A few months ago, I questioned whether Tony Clement was the right Con to go after Liberal scandals, considering how many scandals he had in his past.
Like the way he spent #50 million of G8 border security money on unrelated projects in his riding, like that gazebo in the middle of nowhere.
Or the way he mutilated the long form census, for no good reason.
And now of course there's this scandal.
The one that should end his long and grubby political career.
Longtime Conservative MP Tony Clement is resigning his post as his party's justice critic after admitting to sharing sexually explicit images and a video with an individual online.
"Over the last three weeks, I have shared sexually explicit images and a video of myself to someone who I believed was a consenting female recipient. The recipient was, in fact, an individual or party who targeted me for the purpose of financial extortion," Clement said in a statement.
For despite its tawdry nature, it is a serious scandal.
Clement isn't just the Con's justice critic, he has a high security classification.
Clement is also a member of the top secret national security and intelligence committee — a special joint parliamentary committee composed of MPs and senators that oversees the work of the country's intelligence agencies, including the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), the Communications Security Establishment, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency.
And he has now opened himself up to being blackmailed by foreign agents.
Which makes the slap on the wrist he received from his leader Andrew Scheer, also scandalous...
Can you imagine how Scheer would have reacted if the sexter had been a Liberal?
But then what do you expect from that grubby Con, when he is always selling out his own country?
And who can be surprised by what happened to Clement?
When he put out this picture a few years ago...
For no obvious reason.
And other women are now coming forward, alleging that he is a serial sexter, and a creepy presence on Instagram.
So this scandal is only going to get bigger.
Of course, I have to admit that I will miss Clement just a little bit, because I've always enjoyed making fun of him.
Like the time when he was busy mutilating the census, but still posed for this picture...
Or the time he was thinking of running for Con leader, and had a celebrated summit meeting in Muskoka with Kevin O'Leary...
Which sadly for Clement and O'Leary ended badly, for both of them...
Or the time I took some artistic liberties, to try to portray the real Tony...
But of course, he'll always be remembered for his tiny but very expensive gazebo...
And before he left in a hurry, he did do us all a favour.
By offering up yet another example of why the Cons are unfit to govern this country.
They simply can't be trusted, and they are just not decent enough.
Bye Bye Cons.
Bye Bye Tony...
Being a pervert is bad enough, but falling for a simple con is stupid as well.
ReplyDeleteHI rumleyfips...I don't condemn Clement for sexting, a lot of Canadians do that, but usually with people they know. What I do hold Clement responsible for is sending pictures of himself to somebody he didn't know, even though he was on a top security intelligence committee. That is so dumb and irresponsible it's unforgivable...
DeleteSimon, I enjoyed your brief walk down memory lane and some of the good work you've put together around Tony's various shenanigans. Thank you for your continued vigilance and commitment!
ReplyDeleteHi anon...thank you, I quite enjoyed rummaging through my files. I was reminded of the many bad things Clement did when he was an aggressive member of the Harper regime. So if I was a bit sorry for him when I began, I wasn't by the time I finished. Time heals most wounds, but some should never be forgotten...
DeleteThis guy will land on his feet somewhere and not thirty-five years ago policing agencies would hound somebody out of house, home and livelihood on suspicion of having spoken to someone who was thought to be gay. I guess it depends on your holy book.
ReplyDeleteHi John...yes, and thirty five years ago Cons like Scheer and Clement would have been cheering the police on. So many lives were destroyed so casually, but I blog for those victims as well as all the others...
DeletePretty low key Ottawa media response to this scandal.
ReplyDeleteBut can you imagine if this was a Trudeau cabinet minister? I can hear the Opposite screaming and filling the Commons with outrage. And the media would have been on a feeding frenzy, the herd in full pursuit of the most salacious details and desperately trying to put some blame on the PM.
I guess Rempel and Bergen will be silent or full of sympathy for the tragedy.
J. W.
Hi J.W.....I shudder to imagine what the ghastly Cons would have said and done if a Liberal cabinet minister had done what Clement did. We never would have heard the end of it. And as you say, the media would have been in a frenzy demanding that Trudeau take the blame. But that's OK, we will just have to keep reminding Canadians who the Con scumbags are, who would pervert themselves and our Canadian values...
DeleteOn the Con Media nothing but praise for weak andy on his second attempt kicking him out.
