David Menzies exposes Halton District School Board’s 2023 failure to enforce dress codes after six months of evading FOI requests, ignoring parents’ warnings, and shielding teacher Kerry Luke Lemieux—who violated policies with a "grotesque caricature"—while paying him full salary. The board’s ideological prioritization over student safety, paired with Trudeau’s suspected election interference and O’Toole/Polyev’s weak leadership, reveals systemic collapse. Poll-driven politics and drag storytime normalization signal deeper cultural shifts, but public backlash could reverse them—if conservatives act decisively. [Automatically generated summary]
Tonight, it took six months and $4,000, but we finally have the FOI skinny on how the Halton District School Board handled the Busty Lemieux scandal.
And the verdict?
This board is woefully woke and thoroughly incompetent.
It's Wednesday, March 15th, 2023.
I'm David Menzies, and this is the Ezra Levant Show.
Shame on you, you censorious bug.
Six months and some $4,000 later, we finally have our hands on the September 2022 Halton District School Board's internal communications pertaining to the international laughingstock.
That is Kerry Luke Lemieux, aka Kayla Lemieux, aka Busty Lemieux.
Now, you may have heard of him.
He teaches shop class at Oakville Trafalgar High School, decked out as a grotesque caricature of a woman complete with fake Zed cup breasts.
Mind you, Lemieux claims those boobs are real, proving beyond doubt that this dude is a complete nut bar.
And it turns out that descriptor can also be applied to many of the woefully woke staffers who are gainfully employed at the Halton District School Board.
And those documents we acquired via a freedom of information request certainly paint a fascinating picture.
The various memos and emails conclusively prove that the moment media reports surfaced about the drag queen shop teacher, the strategy of the HDSB was to run all manners of interference to protect Lemieux.
Parents were ignored or told to shut up if they had questions about the motives of this modified humanoid.
Meanwhile, journalists the world over were given the runaround.
Indeed, the HDSB consistently refused to answer specific questions, but would instead issue nonsensical, politically correct statements that were, in the final analysis, completely meaningless.
In fact, that's what led us to filing a freedom of information request in the first place.
Even though the HDSB is a taxpayer-funded school board that should be accountable and transparent, we found that it is neither.
That in this bureaucratic fiefdom, the trustees are hopelessly woke and entitled, and they believe they are experts when it comes to, well, everything from labor law to transgenderism.
So it was that it became apparent that we'd have to pry the information from their clammy hands.
The HDSB was not happy about that.
In fact, they thought they could torpedo our request for information by attaching an outrageously enormous fee to it.
The board wanted more than $4,000 to obtain less than one month's worth of correspondence, correspondence that is easily retrievable from a database.
Most media outlets would have caved at such a fee, but we called their bluff and we crowdfunded the cost.
And I thank you, dear viewers, for helping us in that mission.
After getting the dough, the HDSB then ragged the puck in terms of delivering the goods.
The HDSB missed not one, but two deadlines.
But here we are, finally, six months later, and we have those documents that could have and should have been delivered in perhaps less than six hours.
Unbelievable.
I'll get into all the nitty-gritty details of those documents we acquired in just a few moments.
But first, allow me to fast forward to an executive summary of conclusions that I amassed based on reading through some 450 pages.
Number one, the HDSB purposely threw an innocent teacher under the bus, allowing him to be falsely named as the Zed Cup drag queen when they could have immediately corrected the record and saved this man embarrassment.
Number two, the HDSB had absolutely no intention in terms of being transparent to parents or media outlets the world over, choosing instead to issue an oft-repeated nonsensical statement that was all about gender rather than Lemieux's code of conduct.
Number three, even though the HDSB would not provide actual information to the media, the board was downright obsessive over the media coverage pertaining to the Busty Lemieux Saga, keeping detailed records of the press coverage.
And yet, despite the international embarrassment that was on display at Oakville Trafalgar High School, they chose to do absolutely nothing.
And four, it is abundantly clear this board is far more concerned with embracing radical transgenderism rather than the concerns of parents and students.
In fact, it appears that not only was Lemieux being protected by the school board, which even included police protection, if you can imagine, but that Lemieux was actually, in effect, running the school board because the unofficial slogan of the HDSB appears to be, if it's good, it's trans, and if it's trans, it's good.
