33:02.340 And how he done it even just a little bit more. I mean, keep in mind, he won the popular vote.
00:33:07.340 He increased the number of MPs that conservatives had. He he knocked Justin Trudeau down to a minority government.
00:33:14.340 So in many ways, he was really successful. But at the end of the day, I think he just sort of locked that confidence needed to really push him over the edge.
00:33:22.340 And at this point, you know, just wish him well. And I thought it was really nice that he gave that little shout out to True North.
00:33:29.340 I mean, you know, you're in the same situation as someone who's built a business from scratch in an incredibly competitive and difficult industry.
00:33:36.340 The media is really hard. You see newspapers failing, media companies laying off journalists, all of them going hat in hand to the government.
00:33:44.340 You know, it feels kind of good to build a successful model that doesn't need the government to survive.
00:33:50.340 And then to get a shout out on the biggest sort of political stage of the country was definitely a proud moment.
00:33:56.340 Proud of what my team has been able to accomplish in short order.
00:34:00.340 Yeah, well, you were great. And the Independent Press Gallery is also an important project of yours.
00:34:05.340 It's, I guess, parallel to True North. I really do believe that your debate crystallized a lot of people's impressions about McKay.
00:34:13.340 I also saw, by the way, that clip of you're much more forgiving of Scheer than I am.
00:34:19.340 He lived cancel culture. He literally had our reporter, David Menzies, handcuffed by police for trying to attend a public event.
00:34:28.340 So I'm I'm less, you know, amiable towards Andrew Scheer.
00:34:35.340 And I'm delighted that he's finally gone.
00:34:37.340 But I saw in that in reaction to that video we just played of Andrew Scheer praising postmillennial True North.
00:34:45.340 We clipped that from your Twitter feed, as people can see.
00:34:49.340 I saw in reaction to that a lot of media party journalists huffing and puffing.
00:34:56.340 Oh, imagine being praised like Jason Marcusoff.
00:35:00.340 Here's David Akin, my former colleague, who says Andrew Scheer just told conservatives to ignore the MSM and get their info from the Postmillennial and True North Center.
00:35:10.340 He spells millennial wrong.
00:35:11.340 He's not really mad about it, but Jason Marcusoff was furious about it.
00:35:18.340 And he said that you should be embarrassed that he gave you a shout out, not proud of it.
00:35:27.340 It's a bit of chutzka because David Akin is a member of Unifor and Jason Marcusoff is a member of Unifor.
00:35:36.340 Those are journalist unions that donate their own money to a third party campaign against Andrew Scheer.
00:35:48.340 And of course, all newspapers and most other media take bailouts from Trudeau.
00:35:53.340 I've never seen Akin or Marcusoff show any reluctance to take actual cash from Trudeau or give their own cash as a kickback to Trudeau through that third party campaign.
00:36:08.340 But boy, were they mad that you got some praise in the dying moments of a conservative leader.
00:36:13.340 What do you make of that?
00:36:14.340 Well, that was just the sort of tip of the iceberg as well.
00:36:17.340 There were dozens of the sort of blue check liberal journos that were sort of losing their mind over it.
00:36:24.340 You know, the typical kind of whiny liberal brigade people like Justin Ling, Dale Smith, people like that.
00:36:31.340 There were reporters from CBC, Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, all posting about it, sort of, you know, their shock or just trying to put out their, you know, kind of trying to smear Andrew Scheer and by association, Trudeau.
00:36:45.340 I take that as a compliment, the fact that there were so many journalists tweeting about it, talking about it, outraged about it.
00:36:51.340 I think that probably means that we're doing something right.
00:36:54.340 They don't like the competition.
00:36:55.340 They don't like the fact that we try to tell the other side of the story, the fact that we legitimize conservative views and opinions and we tell the other side of the news.
00:37:04.340 It's sort of natural that they're going to be, you know, envious or wary of the kind of online competition that we're providing and the fact that we're on a national stage.
00:37:14.340 Look, I have no qualms about being proud of it.
00:37:17.340 I'm proud of the fact that I built an organization from nothing.
00:37:20.340 You know, I was doing it on my own for a long time and finally was able to bring on new reporters, hire people, pay people salaries.
00:37:27.340 It's an incredible feeling to build a business and all those snarky journalists sitting on their phone on Twitter.
00:37:33.340 Look, I'd like to see them build a business from scratch and employ people and get a national national recognition on the main stage.
00:37:41.340 I don't think I should be embarrassed about it at all.
00:37:43.340 It doesn't matter which politician it was, even if it was a politician that I hated.
00:37:47.340 I would still say, hey, look, at least they're acknowledging us and paying attention to us.
00:37:51.340 That's a good thing. So I don't really take too much weight to all those snarky comments other than just to sort of take it as a compliment.
00:37:57.340 Yeah. Well, listen, we're super fans of yours and your team.
