Dr. Leslyn Lewis, the CPC’s third authorized leadership candidate, defies expectations with her immigrant roots and 20-year legal career, including a PhD in international law from Osgoode. She opposes UN-defined irregular migrants, carbon taxes, and prioritizes pipelines over global aid, contrasting with Trudeau’s policies. Praising Harper’s unity and Mulroney’s anti-apartheid stance, Lewis pushes for prosperity-focused governance, framing her campaign as a working-class alternative to elite conservatives. [Automatically generated summary]
Tonight, we interview the first candidate for the Conservative Party leadership.
I sit down with Dr. Leslie Lewis.
It's February 17th, and this is the Ezra Levant Show.
Why should others go to jail when you're the biggest carbon consumer I know?
There's 8,500 customers here, and you won't give them an answer.
The only thing I have to say to the government about why I publish it is because it's my bloody right to do so.
Well, the Conservative Party of Canada leadership race is underway, and it's quite strange already.
Andrew Scheer, the leader who resigned, actually has remained on as leader, and as a result, I think the party's fundraising and polls have slumped.
The A-list candidates that people had thought might run never materialized.
John Baird is the latest to dip his toe in the water and then say, nope, not me.
Same with John Williamson and, of course, my favorite, Pierre Polyev.
So it feels like we've got the B-list trying out.
And even that, well, they've tried to make it as hard as possible for people to throw their hat in the ring.
A $300,000 entry fee, rigorous requirements for signatures in hundreds of writings, or at least 100 writings, and a pretty quick election.
The final results will be released in June.
I don't know.
I got to say, I hope things perk up.
But we here at Rebel News will cover it fairly and objectively, as we always do.
We have extended an invitation to all the leadership candidates to come by.
The first interview, in my style, is to be sort of friendly and biographical and who are you, because they may not all be known to our viewers.
And then after that, as the issues perk up, we might get a little bit more prickly and focused.
But we want to be part of this because our Rebel viewers want us to be part of this.
I'm pleased to say that the first leadership candidate popped by our studio today.
Her name is Dr. Leslie Lewis.
And here's how that went.
And joining us now in our studio, Dr. Leslyn Lewis.
What a pleasure to meet you.
Thanks very much for stopping by.
Likewise.
Dr. Leslie Lewis Joins00:07:51
I have to tell you, I'm unfamiliar with you from my conservative travels, but I'm very excited by your candidacy.
Can you tell our viewers a little bit about yourself biographically?
Who are you and why did you decide to run?
Well, I'm a lawyer.
I've been practicing law for the last 20 years in the city of Toronto.
I started on Bay Street and then I started my own firm thereafter.
And I practice areas general litigation and I have a full-size practice with a number of lawyers and law clerks that practice with me.
I attended school in Toronto.
I attended the University of Toronto, Trinity College, and earned a bachelor's degree.
And then I went on to earn a Master's of Environmental Studies at York University and an MBA concentration in business in the environment at the Schulich School.
And then I went also on to do a law degree, which enabled me to practice law.
And so that's a Juris Doctorate at Osgoodhall Law School.
And recently, I finished my PhD in international law at also at Osgood Law School.
That's the doctor part.
That's the doctor part, yes.
Well, that's an incredible resume.
Tell me about your politics, because I think the media party, as I call it, would look at you and say you don't fit their stereotype of a conservative voter, let alone a potential conservative leader.
What is it that makes you a conservative?
I think that's a misnomer that there's a certain stereotype for being a conservative.
My parents were immigrants and they came here and they worked really hard.
I never knew my parents working less than two jobs simultaneously, each of them.
And so they came here to make a better life for themselves and for their children.
And they had conservative values.
They had strong worth ethics.
I don't remember them ever calling in sick and being at home unless they had to go to the hospital or to a doctor's office.
And they just continued to build Canada and work hard and go after that Canadian dream.
And so I think that many immigrants have conservative values.
Some of the candidates who are running, I mean, there's only a couple others who have registered officially, longtime conservatives.
I mean, Peter McKay, second generation conservative, you could say.
Aaron O'Toole was an MP under Stephen Harper.
How are you going to spread the word about yourself and about your candidacy, given that the race is pretty quick?
I mean, the final vote is in June, and the cutoff for people to join is in April.
How are you going to do it?
What's your strategy or what's your message?
How are you going to get the attention away from people who know the name McKay, who might know the name O'Toole, but don't know the name Leslie Lewis?
Well, Peter McKay and Aaron O'Toole, they do have a different history than I do.