In any event, let's start with what was arguably the most despicable behavior exhibited by the HDSB in the earliest days of the Lemieux scandal.
Namely, the board allowed a completely innocent teacher at Oakville Trafalgar to be misidentified as Busty Lemieux.
I'm not going to name that teacher because he doesn't deserve any more grief.
Let's just call him Mr. X in the meantime.
Luckily, we have video evidence of my interview with the board's director of education.
That would be Curtis Innes He Him.
This interview took place some five days after the Lemieux story broke.
Check it out.
My name's David Menzies with Rebel News.
I sent you an email, and it's in regard to Mr. Breaking the dress code, not adhering to the shop health and safety rules.
And I'm wondering why that's being tolerated.
So, can you speak outside, please?
Okay.
and take it outside so we are as a board we are committed to human rights and we're committed to supporting all our teachers and staff and students in an environment that upholds their dignity their gender identity and their gender expression
So folks, as you witnessed, Mr. Innes He Ham is far more concerned about gender identity matters rather than correcting the record.
Not once does he go on to state that I have the wrong teacher's name.
How bizarre.
And check out this memo from Heather Francie.
She's supposed to be the communications person at the HDSB, except she barely communicates.
No, seriously, check out her Twitter account.
It's locked.
Now, isn't this the opposite of communicating?
What a loser.
Anyway, here's the email I received from Francie several hours after our video aired.
Quote, Hi, David, just received your voicemail.
I responded to your questions yesterday morning and followed up yesterday evening below to notify you that Mr. X has been mistakenly identified in your coverage of this story.
The HDSB has also issued the following news release this morning on our website, Social Media and Media Contacts.
You are also included on the distribution list for this news release, end quote.
But here's the kicker, folks.
Check out what time Francie sent out this correction.
It was on Monday, September 19th at 10.18 p.m.
You see, Francie and or her puppet masters waited until after Rebel News and stateside Fox News aired the incorrect info earlier that evening regarding the identity of the teacher.
And this misinformation had been circulating for at least five full days.
So why would this loving and compassionate school board do that?
Was it laziness?
Was it incompetence?
Maybe it was maliciousness, i.e. the HDSB wanted the misinformation to be reported so that the board could attack the credibility of media outlets that got the name wrong.
Brutal.
But I will say this, the HDSB Educrats were at least smart enough not to put their strategy in writing.
This misinformation initiative must have been via verbal discussions so that there would be, you know, no paper trail.
Either that or the board conveniently forgot to send along all the documents we requested.
And you know what?
I wouldn't put such chicanery past these creeps.
But the board's communications and media relations strategy regarding Bubzilla was truly remarkable for all the wrong reasons.
Much to their chagrin, the story did not peter out after the 24-hour news cycle ran its course.
Instead, the busty Lemieux saga got bigger and bigger as the board got increasingly inept.
And darn it, those pesky parents, you know, the taxpayers who fund the HDSB, well, they wouldn't shut up with all their impolite questions, all of which put the board into an unnecessary panic.
Unnecessary because all the board had to do was, you know, act like adults driven by common sense.
All they had to do was start an investigation regarding Lemieux, or at the very least, enforce a dress code.
HDSB's Gender Identity Controversy00:15:41
But alas, they didn't want to come across as transphobic, even though the trans community was not supporting Lemieux.
Yes, even this community knew something was fishier than month-old tuna.
Still, check out this memo entitled Speaking Notes Re-O-T-H-S, that stands for Oakville-Trafalgar High School, from Heather Francie to Trustees External on September 16th, 2022.
Quote: Hello, we've prepared speaking notes to support you in conversations you may have with your school communities regarding OTHS.
The following speaking notes have been prepared to support you with conversations you may have with students, staff, parents, guardians, and community members regarding Oakville-Trafalgar High School speaking notes.
End quote.
And what were those speaking notes, you ask?
Fasten your seat belts, folks.
Here we go.
Quote: The Halton District School Board is committed to establishing and maintaining a safe, caring, inclusive, equitable, and welcoming learning and working environment for all students and staff.
