By Gudrun Schultz
OTTAWA, Ontario, February 7, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – An MP who said Christians were “Taliban” and “flowers of evil” has been welcomed into the ranks of the Liberal Party, after being ousted from the Conservatives over accusations of breaching party confidentiality last fall.
MP Garth Turner announced yesterday he was joining the Liberals, welcomed by leader Stephane Dion as a fiscal conservative with a concern for the environment.
“Garth Turner is an exceptional Member of Parliament, known across Canada for his passion and accomplishments,” said Stéphane Dion in a press release Feb.6. “He is an outspoken advocate for fiscal prudence, progressive values and environmental sustainability, and I know Mr. Turner’s constituents of Halton will only be better served by his decision today.”
Following a May 2006 televised debate with Christian political activist Charles McVety of Defend Marriage Canada, on homosexual “marriage” in the RCMP, Turner wrote on his blog that he had “no time for groups in our society who try to force their morals, or their culture, on the rest of us.”
“Call it Defend Marriage Canada. Call it the Taliban. Fleurs de mal [Flowers of evil].”
Later denying that he had made the comparison, he wrote, “But a faith-based government? Forget it. Our brave troops in Afghanistan spend every day tracking down and squishing the freaks who tried that one.”
Joanne McGarry, executive director of the Catholic Civil Rights League, told LifeSiteNews.com the organization is “very concerned” about the increasing trend toward muzzling any voice not supportive of the liberal social agenda.
“There are a lot of people out there who do not think Christians should be heard,” McGarry said, “whether they are conservative Catholics, evangelicals, [even] liberal Christians—the place for committed Christians, for committed believers in public life continues to shrink.”
“They think your faith is something you can check at the door—well, some of the positions that the people who support what—for shorthand—I’ll call the liberal agenda are just as motivated by their beliefs.”
Calls to Liberal Party headquarters were not returned by press time.
Indefinitely suspended from the Conservative Caucus in October under accusations of breaching party confidentiality on his blog, Turner sat as an Independent for the past three months. He resigned from the Tories in November after he was told he would not be allowed to seek a party nomination again.
The Liberals now have 101 seats in the House, with the Conservatives at 125, the Bloc Quebecois at 51 and the NDP with 29. There is one Independent remaining, and one vacant seat.
See related LifeSiteNews coverage:
Canadian Conservative MP Calls Christian Political Activists “Taliban” and “Flowers of Evil”
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/jun/06060907.html