Conservative leadership hopeful Kellie Leitch has shot back at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, after he warned that 鈥渇ringe voices鈥� like Leitch could gain traction under a new voting system.
Leitch also added some confusion as to why her controversial former campaign manager Nick Kouvalis resigned, saying he quit over 鈥渉ealth reasons鈥� rather than Kouvalis鈥� explanation that he was attracting too much attention from her campaign.
Speaking to CTV鈥檚 Power Play on Friday, Leitch said she was 鈥渜uite surprised鈥� by the prime minister鈥檚 recent comments.
鈥淛ustin Trudeau and his elite friends, they are the fringe,鈥� Leitch said.
On Thursday, a live microphone caught a one-on-one conversation between Trudeau and a woman in Iqaluit as the pair discussed proportional representation, an electoral system that some advocates say would be a more accurate reflection of the wide range of Canadian voters.
鈥淒o you think that Kellie Leitch should have her own party?鈥� Trudeau asked.
When the woman insisted that Leitch鈥檚 policies -- which include the controversial proposal to screen immigrants for so-called 鈥淐anadian values鈥� -- are part of a different conversation, Trudeau argued they are not.
鈥淏ecause if you have a party that represents the fringe voices 鈥� or the periphery of our perspectives, and they hold 10, 15, 20 seats in the House, they end up holding the balance of power.鈥�
Leitch did not directly respond to a question asking whether she鈥檇 consider helming her own political party if she doesn鈥檛 become Conservative party leader and insisted her sole focus is winning the vote in May.
鈥淎nd I鈥檓 looking forward to having these discussions with Justin Trudeau, because I know the average Canadian out there is with me. They are not the fringe. And newsflash for Justin Trudeau: they aren鈥檛 the fringe. He is.鈥�
Leitch's take on Trump
Leitch wasn鈥檛 willing to weigh in on the prime minister鈥檚 reasoning that proportional representation could amplify some radical views, instead saying that she could not 鈥渟peculate鈥� on Trudeau鈥檚 plan.
鈥淗e obviously realized that average Canadians out there want something that鈥檚 common sense. I鈥檝e been talking about common-sense ideas, and I鈥檒l continue to do that,鈥� she said.
Leitch, an Ontario MP and former surgeon, has been a divisive figure in the Conservative leadership race for months. She鈥檚 drawn criticism from her fellow candidates, with Quebec MP Maxime Bernier calling her a 鈥渒araoke version of Donald Trump."
Regardless, recent financial reports released in late January suggest that Leitch鈥檚 message has struck a chord with some supporters. Leitch raked in $355,000 worth of donations in the final three months of 2016, second only to Bernier at $586,000
Leitch said she has no plans to back away from any of her policies, including her stance on immigration, reiterating that they are 鈥渃ommon sense鈥� policies that 鈥渢he majority of Canadians support,鈥� citing multiple public opinion polls on the issue.
Asked about her stance on U.S. President Donald Trump鈥檚 travel ban, which has been temporarily blocked by a U.S. court and withstood a legal challenge Thursday from the U.S. Justice Department, Leitch said the United States 鈥渨ill make choices about what鈥檚 best for their country.鈥�
鈥淭hey made a choice in that country of who would be president. They鈥檒l make choices for their country,鈥� she said.
Kouvalis confusion
The abrupt departure of Leitch鈥檚 campaign manager, Nick Kouvalis, made Canadian political headlines last week. Kouvalis had apologized for using a profane word on Twitter to describe a political science professor, and he was the subject of a recent Maclean鈥檚 Magazine article that addressed his brash political tactics, which included the spread of false information on social media that the Canadian government directly funded terrorist groups overseas.
Kouvalis explained his departure in a Facebook statement, saying that when 鈥渁 member of a campaign team becomes the focus of media coverage, the time comes to resign.鈥� He added that the pressures of the campaign 鈥渁re not conducive to my personal wellbeing.鈥�
Leitch said that Kouvalis has apologized for his Twitter comments and remains on her team on a volunteer basis. But the reason for his departure, she said, was 鈥渉ealth reasons.鈥�
鈥淚t was a decision that was taken by his family. And I was very clear with him from the beginning of the campaign, he and I had an agreement, which was if his health became an issue for him and his family, his family and his health came first. And so he stepped aside,鈥� she said.
It was the second time Kouvalis resigned from Leitch鈥檚 team. In April 2016, he quit after he was charged with impaired driving. At the time, he said he鈥檇 struggled with alcohol addiction for years.