We strive to promote a positive learning environment in schools consistent with the values of the school board and to ensure a safe and inclusive learning and working environment for all students, staff, and the community, regardless of their race, age, ability, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, cultural observance, socioeconomic circumstances,
or body type size.
The HDSB recognizes the rights of students, staff, parents, guardians, and community members to equitable treatment without discrimination based upon gender identity and gender expression.
Gender identity and gender expression are protected grounds under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
The HDSB's hiring processes are fair, consistent, and transparent and promote a qualified and diverse workforce.
The HDSB believes all staff, in addition to students, parents, guardians, and community members, have the right to express themselves in a manner consistent with their gender expression.
We are respectful of the privacy of all our staff.
As always, our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our students and staff.
As this is a personal matter, we cannot provide further information.
End quote.
Wow, that heap and help and a word salad was the stand-pat due regur answer for every query uttered by a parent or journalist regarding Lemieux.
Even if parents or reporters had specific questions about Lemieux's clothing or those fake boobs or why he continued to violate workshop etiquette rules, that gender rubbish was regurgitated dozens and dozens and dozens of times over, as our FOI documents reveal.
It was as if the HDSB was an automated service as opposed to an organization staffed by sentient human beings.
Indeed, in the early going, I sent out a very detailed email about Lemieux.
It had seven specific questions about Lemieux and school board policy and dress codes.
And all I got back was blah, blah, blah, blah, gender identity, blah, blah, blah, blah, sexual orientation, blah, blah, blah, blah, gender expression, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Not a single query was answered.
What's more, it made me wonder if Heather Francie is an admirer of Greta Tunberg.
Or blah, blah, blah.
Build back better, blah, blah, blah.
Green economy.
Blah, blah, blah.
Net zero by 2050.
Blah, blah, blah.
Yet, even though the HDSB Educrats desperately wished that the Busty Lemieu story would simply fade away, alas and alack, they kept being bombarded by pesky questioners.
Check out this email on September 19th entitled Subject, Generic Response for OTHS Parents.
By the way, did you notice the admission that their woke mumbo jumbo statement is a generic response?
It comes from Superintendent Jacqueline Newton and sent to Francie and Scott Poderabaric and Hawa Jayam Abbo.
It reads, quote, hello, Heather and Scott.
We need help with how to respond to parents who are individually emailing Meredith and me, addressing things allowing this type of dress as a teacher, etc., end quote.
Yeah, so in other words, the media and parents weren't buying that endlessly repeated woke generic gender garbage statement.
And what was the solution?
Well, the solution was to simply stop responding altogether.
Indeed, look what happened at the September HDSB public meeting.
Look at the agenda.
And it was so telling, isn't it?
Even though the Busty Lemieux story was receiving worldwide media attention, and even though the HDSB and Oakville Trafalgar were being flooded with phone calls on a daily basis, the Lemieux issue wasn't even on the agenda.
In fact, parents were told that they were not even permitted to ask questions verbally.
Rather, questions would have to be provided in writing in advance and that the staff would cherry-pick which questions they would present.
And of course, no questions regarding Lemieux would be entertained because, well, just because, okay?
Clearly, those who work at the HDSB are not educators.
They are a bunch of censorious thugs.
Here's some more proof in that putrid pudding.
Another internal email from Francie to various staffers, quote, hello, staff are asked to be aware of reporters from the media attending some schools and board sites this week to inquire about the situation at Oakville Trafalgar High School that has received significant attention over the past several days.
Staff are asked to direct all media requests to the Communications and Engagement Department.
Please share this message with others as required, end quote.
Yeah, we wouldn't want the unvarnished truth getting out there, would we now?
Better to control and censor the narrative.
In fact, this memo truly highlights Francie's cowardice, i.e., she can't even say what the issue is in her email, calling it instead the quote, situation at Oakville Trafalgar High School that has received significant attention over the past several days, end quote.
Really?
What's the situation?
Downed hydro wires, maybe?
Incredible.
It's as though Lemieux wields such incredible power, thanks to strapping on those diverse Zed Cup hooters, that he is akin to the Harry Potter villain, Lord Voldemort, aka he who must not be named.
That thing has a name.
Oh, Meredith, by the way, is Meredith Camasuli, she-her, the principal at Oakville Trafalgar High School, and another useless woke twit employed by the HDSB.