00:38:03.340 I've kept you a fair bit of time right now.
00:38:06.340 Let me close by asking you, are there any new projects you're doing?
00:38:09.340 Is there anything you'd like our viewers to check out?
00:38:12.340 We know that Andrew Lawton has a show.
00:38:15.340 Is there something you'd like to direct our viewers to?
00:38:18.340 Because I've said this half a dozen times before.
00:38:22.340 I believe it's incumbent upon Rebel News viewers to also support other independent voices, yours.
00:38:29.340 Spencer Fernando is one of my favorite guys.
00:38:32.340 He's out there in Winnipeg.
00:38:33.340 I support almost any independent media because I know the story you just said of building from scratch.
00:38:41.340 And if it's ten bucks a month, I can afford ten bucks a month here or there.
00:38:44.340 Give me some news from True North.
00:38:46.340 Is there something you're doing that you'd like our viewers to take a look at?
00:38:51.340 Well, we always invite people who aren't as familiar with True North to check out our platform, check out what we do.
00:38:57.340 It's tnc.news. That's our website.
00:38:59.340 You can also find us on YouTube and Facebook.
00:39:02.340 We just have a lot of interesting programming, a lot of exciting programming.
00:39:05.340 We have investigative journalists across the country who are always digging up stories and putting out exclusives and news.
00:39:11.340 I host a long form interview show called the True North Speaker Series.
00:39:15.340 And Jay Ezra, you're a guest this season and we recorded that interview already.
00:39:19.340 So that's going to be released later this fall.
00:39:21.340 I also just recently sat down with Rex Murphy and we did a long in-depth interview.
00:39:26.340 Yeah, it was great.
00:39:27.340 We got to talk all about the little post media kerfuffle that he went through.
00:39:31.340 Oh my God, I'm going to tune in. I'm going to hang on every word.
00:39:34.340 I'm so interested in that.
00:39:36.340 I'm so interested to hear Rex's point of view.
00:39:39.340 Do you know when you're going to make that public yet or is that not yet scheduled?
00:39:43.340 Well, we've already recorded it.
00:39:44.340 So we're just in production now and I think we're going to start the next season in September.
00:39:49.340 So give us a week or two and that's going to be released.
00:39:52.340 I can hardly.
00:39:53.340 And is that going to be behind a paywall or is that going to be on YouTube?
00:39:56.340 How are you going to do that?
00:39:57.340 Yeah, we just put it right out there.
00:39:59.340 We don't have a paywall at all.
00:40:00.340 So it'll be available on Facebook and YouTube when we release it and it'll be part of a series.
00:40:04.340 So every week we'll release a new episode.
00:40:07.340 We'll probably do 10 interviews in total.
00:40:09.340 We did 10 in the spring as well.
00:40:12.340 We had a lot of interesting guests as well.
00:40:14.340 We had Maxime Bernier.
00:40:15.340 We had Douglas Murray, Barbara Kaye, a bunch of people like that.
00:40:19.340 So you can go back and look at those interviews and then we have a new season coming up.
00:40:23.340 So we're always busy over at Turner Earth.
00:40:25.340 We keep busy.
00:40:26.340 We also do documentaries.
00:40:28.340 We filmed and produced a documentary called Calgary in Crisis that was released in April.
00:40:33.340 And we have another series that we're working on right now that's going to be released later in the fall,
00:40:37.340 looking at hypocrisy and the environmental movement and green projects and stuff like that.
00:40:43.340 So we try to put out a lot of content.
00:40:45.340 We're busy.
00:40:46.340 We do a lot and we're continuing to grow.
00:40:48.340 So if you haven't checked out True North, definitely I encourage you to go over and do that now.
00:40:53.340 TNC.news.
00:40:56.340 Candice, I can hardly, you just said about five things there that you've got going on that I've got to put in my calendar.
00:41:03.340 Those are, that's a must-see TV.
00:41:05.340 The Rex thing, of course, it's just absolutely tantalizing.
00:41:10.340 Congratulations on everything you've done.
00:41:13.340 I'll say goodbye now, although we could talk all day.
00:41:15.340 Every single thing you mentioned I know will be of interest to our viewers.
00:41:19.340 And so let me say one more time to my friends who support Rebel News.
00:41:22.340 I know there's only so many dollars in your wallet, but you're forcibly extracted from your wallet to pay for the CBC.
00:41:31.340 So please consider voluntarily supporting one of your greatest allies in Canada, our friend Candice Malcolm.
00:41:39.340 And I know some of her team, they really are outstanding people.
00:41:43.340 Candice, I'm gushing again.
00:41:44.340 Let me say goodbye to you and thank you so much for your time.
00:41:47.340 Well, thank you for having me and thank you for all the kind words, Ezra.
00:41:50.340 There you have it.
00:41:51.340 Candice Malcolm, the boss of True North.