They had parents that were involved in politics, and my parents were just working-class immigrants.
So I kind of had to find my own way.
And my parents were actually liberals.
So I had to discover who I was on my own.
And when I looked at my values, and I looked at what I believed in, and I even looked at what my parents believed in, I realized that they weren't really liberals.
And that's how I identify myself as a conservative.
And I believe that I will resonate with the conservative base because of those values.
And so the conservative base will look at each of the contestants and say, what do they stand for?
Are they true blue conservative values?
And I think that I'm the closest to those true values.
And so the base will be attracted to me.
I first heard of your candidacy from Dr. Charles McVitie, who's a Christian conservative.
He was very excited about you running.
Can you describe where you stand on some of those issues?
I know that for the media party, that's sort of a trap or a trick question.
They're trying to do a gotcha.
I hate that about how the CBC or other media party journalists do it.
But there are real questions about where you and anyone else would stand on them.
How would you describe yourself on issues that, say, Dr. McVitie would care about?
Well, I can't really speak for Dr. McVitie, but I could tell you that on my beliefs is that in a free and democratic society, whatever my beliefs are, I'm entitled to them.
And I do not feel any shame about who I am and what my beliefs are.
And I think that everybody's entitled to their own beliefs and that we could respectfully disagree on many issues.
And that's what makes us such a great democracy.
So what are your core beliefs?
Well, I believe in things like strong family values.
I believe in fiscal conservatism.
I believe that we could develop our natural resources while protecting the environment.
I believe in a free economy.
I believe that we should have strong gun laws that don't target law-abiding gun owners but go after criminals.
I believe in protecting our borders.
I believe that we should have sustainable immigration and not immigration levels that burden our nation.
How have you been received so far by what I've been calling the media party?
You're the third official authorized candidate, if I'm using the terms right.
So you've already met a high standard.
It's very difficult to be a candidate in this race, isn't it?
You need to raise $300,000 and get thousands of signatures.
I take it you've been interviewed by other media.
Is that right?
How have other journalists treated you?
Well, actually, you're my first real- Are you serious?
Well, I've had one other interview, but that is not a mainstream media.
Well, now I'm grateful, and it's nice to have you here, and I think a lot of our rebel viewers will be conservative voters.
And I'm getting to know you.
This is the first time we've ever met, and I think it's probably the first time a lot of our viewers have ever met you.
But I've seen your name on social media, and it's correct that you're the third authorized candidate, right?
Absolutely, that is correct.
And you have not yet been interviewed by the CBC or CTV or global news.
Is that what you're saying?
No, that's absolutely correct.
That's absolutely correct.
I don't think I fit their narrative of what a conservative is supposed to be.
But surely they ought to just out of good form, okay, everyone who's an unauthorized candidate, we will at least say hello to them.
Have they reached out to you yet?
I would have to talk to my campaign manager about that, but I do know that he's had to correct a number of media outlets who still won't even list my name.
Well, I'm not surprised, let me put it that way.
Let me ask you, when I asked you what you stood for, you said some statements of principle, but they were things that I think a whole spectrum of politicians could say, balancing the environment and the economy, things like that.
I heard you loud and clear on manageable immigration levels that are not a burden, so that has meaning.
But let me ask you, how would you distinguish yourselves?
And I'm not going to ask you to distinguish yourself from Justin Trudeau or Jack Meet Singh, because the test on June 27th is to distinguish yourself from the other conservatives.
So I'm not asking for you to disparage them or to talk them down in any ways.
But if I were to say, Dr. Lewis, can you tell me the difference between what you stand for and Peter McKay, what you stand for in Aaron O'Toole in terms of policy?
Carbon Tax Controversy00:07:42
Because I think that's what our viewers who are largely conservative voters would want.
Why are you different other than your biographical story on issues like, well, you tell me what issues should be different than them?
Well, I think why I'm doing this is because I see a fundamental erosion of the Canadian dream.
And so I want to see the Canada that I grew up in be there for my children.
And so I will take courageous steps.
I will have a campaign that's based on courage, compassion, and common sense.
And that means that I will not be afraid to take on tough issues such as immigration and such as developing our natural resources and creating jobs in Alberta and dealing with economic regional disparities.
So those are issues that I'm prepared to take on because I see that the Canadian dream is being eroded.
You mentioned that you have a degree in environmental, or maybe two degrees in environmental studies, but you certainly studied it.
Yes.
Does that inform your views on things like the carbon tax, the theory of man-made global warming, or limiting pipelines or oil sands?