Case in point, one piece of communication in our FOI package indicates that Chrissy Clark, a reporter with the Daily Caller, reached out to Principal Camasuli, she-her.
Clark asked some pointed questions, including whether the school thinks it is appropriate for an educator to wear such clothing, and if there is going to be a protest at the school later that day.
And the response by Camusouli Shee-Her is absolutely batshite bizarre.
Namely, she states, quote, if you are in distress and need to talk, please contact one of the following agencies.
Kids Help Phone, up to age 24, provides information, strategies, and access to phone test live chat support.
The ROC 24-hour crisis line, if you or someone you know is feeling suicidal, please call 911, end quote.
Yeah, so obviously, if you have questions about a shop teacher dressing as a grotesque caricature of a woman, you are the one with a problem.
And perhaps your mental issue is so great that you're feeling suicidal maybe and that you desperately need help.
Unbelievable.
As previously mentioned, even though the HDSB refused to communicate with the media in a tangible fashion, the board was downright obsessive about the media coverage the Lemieux situation was receiving, providing detailed notes on a daily basis almost.
Examples.
Anthony Fury in the Toronto Sun School Board goes silent on viral teacher citing personal matter.
Opinion piece in the Globe and Mail.
Ontario Teachers Prosthetic Bust offers a lesson about body shaming.
InsideHalton.com, Halton District School Board's Twitter feed is blowing up as photos of a transgender high school tech teacher wearing large prosthetic breasts.
Speaking of other media outlets, I had a good chuckle regarding one email sent to the HDSB from a podcaster who was quite miffed, apparently, that Rebel News got an exclusive interview with director of education, Mr. Innes HeHim.
I speak of an email from somebody called Joel McLeod, who runs something called the 90 Fiverr podcast.
Yeah, I've never heard of it either.
Regardless, McLeod pleads with Francie for some HDSB Educrat to come on his podcast, but it's no dice.
So he states this, quote, thank you for the response.
I would point out, though, that Mr. Innes did give an interview to Rebel Media, which is being circulated around as evidence that HDSB has an agenda one way or another on this matter.
We are offering a chance for you to present a more balanced version of HDSB policy at this point, end quote.
A more balanced version of HDSB policy, like really, Joel?
I asked Innes He Him questions and he responded, and as previously mentioned, the biggest takeaway was this woke joke educat throwing an innocent teacher under the bus by allowing him to be misidentified as the drag queen.
And do you know how we got that interview, Joel?
We physically drove down to HDSB headquarters in Burlington.
So here's some free advice.
Get off your fat Ricota cheese candy ass and do some shoe leather journalism.
You know, instead of just vegging out behind a microphone to produce a podcast nobody listens to, go out into the field and get the story.
You're welcome.
Now, at one point, Antonella Artuso of the Toronto Sun emails Francie about Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce expressing his disdain for the ongoing busty Lemieux circus.
Yes, even the board's provincial government masters were no longer amused with this.
Artuzzo writes, quote, hi, Heather.
I was wondering if HDSB had any response to the minister's comments today or if there is any update that you can provide on the Oakville teacher.
Minister Lecce said he has asked the Ontario College of Teachers to take another look at professional standards, end quote.
And the Stanpat gender identity blah, blah, blah response changed.
Well, it changed a little bit, writes back Francie, quote, hi, Antonella, thanks for reaching out.
I am providing the following statement on behalf of Curtis Ennis, Director of Education for the Halton District School Board.
Our school board has received significant attention online and in the news over the past week.
The Halton District School Board continues to handle this matter in a way that stays true to our values and commitment to human rights, respects the privacy and dignity of our students and staff, and with the safety and well-being of students and staff as our highest priority.
As staff, we are guided by numerous legislation and also fundamentally by the privacy and confidentiality of each of our employees.
While I understand the desire for information by the public, we will not and cannot publicly discuss any matter that identifies our staff directly or indirectly.
I trust the public will understand the parameters that guide us, end quote.
Pathetic.
After all, the Lemieux controversy, it's not about the privacy of an individual who is either pranking the school board or more likely is an outright sexual pervert.