DeleteLost in the chaos of the US midterms (which went really well, though not as well as I'd hoped and for some seriously disgusting ratfuckery reasons, but such is Dixie and Texas) was Canada's own version of Weinergate. He's gone from Tony Gazebo to "Tony Baloney" of the North. I personally find it laughable that Scheer's two biggest threats -- Bernier and now Clement -- are "security ministers" who have a history of jeopardizing said security because they can't control their, um, selfie sticks. Furthermore, if Tony Baloney is that much of a risk, then he can't be trusted as a reliable deputy for Ernst Stevero Blowhard's SPECTRE organization. Now the Liberals have a bona fide reason to go for the throat on two fronts: not only the Cons themselves but the IDU. I think everyone should start a campaign asking that they do so. About time Fat Cat gets his whiskers pulled and faces the threat of being locked in a kennel, or at least spending the rest of his life in permanent exile as an international disgrace. Very fine people, the best, so bigly terrific. Lock them up.
ReplyDeleteAnd on the US front, I'm happy to report that Trudeau's philosophy of encouraging more women to represent politically has been vindicated. This marks the first time in history that more than 100 women were elected to Congress in a single night. A number of whom were women of color. Since we needed 218 to re-take the House and we got about half, I'm glad we get to borrow from a now-famous celebratory slogan and make it our own: "Why was this so important to American women to have half the Blue Wave drowning Trump be female? BECAUSE IT'S 2018!" :)
Hi Jackie...I'm sure that like me you are a little disappointed by the election results. But as you point out there are many things to celebrate, principally the impressive number of women elected to Congress. They will make a huge difference in that musty old boy club. Also the times had a great graphic that showed that the winds are now blowing strongly towards the left. And as more of the younger generation get involved those winds can turn into a mighty progressive tornado. I'd just like to congratulate all progressive Americans, and I'm already looking forward to 2020....🚀
DeleteWas it back in the 1970's or 80's when he seemed to do a good job as Ont Minister of Health?
ReplyDeleteSad fall
Hi jrkrideau...I wasn't here when Clement was part of the Harris government. But I do remember that he was a faithful and uber zealous member of the Harper regime, who went after worker's rights as happily as he mutilated the census for fraudulent reasons. So I'm not sad at all...
DeleteTony could have saved himself some grief if he had read the new Ontario school sex education curriculum before Dougie trashed it. The real crime is the puritan inspired laws and defunding of impure support organizations the likes of Gazebo, Ride me Wilfred and Vicky champion before moving on to spend more time with their family or find new victims.
ReplyDeleteRT
I was thinking the same thing, but more about Wilson. He might of better understood his feeling for men and done something more appropriate. I am guessing Wilson was one of the most publicly homophobic members of caucus.
DeleteAs Shakesphere said doth protesteth too much about caucus. IMHO the most homophobic people in the world are probably Gay. Normal people do not see Gay people as any kind of problem to be solved. In fact as a straight person I like the fact that many very attractive men are giving women less options.
Hi RT...that's a good point. The new curriculum includes a section on the dangers of sexting strangers, but Clement is part of the SoCon gang, so he would never go for it. And of course as you point out, him and the others are first class hypocrites...
DeletePeople can be so stupid, really sexting, at any age is just plain stupid. did he really think he was so "hot" at his age....oh, right he's male.
ReplyDeleteAs some of us were taught, while we were young, never put anything on paper you don't want to see on the front page of the Vancouver sun. today this still applies, but its don't put anything on your computer you don't want to see on the front page of everything.
it is unlikely he would have been black mailed, he has come clean, and he is well past his best before date, politically. the story was a good laugh after last night, but in the grand scheme of things, no big thing.
yes of course if this had been a member of another party it might have been bigger news, but its doubtful.
Hi e.a.f....When you're young and you're in love, I can understand people sexting each other, using messaging services that make the picture disappear after a short time. But yes, it can end badly, and sending nude pictures of yourself to somebody you don't know is reckless and irresponsible. However, it is important to note that Clement's biggest problem is that he's a member of a top security intelligence committee and could have been blackmailed...
DeleteAs some of us were taught, while we were young, never put anything on paper you don't want to see on the front page of the Vancouver sun.
DeleteWell I was thinking the Globe and Mail rather than the Vancouver Sun but same thing. My level of paranoia is pretty high. Put nothing on paper and watch out for cameras.
Lack of judgement? How about nary a modicum of judgement. Little Tony was clearly steering big Tony into doing something as incredibly stupid as this.
ReplyDeleteI recall the first time you posted that creepy photo of Clement, Simon. It gave me the heebie-jeebies then as it does now and just didn't sit well with me and sure enough, big Tony let little Tony take it to the next level.
What an embarrassment it must be for his family and what a complete fool Clement is for bringing this shame upon them. I hope his wife dumps him.
JD
Hi JD...yes, the first thing I thought about when I heard the Clement story was that creepy picture of him. It seemed to come out of nowhere, but now I wonder whether he was just letting people know that he was ready and willing to share naked pictures online. I do feel sorry for his wife and children, but for him I feel none...
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