Tell me what your views are on, for example, the oil sands and pipelines and carbon taxes.
Okay, well, let's start with carbon tax.
There are different ways to deal with the environment.
You can do it from a punitive perspective, which is a tax or a fine, or you can do it through behavioral modification.
I believe that if you're going to try and change behavior, it has to come through education.
And so many people don't understand how intricately related to the economy the environment is.
And so a knee-jerk reaction, like a carbon tax, could be imposed, but you have to look about whether or not that is efficient, because in order for you to actually change behavior through the carbon tax, the tax would have to be about 40 times higher.
So then it's clear that we're not trying to change behavior.
We're trying to punish.
And so I would eliminate the carbon tax because I believe that it's an unnecessary burden on the economy, on small and medium-sized businesses, which generate 80% of the jobs for all Canadians.
And it is also a major burden on the average individual who's just struggling to make ends meet.
Are you in favor of the pipelines that are currently in controversy, the Trans Mountain Expansion Pipeline and the Coastal Gas Link Pipeline?
Do you support the construction of those?
I do because I believe that that will embolden the economy.
And I believe that if the pipelines are developed across the country, you will see a splinter of manufacturing jobs emanating from that development.
And so we will deal with a lot of the issues, the social issues that surround joblessness and unemployment.
One of the issues we care about here at Rebel News is freedom of speech.
Even freedom for speech that's sometimes uncomfortable or offensive.
We believe that there's too much censorship.
Cancel culture, even, people being deplatformed.
Do you think that's an important issue?
And if so, how would you address this cultural move towards silencing people versus how I think it used to be done, which is debating people?
Well, I think in a free and democratic society, it's very important for us to maintain healthy levels of dissent.
And I think that's what democracy is about.
So when we attempt to control people's thoughts, control people's speech, then you have people feeling unsafe and people feeling that their way of living is going to be undermined in some way.
And so I think it's very important that, especially the government, facilitate an environment where people are free to disagree even if they're wrong.
Foreign affairs seems to have taken on a large, probably a larger proportion of Justin Trudeau's work than I think a lot of people would have imagined a few years ago.
The ongoing battle with China over the CFO of Huawei, who was arrested here, the two Canadian hostages over there, Iran, even renegotiating the NAFTA.
Are there any principles or policies on foreign affairs that are important to you?
Is there something that you think Canada is doing particularly wrong or particularly right?
Do you have strong views on any foreign affairs subject?
I think in general, when you look at foreign affairs, you have to look at what is our interest in the global scheme of things.
And so even something as giving aid, we have to look at what are we doing in Canada?
Are we giving aid abroad to have clean water and clean air?
And can we say that we have those same amenities on every aspect, every outlet in Canada?
Can we say that the First Nations people also enjoy clean water?
And if we can't, then I don't believe that we should be going around the globe trying to save the world when we haven't looked inside our country to see how we could best be our best.
Do you think that the United Nations and other global governments like that are too powerful and too invasive in Canada?
Or do you think that we have the balance right?
Well, I think that Canadian sovereignty is being eroded.
When I look at something like the Immigration Compact and I see that the United Nations has told us how to define people who are coming into our country through a method that is not a traditional border passing, and the United Nations has stated that those individuals are to be deemed irregular rather than illegal.
To me, that undermines our national sovereignty.
As a nation, we should be able to dictate who comes through our borders.
We should be able to dictate the type of immigrants that we want and that we need in order to sustain and to build our country.
And when the United Nations imposes those standards on a nation, it means that our sovereignty is being eroded.
If you were to be successful and become the Conservative leader, what do you think would be the most rewarding line of attack against Justin Trudeau?
What do you think the emphasis of the next, I don't know, let's say it's two years until the next election, we don't know in this minority parliament.
Is he vulnerable?
Is it on ethics?
Is it on spending?
Is it on culture?
Is it on immigration?
What do you think his weak spot is?
All of the above.
All of the above, I would say.
But it's just, is it resonating with people?
And I think that right now when we're seeing the level of homelessness, we're seeing the level of unaffordable homes.
All Of The Above00:07:23
We see young people, millennials, graduating from school and not having jobs.
And even if they are employed, they are underemployed in lower income wages jobs.
And they are the Canadian dream is slipping away for them.
They're living in their parents' basements.
And so when we see this in society, and we look at even our seniors who at the last stage of their life, they should be taken care of.
And yet we are having long wait lists for palliative care.
And we look at our veterans who are not being dealt with properly.