No, the issue is, why can't the HDSB have a dress code for its teachers, much like it has a dress code for its students, much like it has a dress code for Halloween costumes?
Why is this such a non-starter?
Indeed, one media mention the board noted was a segment on News Talk 1010 with host Jerry Agar interviewing employment lawyer Sunira Chaudhry about the HDSB and dress codes.
HDSB Dress Code Controversy00:07:02
Oh, by the way, in November, employment lawyers Howard Levitt and Peter Kerry would pen a column in the Financial Post also regarding the HDSB and dress codes.
Now, folks, Chaudhry, Levitt, and Kerry are amongst the cream of the crop when it comes to labor lawyers in Canada.
They have forgotten more about labor law than the entire staff of the HDSB will ever learn.
And their message was both clear and consistent.
An employer, even an employer dealing with a unionized environment, has every right to implement a dress code for employees.
Case closed.
That's five figures worth of free legal advice for the HDSB.
But again, this stubborn and stupid school board chose to ignore this advice because, well, because of a paranoid, delusional belief that Lemieux might take the board to a human rights tribunal.
What a farce.
Not even the wackadoodles who comprise that kind of a kangaroo court would have sided with Lemieux after all.
As we have chronicled, the original strategy of the HDSB was to reassign this gender bender to other schools in the region, hoping that no parents or students would notice and or complain about him.
Alas, those Zed cups with protruding nipples tend to stand out a tad.
So the HDSB gave up on that strategy and eventually tossed him back to Oakville-Trafalgar High School.
And shockers, still the story wouldn't go away.
The latest scoop courtesy of the New York Post, in which Lemieux was photographed wearing male clothing and without those fake boobs.
Nevertheless, Lemieux denies that the male in the photograph is him, even though the facial features, in particular the nose, look identical.
Oh, and for all the fretting about transphobia, Lemieux himself now says he is not transgendered.
Oopsie.
And so it was that the HDSB's ultimate solution last month was to tell Lemieux to simply stay home.
And that's what he's doing, folks.
He's earning a full teacher salary and enjoying a gold-plated benefit plan for doing absolutely nothing all day long except perhaps watching cartoons.
Oh, there's plenty of blame to go around here.
After all, it's been months since Education Minister Stephen Lecchie first issued his edict to the board to get its act in order and start enforcing a dress code for its teachers.
He has repeated this mandate over and over again.
Alas, now Minister Lecce, he has all the credibility of a professional wrestling referee.
You know, listen, HDSB, this is the eighth time I've warned you to implement a dress code.
And if you don't do it, well, I'm going to warn you a ninth time.
Unbelievable.
Come on, Lecce, man up already.
You have the power to disband this out-of-control and useless school board.
So do it.
In the final analysis, what our FOI documentation reveals is that the HDSB is about as transparent as ebony-hued marble.
And these self-entitled Educrats, they absolutely hate parents.
Oh, they do.
They really do, folks.
Parents, you see, get in the way.
What, with all their nosy Parker questions and concerns?
That's why these trustees will call the police and actually have parents physically removed from a school board public meeting if a mother or father has the temerity to ask impolite questions.
As for the kids, this board, it's not about education, but rather indoctrination.
Who cares if little Johnny or Janie can't spell cat if you were to spot them the C and the T.
The real goal is to cram their minds with wokeness.
These trustees despise common sense and family values.
They instead champion perversity as diversity.
They believe that so-called equity is excellence.
That's their new normal.
Sure, the provincial test scores are plummeting in Ontario, but as long as the kids are wearing rainbow-hued t-shirts and identify as a gender-fluid, two-spirited, pansexual unicorn, and that they are careful not to misgender anyone, and that they subscribe to a form of Marxism.
Well, that's what's really important in Halton region these days.
As for Busty Lemieux, he is truly enjoying the last laugh.
He now gets paid not to work.
And if you all have a problem with that, well, you're obviously a transphobe, even though Lemieux himself, in his most recent interview with the New York Post, stated that he's not transgender.
Oh, and those infamous Zed Cup breasts, by the way, well, those are real memory glands, don't you know?
Oh, yeah.
Lemieux says he started developing these sweater stretchers at age 39.
He has some sort of medical condition, you see.
Yeah, the Busty Lemieux story more and more resembles a Monty Python sketch with every passing week.
