Ontario Liberal candidates face scrutiny over insensitive comments

Article content

To vet, or not to vet? That’s the question Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie and her advisers didn’t ask themselves enough before the provincial election started — or at all.

This Shakespearean-inspired quote first came to mind when the Progressive Conservatives unearthed some controversial social media posts made by several Liberal candidates. Some contained bad jokes and were in poor taste. Others were either disgusting or bigoted. All of them should have raised — ahem — red flags.

Article content

First up was Morris Beckford, the Liberal candidate for Scarborough—Rouge River. Four years ago, Beckford, who works as an associate dean at the School of Social and Community Services and the School of Deaf and Deafblind Studies, tweeted, “Question: was Hitler a leader? (It’s a Burns question).” This wasn’t a wise thing for him to post, and he should explain why he wrote it.

Next was Viresh Bansal, the Liberal candidate for Oshawa. In 2023, the IT specialist tweeted: “@theJagmeetSingh you can thank India for cleaning trash people. Ask your gay friend @JustinTrudeau to do the same.” This tweet contained racist and homophobic statements, and insulted a prime minister who has largely defined the Liberal brand for nearly a decade. (Bansal apologized on Tuesday.)

Then came Rick Ellsmere, the Liberal candidate for Timiskaming—Cochrane. On Tuesday, the PCs revealed not one, but two offensive remarks made he made in the past. In 2015, he posted “10 Things Men Know About Women,” with only No. 10 filled in: “Women have Breasts.” (There’s also an image of Homer Simpson saying one of his popular catchphrases, “Woohoo.”)

Article content

Article content

Ellsmere also responded to a 2019 tweet of a woman in a dress that was captioned, “Something Dong with this dress.” His response, “The new Reebox Pump strap on,” has been criticized for being “transphobic.”

We can sum up these two social media posts in one simple word: “stupid.” (Ellsmere apologized in a recent interview with Timmins Today.)

Finally, there was Jason Cherniak, the Liberal candidate for Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill. He wrote this on his old blog, Cherniak on Politics, in 2006: “The people from Bureaucrash attended and I got a shirt for the ‘Ted Kennedy School of Driving.’ ” In 2010, he foolishly tweeted, “Omg! Got pulled over for tweeting while driving!” and “Late night public transit is an incentive for people to drive drunk (I write this sitting on an imobile #VIVA).”

Although we’re not in the U.S., I wonder if he’ll “plead the fifth” until election day.

It’s no secret that Ontario’s opposition parties, including Crombie’s Liberals, had to scramble to get a full slate of candidates for this snap election. It’s especially difficult to achieve this in ridings where they haven’t been particularly strong or popular for some time. This usually leads to a speedy nomination process of “sacrificial lambs,” or placeholder candidates, in weaker ridings.

Article content

That’s why parties need to vet all of their candidates, from high-profile celebrities to last-minute entries, with a fine-tooth comb. Written and verbal statements, previous political ties and memberships, criminal record checks, financial status, work, education, relationships and social media footprints must all go under the microscope.

If a prospective candidate refuses to be vetted, or hesitates to undergo the vetting process, the party shouldn’t nominate him or her. And if it’s discovered that the candidate lied or didn’t reveal a skeleton in the closet or a social media post shrouded in darkness, the best option is to dump that person right away.

Crombie has strangely refused to remove any of the candidates for their controversial remarks. She’s accepted the apologies of those who have already issued them, and is turning a blind eye to any possible repercussions.

That’s fascinating, considering that the World Sikh Organization has called on the Ontario Liberals to withdraw Bansal’s candidacy — not only due to his insensitive tweet to Trudeau and federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, but because he also apparently went after Conservative Deputy Leader Tim Uppal for expressing genuine concern about India’s crackdown on Sikh activists. “It’s Indian internal matter. You better take care of your own,” Bansal tweeted at Uppal in 2023, adding in Punjabi, “Watch out or you might get hurt as well.”

Article content

Most party leaders would have tossed Bansal after these remarks became public. Crombie wouldn’t have been giving up a potential seat, either. The Liberal have never held Oshawa since the riding was established in 1955, and have finished third in every provincial election since 1999. Nevertheless, she won’t budge on his candidacy for reasons that aren’t entirely clear.

“If Doug Ford has something to say to me,” Crombie recently told the media, “he should have the balls to say it to my face.” When she has the balls to create a proper vetting process and remove controversial candidates quickly and effectively, maybe he will.

National Post

Article content