Author: Stephen Taylor

Yesterday in the House, Derek Lee, the Liberal MP for Scarborough-Rouge River had a few choice words for the 60 Canadian border guards that walked off the job in the face of an armed American that was on his way to the border.

Canada-U.S. Border

Mr. Joe Comartin (Windsor–Tecumseh, NDP): Mr. Speaker, yesterday 60 Canadian border guards were forced to walk off four Canadian border crossings because an armed and dangerous criminal was approaching the border.

Mr. Derek Lee: That’s because they are a bunch of wimps.

Later on, MPs from both the Conservatives and the NDP raised their objections to Lee’s comments:

Canada-U.S. Border

Hon. Stockwell Day (Minister of Public Safety, CPC): Mr. Speaker, today in question period, when I was responding to a reply about our border officers, the men and women who serve our country at the nation’s frontiers, a member of the Liberal Party, the member for Scarborough-Rouge River, was shouting out and referring to our brave men and women as wimps.

We tried to ask him informally to cease doing that.

An hon. member: Fifteen times.

Hon. Stockwell Day: It was recorded at least another 10 to 15 times. He continued to refer to our border officers as wimps.

Yesterday on Parliament Hill we attended a service of commemoration for peace officers who have died in the line of duty. The men and women who serve us on our borders do so without side arms. In any given year many times they must apprehend suspects, seize drugs and there are times when they must attempt to seize illegal weapons. They have been asking for side arms and to be trained for such for 10 years but the Liberals refused to do that. We are moving ahead on that.

Regardless of that debate, it is unacceptable that courageous men and women who serve us every day and night in this country are referred to as wimps. We would like a full and complete apology for that.

Our border officers are not wimps. Every day and every night they are on the line for us unarmed because they never received support from the Liberals. I want to hear an apology to our border officers. They are not wimps. They are brave and courageous men and women.

Mr. Derek Lee (Scarborough-Rouge River, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, I would be delighted to recognize the strength, fortitude and courage of all of the people who man our borders. I am not referring to our police or to our military. I am talking of the people who man our borders. I commend the courage of all the people who man our borders if they stay on the job.

I was referring to those who walked off the job merely because apparently there was an American who had a firearm. There are over 200 million firearms south of the border. I admire our border service professionals who stay on the job, not those who walk off. We have never had armed border service professionals, not in the entire 138 years of this country. I admire those who stay on the job, not those who walk off.

Mr. Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay, NDP): Mr. Speaker, when the member for Windsor-Tecumseh was trying to ask questions about the safety situation facing our border guards, he was shouted down by the member for Scarborough-Rouge River again and again, to the point where I could not hear the question properly even though I was sitting so close to him.

I feel this is an important issue. It is not just the disrespect to the House or the disrespect to the men and women who are out in the field. This sends the message that there are some people in Parliament who show an absolute contempt for people who put their lives on the line. For those members to stand in the House today and have the nerve to tell us that they respect people who work but call people who stand up for their legal right to refuse unsafe conditions wimps is a disgrace.

I am speaking on a question of privilege because as a member of Parliament I feel ashamed that people like that would even stand in the House and–

and… then the Speaker ruled the complaints out of order.

That said, the Liberals sure made Canadians scared of Americans and guns during the last election and now Derek Lee is calling border guards — whom the previous government, of which he was a member, dangerously neglected to arm — “wimps” for walking away from a potentially fatal situation in which they were woefully unequipped to handle? Lee should realize how insulting his words are and the context in which he has chosen to speak them.

Lee should also speak to his Liberal caucus colleague Mark Holland, who at the beginning of this month wrote the following (3rd person voice) in a press release:

Holland argues that the House Committee on Public Safety and National Security should examine how this is implemented and the extent to which the new policy is needed. He pointed out that studies done for the previous government found the arming of guards to be unnecessary and recommended that RCMP be used instead when weapons are required.

The Liberals didn’t arm our border guards. Mark Holland insists the guards don’t need sidearms and Derek Lee calls them wimps. What kind of bizarre macho nationalist anti-gun logic is this?

We interrupt news and views of the Liberal Party of Canada leadership campaign (and the trainwreck of a continuous news release that is Joe Volpe taking money from kids and membership applications from the dead) to inform you of the following news.

Alfonso Gagliano is not a member of the Liberal Party of Canada – LPC(Q)

September 23, 2006
MONTREAL – The Liberal Party of Canada (Quebec) reaffirms that Mr. Alfonso Gagliano is not registered on the list of members in good standing of the party.

Indeed, Mr. Gagliano has tried to register online on the national Website of the party and may have received an automated message acknowledging the receipt of his request. The latter, however, still had to be approved by the provincial wing of the party.

As such, the Liberal Party of Canada (Quebec) confirms that Mr. Gagliano’s request has been refused.

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[Link]

What a bizarre thing for the Liberal Party to publicize on their website.

In 1937, Tommy Douglas said the following before Parliament:

“Against whom are we arming? What potential aggressor is more aggressive today? Oh, I know that bogeymen have been trotted out in
this chamber. It has been suggested that it might be Italy, it might
be Germany, it might be Japan.”

Today, Afghan President Hamid Karzai will address the members of the 39th session of our Canadian Parliament as the world faces a new brand of fascism entrenched in the mountains, caves and fanatical minds of his country. Afghanistan seeks its freedom from those that would forbid girls from attending schools, women from holding public office and all citizens from enjoying liberty. As Prime Minister Harper outlined to the UN General Assembly yesterday in New York, the world must stand together in common purpose against terror and fascism for it is the mutual need for security of member states which saw the formation of the international body.

Some say that those that are ignorant of history are condemned to repeat it. Canada welcomes President Karzai and his request to rout out tyranny in his country. Thankfully, the Canadian government will continue to answer the call wherever it beckons. Some, however, seemed committed to repeat the mistakes of their predecessors.

Additional context (an update): I presented a quote from Douglas from 1937 (two years before the outbreak of war). Like everyone else in Canada at the time, Douglas eventually did come around by the beginning of the WWII (good for him). Not only that, he helped MacKenzie King pass the draft helping the allies defeat the axis powers. While Tommy Douglas was originally mistaken about the fascist threat, he certainly came on-side when it counted. Jack, however, seems committed to repeat Tommy Douglas’ original mistake and ignore the lesson learned by the CCF parliamentarian.