And yet, even now, even despite these admissions, the HDSB is still kowtowing to this fake female wannabe.
Indeed, the true tragedy in Halton District boils down to this.
A taxpayer-funded fruitcake who is way past his best-before date has been ideologically weaponized by his employers.
And even worse, there is absolutely no end in sight regarding this farce because everyone from the HDSB's Director of Education, Curtis Innes, he, him, and Heather Francie and Principal Meredith Camasuli, she, her, and yes, even education minister Stephen Lecce.
Well, let's face facts here, folks.
None of them have any balls.
Why Drag Queen Story Hours Divide00:06:46
You may know Derek Sloan as a former Conservative MP and the leader of the Ontario Party, but get this.
He is now also a published author.
His book is entitled Glorious and Free, and it recently debuted.
And get a little to this, folks, it's already a bestseller.
And joining me now from Belleville, Ontario is Mr. Sloan himself to discuss his book and other matters.
Derek, thanks so much for making time for me, my friend.
Really glad to be here.
Thanks a lot, David.
You got it.
You know, I love, love, love your book's title, Glorious and Free.
Yet, by the same token, Derek, given recent events in our country over the past few years, our Great Dominion doesn't seem all that glorious and free anymore.
What say you?
Well, there's no question there's a lot of issues facing Canada, some of which have become publicized as of late in regards to Chinese interference in our electoral process.
Of course, this kind of thing's been going on for years.
This book is a call to the way that I believe Canada needs to be run.
There's a lot of people who will agree with me in a lot of the points here.
It's a bit of a roadmap to say, listen, this is where we are, but how can we get to the place where Canada is the best country that it can be?
And I know we can't digest an entire book in the amount of time we have right now, Derek.
But what would be maybe two or three of the major points that you would like readers to take away after reading your book?
Well, you know, politics is for more than politicians.
For the country to change, it's going to take Canadians waking up and taking the mantle of leadership on their own shoulders.
We've sort of left politics to politicians for too long.
We need to take the power back in our country.
We need to become informed on the issues.
So my book goes through, you know, all the major issues, at least as I see them, and makes complex issues simple so people can understand and get involved themselves.
And you know, Derek, I tend to believe that the so-called silent majority are most likely on side with you.
I look at what's in the news cycle these days, of course, Chinese interference in our elections, which is very disturbing to say the least.
Drag queen story hours.
A shop teacher at Oakville Trafalgar High School until recently, going to school and teaching shop, dressed as a grotesque caricature of a natural woman.
And I think, Derek, you know, the Stan Pat reaction when you raise these issues, well, Justin Shudeau said it himself a couple of weeks ago when the Chinese interference scandal blew.
That if you are criticizing an Asian Canadian member of parliament, therefore you are racist.
I mean, this coming from Mr. Blackface himself.
Likewise, with the drag queens and that teacher in Oakville, if you criticize them, you are a so-called transphobe.
I just find the nature of debate, such as it is these days, Derek, to be woeful.
What do you have to say?
Well, I really agree with you.
And I was just reading an article today on Global News that was talking about the increase, the tremendous increase in rise of hate incidents perpetrated by the far right against LGBT people.
And their prime example was, of course, these protests outside of the drag time story hour.
And of course, they didn't mention, I mean, one of the main reasons why we're seeing so many more protests is because drag time story hours are proliferating across the country.
Like they didn't even mention, like, hey, this is a new thing.
This wasn't happening five years ago.
Obviously, very one-sided reporting in the media.
But, you know, a lot of average people are really starting to get frustrated.
And I think, you know, when you speak to people one-on-one without the media sort of twisting and distorting things, and you explain to them why we're against some of these things, it makes a lot of sense.
And I think that's why, you know, conservatives or small city conservatives need to stand up and have something to say on these issues.
If you just let them go, the debate keeps changing and the pot keeps getting hotter.
And you know, Derek, can you explain or can you theorize why this drag queen story hour has become such a thing?
You're right with the five-year timeline.
I remember in 2018, I first came across this in a city not far from you, Kingston, Ontario.
They were hosting a drag queen story hour.
And I said, what?
And now it's almost as though if you're a library and you're not hosting a drag queen story hour, you're the weirdo.
