Laliberte Criticized for Not Releasing Specifics
Wednesday, December 10, 2003 at 13:43
There’s a wide range of opinion about what was accomplished in Rick Laliberte’s nationally televised press conference in Ottawa yesterday.
The Churchill River MP held the news conference to try to clear the air about his travel spending, but also used the time to talk about his proposal for a Mid-Canada Policy.
Laliberte says he has received 40 e-mails in support of what he was saying yesterday about regions like Northern Saskatchewan — and only one e-mail that wasn’t supportive.
He says the 25 minutes of live TV coverage of his press conference supplied by CBC Newsworld has greatly increased the profile of northern issues.
But Canadian Alliance nominee Jeremy Harrison points out that Laliberte, again, chose not to release specific details about his travel spending.
Reporters at yesterday’s news conference asked Laliberte for a detailed list of expenditures, but Laliberte declined to give it to them.
On Monday, when asked by MBC if he would release specific details of his spending during his press conference, Laliberte replied “yes” and promised to “disclose all my activities” and answer “all” the questions of his critics.
However, Laliberte now says he’s not about to satisfy the agenda of a political opponent that’s responsible for his “public hanging”.
He also says the kind of ammunition the Opposition is looking to use against him is not what wins elections.