Police secure a crime scene where multiple people were killed in the 100 block of Langside Street in Winnipeg on Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023. A Metro Vancouver MP says he stands by his social media post that questioned if there was a connection between Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and a weekend shooting in Manitoba that killed four people.THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski
OTTAWA – Government House leader Karina Gould says it was inappropriate for one of her Liberal caucus colleagues to ask whether there is a link between Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and a fatal shooting in Manitoba.
But Metro Vancouver Liberal MP Ken Hardie told The Canadian Press that he stands by his social media post and is not sorry he made it.
Hardie posted Monday that the weekend shooting, which left four people dead in Winnipeg, was “beyond troubling” and asked if it was connected to a “burn everything down” attitude creeping in from the United States.
His post on X, formerly known as Twitter, then referred to “the ‘creep’ on the Canadian side” and mentioned the official Opposition leader by name.
Hardie also denies making a direct link to the shooting in Winnipeg, but notes he could have used a better example to make his point.
Hardie says he was planting a seed with a series of questions to confront the attitude of the Conservative party, which he believes is creating an environment where people feel hopeless.
Gould says she will be speaking to Hardie about his online post, but as of this morning Hardie says he hasn’t heard from any of his fellow MPs.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 28, 2023.