So what I just don't understand is that I'm not against drag queens.
If you're in a licensed bar and it's people the age of majority watching that, hey, you know, knock yourself out.
But this obsession of doing these highly sexualized performances and caricatures in front of minors.
Well, first of all, Derek, what parent in their right mind would bring a kid to watch that in the first place?
Well, that's, I mean, you raise a really good point.
And it's true that the, you know, drag shows have been associated pretty much since their inception with extreme sexuality.
It is true that these particular stories going on are, you know, toned down and not containing, you know, nudity and things like this.
But, you know, the fact is, is that, you know, with that connection to this, do you really want to bring kids into this?
I mean, imagine if this was like a story hour with another adult subject, such as guns or drugs or something like that.
And they had, you know, fake versions of them there for the kids.
And it was kind of like, well, this is just, you know, to show people, to show kids what's out there, to help them understand the diversity that life offers.
I mean, we would be up in arms about it.
But because it has to do with a protected community, people are, at least the media is ignoring the rationale for why parents would be upset about this.
And I think it's an open debate.
It is basically a new thing in terms of directing this at kids.
And I think we have every right to protest against it and be upset, particularly when it's taking place in a public place that's funded by both of our tax dollars.
Election Debates and Divides00:09:07
Indeed.
And, you know, I've always asked, and I'm not making a joke here, Derek, but if drag queens are okay, would it also be okay for a biological female stripper or burlesque dancer to come into the library and read books?
Apparently, that's offside for reasons I can't even contemplate.
But moving on from the trans issue to federal politics, of course, the hot story in the news these days is China interference.
And of course, I first met you back in 2020 when you were running to become the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.
And maybe we should start there, Derek.
What is your assessment of Aaron O'Toole's performance as the leader, the man you lost out to in that nomination campaign?
And what is your assessment of his replacement, Pierre Polyev?
Well, Aaron O'Toole was obviously a big disappointment to most blue conservative types.
He ran sort of espousing certain principles and then he backtracked on a lot of them later.
And he had to pay for that.
He didn't do better in the election, and he was also ousted by his own party.
And so it's clear that conservatives want a decisive leader and one who's willing to stand up.
And we saw that, at least in the leadership race of Pierre Polyev, but we haven't heard a lot since.
And in fact, the most recent thing we saw was basically an apology to the media for a trumped up charge about racism and his MPs meeting with another politician from Germany.
So again, if that's what we're going to see in the future, I think that's a bad sign.
And I think really what the Conservatives need to do is stand up and be counted.
And it may not, it may cause some short-term troubles in terms of the polls.
But, you know, again, do we want to lead the country for the next 50 years or the next 100 years?
Or do we want to just go wherever the opinion polls lead us?
We have to have something to say on these issues.
And I hope that leadership will find the courage to do it.
And, you know, I think a lot of conservatives have looked on in horror over the last few years, seeing this Justin Trudeau administration, one scandal after another.
But, you know, Derek, I truly think if these allegations are true about Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 elections, and if Justin Trudeau knew about it and dare I say was even complicit in it, I think this is Watergate on steroids.
I mean, what could be more fundamental to a Western democracy than having a fair election that is not interfered with with some dictatorship over seas.
Do you think the liberals, I mean, I know it's hard to predict the future.
We don't even know when what year the next election will be, but are the Trudeau's going to are the Trudeau liberals going to wiggle off this fish hook as well?
Well, here's the thing.
There's already rumblings in the party to get rid of Trudeau and replace him with somebody else.
So obviously Trudeau is going to try and prevent that.
He's going to try and delay this election as long as he can, in my view.
So we'll see which factions win out.
I mean, one way to sort of put this in the past is to get a new leader, right?
Then the new leader can say, oh, well, I would never have done that.
And it's almost like a new book at that point.
So we'll see what they do.
I think that Trudeau's brand, at least amongst his loyalists, is still strong.
I think he will do whatever he can to maintain leadership and then just, you know, again, kick this ball down the road as long as possible.
And people have a short memory in this country when it comes to a lot of things.
I do agree, though, that this is probably the absolute worst thing he has ever done or been sort of involved in.
And I think that this will have potentially game-changing consequences.