00:41:54.340 Just, I believe what I said earlier, that her debate that she organized through the Independent Press Gallery,
00:42:00.340 and that was done so effectively by Andrew Law.
00:42:02.340 And I believe that was a crystallizing moment in the minds of thousands of party members.
00:42:07.340 And I think that's one of the reasons why Peter McCain is not the party leader.
00:42:12.340 Stay with us. More ahead.
00:42:13.340 Stay with us. More ahead.
00:42:26.340 Hey, welcome back to my monologue last night.
00:42:27.340 Wendy writes,
00:42:28.340 It was weird. I mean, I've met Kian a dozen times.
00:42:43.340 I don't find him physically terrifying.
00:42:48.340 He's not mean.
00:42:49.340 His questions can be prickly.
00:42:51.340 Well, yeah, welcome to journalism.
00:42:53.340 He's by himself with his cell phone.
00:42:55.340 It's not like a pack of hounds.
00:42:57.340 So when Kian Bexty follows a politician around and asks him some prickly questions,
00:43:02.340 I'll admit he can be prickly.
00:43:04.340 Let's go all the way and say, oh, he was annoying.
00:43:07.340 Yeah, okay, welcome to journalists holding politicians to account.
00:43:11.340 You want them to be like a waiter at a restaurant.
00:43:14.340 Excuse me, sir.
00:43:15.340 May I interrupt?
00:43:16.340 No, we were trying to get questions answered from McKay.
00:43:20.340 And he so flustered him, it made him panic.
00:43:23.340 It made him run away.
00:43:24.340 It made him duck into the bathroom.
00:43:25.340 It made him just freak out in general.
00:43:28.340 If that's how you react to Kian,
00:43:32.340 how are you going to react when it's Justin Trudeau and his killers coming for you?
00:43:36.340 And if you actually become prime minister,
00:43:38.340 how are you going to react when it's Vladimir Putin or Donald Trump?
00:43:42.340 If you panic because Kian Bexty asks you a prickly question,
00:43:46.340 you are not quite yet ready to be the leader of a country.
00:43:49.340 Bruce writes, I'm so glad Peter McKay's arrogance put so many conservatives off,
00:43:54.340 though I don't have much hope for Aaron O'Toole's future performance.
00:43:57.340 He's better than McKay.
00:43:59.340 Yeah, well, we'll see.
00:44:01.340 I mean, Stephen Harper was the winner.
00:44:04.340 He was reelected many times and he lost in 2015.
00:44:09.340 Then the second choice was Andrew Scheer.
00:44:12.340 The third choice was Peter McKay.
00:44:14.340 The fourth choice was Aaron O'Toole.
00:44:18.340 I don't know if he's got the horsepower to win.
00:44:21.340 I mean, Justin Trudeau is damaged,
00:44:23.340 but the media party is as desperate as ever to keep him in there.
00:44:27.340 I'm more hopeful than if it was McKay,
00:44:30.340 but I'm still sort of leery of the whole thing.
00:44:33.340 Paul writes, I do not trust nor will I vote for any conservative candidate
00:44:37.340 that's afraid to talk to independent media.
00:44:39.340 I call it the backstabber Ford rule.
00:44:41.340 Well, that's the thing. 0.98
00:44:43.340 I mean, the CBC is full of corrupt hacks.
00:44:46.340 It's a revolving door between the CBC and the Liberal Party.
00:44:50.340 You've had outrageous scandals at the CBC.
00:44:53.340 Wendy Nward-Mesley, Rosemary Barton suing the conservatives,
00:44:57.340 Gian Gomeschi physically assaulting women both at the CBC that he met and elsewhere.
00:45:04.340 And yet the idea of boycotting all of CBC,
00:45:08.340 that just would be a weird thing to do, I think.
00:45:11.340 Yet these conservative politicians boycott independent conservative media.
00:45:15.340 Just because you answer someone's question
00:45:17.340 doesn't mean you endorse every single thing the reporter has ever said or done.
00:45:21.340 I think it's a test of authenticity and a test of courage.
00:45:25.340 If you will not answer a question put to you by True North, the Post Millennial, Rebel News,
00:45:32.340 then you're a bit of a frady pants.
00:45:35.340 I mean, even Justin Trudeau, he tries to ban us,
00:45:38.340 but even when Kian Bexte and David Menzies made their way into the debate
00:45:42.340 with a court order last October, Justin Trudeau answered their questions.
00:45:48.340 He didn't answer them well, but he answered them.
00:45:50.340 Imagine being someone like Peter McCain running away.
00:45:52.340 We'll see how Aaron O'Toole does.
00:45:54.340 We'll see how he does.
00:45:55.340 All right, that's the show for today.
00:45:57.340 Until tomorrow, on behalf of all of us here at Rebel World Headquarters,
00:45:59.340 to you at home, good night.
00:46:01.340 And keep fighting for freedom.
00:46:03.340 We'll see you next time.