OTTAWA | Pierre Poilievre and Jean Charest dropped the gloves in the first debate of the Conservative leadership race on Thursday, setting the stage for a long and tough battle.
• Read also: quite a duel
The two men seen as the leaders of the Conservative Party’s race for the soul did not shake hands on the stage of the event organized Thursday evening in Ottawa by the conservative network Canada Strong and Free.
Throughout the evening, the member for Carleton showed his disdain for the former Liberal premier of Quebec by questioning his Conservative allegiance, but also his ethics.
“A trucker in the convoy has more integrity in a little finger than you and your entire government,” Mr. Poilievre slammed, bringing back to the table the long aborted corruption investigation once morest the Quebec Liberal Party and the lobby mandate by Jean Charest for Huawei.
“You talk regarding law and order, that’s a bit strong considering that your party, your Liberal Party, took half a million dollars in illegal donations when you were leading it. –Pierre Poilievre
Charest booed
Refusing to say how much the Chinese company had paid him, Mr. Charest pointed his opponent accusingly on several occasions, criticizing him in particular for his “American” approach to politics and his support for the “illegal blockade” of the capital. by the convoy of truckers.
But this instead earned him frank boos from a good part of the crowd, clearly opposed to health measures and the obligation to vaccinate.
Jean Charest nevertheless snatched applause by attacking the Quebec State Secularism Act.
“I fought once morest the separatists. It’s not that guy [Poilievre] on stage that will intimidate me. –Jean Charest
“Is there anything more important than religious freedom? I don’t think so, ”he said, accusing his rival in passing of not defending her.
Smiling and far from being destabilized by the repeated attacks of his opponent, Mr. Charest said he was rather flattered by the aggressiveness towards him.
” It means something. I would not be attacked if my candidacy in this race was not seen as a threat, ”he said following the debate.
Abortion under the rug
Candidate Leslyn Lewis tried to attract attention by asking other candidates to take a clear position on abortion, without success. She is the only one of the six aspiring chefs who promotes an anti-abortion agenda.
But it is rather the purchasing power, the energy and the unity of the party and the country that have dominated the discussions.
Neither Roman Baber nor Scott Aitchison, the two other candidates, have managed to stand out on this ground. As for Patrick Brown, sixth candidate, he refused to participate in the evening, preferring to devote himself to the recruitment of new members in the field.