And Derek, there is plenty of blame to go around here.
I mean, Jugmeet Singh, I think if he was truly principled, he could say something along the lines of when we entered into this agreement with the Justin Trudeau liberals, we didn't know about this, you know, election fixing, allegedly.
Now that it's come to light, I cannot in good conscience support this man.
But I guess Jugmeet's got to hang on till 2025 so his full pension kicks in.
Yeah, you know, I think personally that at the end of the day, electoral strategy is the, you know, determines what goes on, right?
So the NDP, as of right now, would not do any better.
They'd probably do worse if an election was called right now.
So again, at the end of the day, yes, they're trying to save face and not be complicit in this, but they don't want an election any more than the liberals, in my view.
No, that is a good point, too.
So, Derek, we're almost out of time here.
Where can people find your book, Glorious and Free?
So right now, www.amazon.ca, I will be traveling around in person, hopefully late spring, early summer for people who want to buy the book in person or get an autograph.
But for now, go to amazon.ca.
We actually were beating Pamela Anderson's book.
We were number six on the hot bestsellers for a period of time.
So if, you know, help us get those numbers up, it means that more people get this book shown in their suggested read list.
And, you know, I'd rather be people reading be, sorry, I'd rather people be reading this book than the Pamela Anderson book and other books like that.
Heck, beating a big celebrity like Pamela Anderson, that's something to brag about, I would say, Derek.
And one last question.
What, for those who have bought your book, read it, what kind of feedback are you getting from them?
Yeah, you know, I've gotten some really good comments from people just saying, you know, Derek, thank you so much for just making, you know, these complex political issues seem so simple.
Thank you for giving the inside story on what you had to deal with up there on Parliament Hill.
A lot of, you know, you and I, David, we're pretty familiar with how things go up there, but, you know, a lot of people just don't know how it works.
And like to read an insider's account and to get, you know, an easy take on the issues, people really like that.
I've had people say that, you know, some of the things brought them to tears.
I'm not sure which things those were, but really, really deep reactions for people.
So that's a positive.
Well, that's great to hear, Derek.
And I know you're a big advocate for common sense, which isn't so common anymore, tragically.
So I wish you well with the book.
And anytime you want to come on the show, we're happy to have you, my friend.
Thanks so much, David.
We'll talk to you soon.
You got it.
Well, folks, tons of response to Ezra Levent's monologue last night regarding the city of Calgary, which somehow thinks it's appropriate to deem certain protests as being illegal because it might hurt somebody's feelings.
Unbelievable.
Let's get to some of your responses.
James the Patriot writes: even though it's a very sad state of affairs that it has come to this in Calgary, I couldn't help but laugh when that woman was asking how to crush protests she doesn't like with no self-awareness of how much of a villainous thug she sounds like.
Well, I assume you mean Mayor Gondik, and that is an added layer of perversity that we see going on.
Not only is freedom of expression and freedom of assembly under attack in the city of Calgary, this mayor is actually going on to social media platforms and bragging about this kind of censorship.
Incredible that it is happening in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Dan McLean writes, Where is Daniel Smith on this?
Thought she was going to stamp all this out.
Well, you know, I can tell you this: I think this mandate is headed to the courts.
And I am absolutely certain.
I know lawyers hate to use the term slam dunk.
I think this is a slam dunk.
I think this ridiculous bylaw of picking and choosing which groups and which people can and cannot protest, that is going to go down to defeat.
And deleted comment number two writes: who's organizing these drag story times for kids?
It's everywhere now.
And even Moncton, New Brunswick just had one at our library.
This is disgusting.
I totally agree.
I've often asked the question: if it's okay to have men pretending to be female strippers reading to kids, why don't you also bring in biological female strippers to read to kids too?
Not that I'm asking for that, but why is that a line in the sand?
Why Not Biological Female Strippers?00:00:30
And you are right.
It is spreading.
And I simply ask the question: which parent thinks this is a good idea?
In other words, if parents embrace common sense and decency and didn't bring their kids to these events, I think they would quickly go the way of the dodo as they should.
Well, folks, thanks so much for tuning in to tonight's edition of the Ezra Levant Show.
I believe the big boss man is back in this chair tomorrow.