And so we see that the social safety nets that we've had are falling apart.
And so I think it's resonating with people now that the fluff and the beautiful language that Trudeau uses is not transferring into prosperity for the average Canadian.
In my view, and I've used the phrase media party several times in our conversation, the way the media handles conservatives is as powerful as how the Liberals handle conservatives.
I think that the media, I call it a media party because I think it's just as dominant and it has a coherent ideology.
If you were to become the conservative leader, how would you deal with the liberal bias?
in the media, the fact that in addition to the CBC, you now have newspapers taking a government bailout.
How would you get your message out when most journalists seem to be left of center?
Well, I think that there has to be a balance in how we fund the media.
And during the last election, we saw one media outlet actually launch a lawsuit during the election, and that sends a very strong message to the public.
It sends a message as to where you stand politically.
And when I was younger, the media, you know, journalists, they read the news.
That's what my parents used to say.
They read the news.
But nowadays, it's all based on opinions.
And so we have a lot of alternative media, and especially in the younger generation, they receive a lot of their information via the internet.
And so I think it's time that we started funding alternative media equally to what we're doing to conventional media.
And so the funds may need to be spread out evenly to reflect a new reality.
Well, we'll never take money here at Rebel News.
Our view would be that any funding automatically comes with strings attached.
But let me ask you, I've been thinking about Stephen Harper because things in the conservative movement felt more orderly under him.
His coalition split apart a little bit.
Maxine Bernier split off with the People's Party.
And the Conservatives, I don't know where the focus of the party is.
Is there anything about Stephen Harper's prime minister as leader that you think is worth replicating?
Was there anything about his years as prime minister that you think we need to get back to?
Or do you think that's a different era and we should have a new direction?
Now, what are your thoughts on the last successful Conservative Prime Minister?
Well, actually, I think because he was an economist, he had excellent economic policies.
And so, of course, I think any successful Conservative would model some of those policies.
But aside from that, he had a way of balancing the various beliefs and rights of members in the party.
And so we didn't have this divide between progressive conservative and social conservative that we currently have.
And I think that it was just a matter of getting everybody to respectfully recognize the other's perspective.
There's been some talk about whether or not a conservative leadership candidate, a conservative leader, needs to speak French.
What's your view on that?
And do you speak French?
Well, I have started French lessons two months ago, and so my French is at a, I would say, an intermediate level.
And I'm working very hard at making sure that I can communicate in both official languages.
And that's the requirement that is set now.
And so my goal is to meet and exceed that requirement.
Is there anyone out there who you would regard as a role model?
Is there someone who, over the years, either in your personal life or in politics, you say, I want to be like them?
Well, I think there are a number of people throughout history that you would look at as role models.
But the way Stephen Harper ran the government, I think was very, very effective.
And we had a unified Conservative Party.
And so I'd like to see us go back to that.
I also am very impressed with someone like Brian Mulroney, because he also was not a career politician.
And so I admire that.
And I also admire the way he was able to stand up to the entire world against apartheid.
My last question for you is, you know, there's a phrase that campaign strategists sometimes use, the ballot question.
You know, you can have an opinion on 20 different subjects, but when you finally get into that place where you're going to mark an X, what is the on-off, yes-no reason you'd make an X by your name instead of by the names of the other candidates?
If there's one question or one point or one call to arms that you would like Conservative voters to have when they choose the leader, something that defines you as a candidate, what would it be?
That I will create a prosperous Canada for all Canadians.
All right.
Well, Dr. Lewis, it's a pleasure to meet you.
And thank you for making us your first media visit, although it sounds like that's partly because the other media are refusing to talk to you, which does not surprise me.
But we'll send this video out.
We'll put it on YouTube and we'll send it to our viewers across the country for them to size you up.
It's a first interview, a get-to-know-you kind of interview.
I'm sure we'll talk again on the campaign trail.
If people want to go to your website to join your team, I understand you still have to meet certain thresholds for signing up members.
What's the website for them to go to?
It's www.leslinlewis.ca.
Great, we'll put that on the bottom of the screen.
Well, it's a pleasure to meet you.
Thank you.
Thank you so much, Ezra.
Thank you.
Good luck to you on the campaign trail.
Well, there you have it.
And it'll be our goal to interview the rest of the Conservative candidates over the course of the campaign.
Some of them are well-known, as we've mentioned.
Others are newcomers.
Our style, as it was in the last leadership contest, is to have an opening sort of biographical interview, and then as the campaign heats up, to talk about different issues along the way.