Maxime Bernier has more harsh words for his former colleagues.
The Quebec MP, who Thursday announced he was quitting the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) to form a new political party, tells Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Evan Solomon Show that the party brass is to blame for his belief that the CPC has become “morally and intellectually corrupt,” as he said Thursday.
“The establishment of the party is corrupt,” he said. “They don’t want to do the real fight. They don’t want to have policies that will be better for this country: more freedom, less government.”
Bernier did not hold back when asked to respond to criticism from members of his old party.
Speaking at the Conservative Party convention in Halifax, Ontario MP Tony Clement told reporters Bernier’s departure was “liberating.” He called Bernier a “giant distraction” who said things that were “not mainstream.”
BC MP Todd Doherty took a bolder approach, calling Bernier a coward with some creative emoji use.
Hey Maxime ..remember how I challenged you in an email? Remember how you blamed it all on people around you and how you apologized profusely? How you said you were committed to our team? Wow. You are such a .
— Todd Doherty (@ToddDohertyMP) August 23, 2018
Bernier said that just shows they have no real arguments.
“It’s typical of a loser,” he said. “The losers are doing that. They don’t want to have a real debate. I like it because it’s a personal attack. I like it because they know that I’m right. They know that most conservatives agree with me. They cannot fight me on real issues. Now, they’re doing personal attacks.”
Speaking on Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Beyond the News with Brian Lilley, Bernier pivoted back to Conservative policies, when challenged about his use of the term “losers” to describe his former party.
“They didn’t argue on that because it’s true,” Bernier said. “Do they want to open the file about equalization? Do they want to abolish corporate welfare? They’re saying yes, but at the end they don’t believe in that because they don’t have the courage to speak the truth and tell to Canadians what is good for this country.”
Bernier said, following his speech in Ottawa Thursday announcing his departure from the CPC, that he would start a new party. Bernier told The Evan Solomon Show he’s already taking steps to get it up and running.
“What we did this morning, we called Elections Canada to look at the rules and be able to have the new party up and running as soon as possible,” he said.
As for money?
“People, they will give. I’m pretty sure about that because I’m the same guy; I’m pushing the same ideas. People are giving money for the ideas; they don’t give money because they like my face.”
Bernier says his biggest priority is to get a name and get the party up and running as soon as possible.
Bernier did not say whether anyone has offered to join his new party. Clement has said no one from the CPC caucus has offered to follow Bernier.
“I’m not surprised about that," Bernier said. "They didn’t support me during the leadership. They just want to look at the polls and if people are saying they want to hear something, they’re going to say the same thing. So, you know, there’s no core conviction. They’re afraid to do the debate. I’m not afraid to have any debate.”
However, Bernier told Beyond the News with Brian Lilley he believes he has grassroots support.
“I have a lot of support from the members and I’m asking them to come with me with this new party,” he said.