Pierre Poilievre's speech aboard WestJet flight sparks strong reaction online
Pierre Poilievre's speech aboard WestJet flight sparks strong reaction online
Passengers returning to Calgary from the Conservative Party national meeting in Quebec City on a WestJet flight Sunday evening got a surprise speech from party leader Pierre Poilievre.
Videos of it were posted on social media feeds Monday, resulting in both support for the opposition party leader and questions about whether it was appropriate for a party leader to speak on a public flight, as the flight was not a charter exclusively for Conservative Party supporters.
A WestJet spokesperson, replying to an email from CTV News, said that while it was a public flight, it was actually added in order to accommodate delegates flying to the Conservative Party convention in Quebec City.
"The flight was added to our schedule and advertised as a flight serving the CPC convention. As it was a commercial flight however, guests who booked the flight were not required to indicate if they were attending the convention and therefore we are unable to determine if there were guests onboard who were not attending.
imagine being mad about a flight you weren't even on
As if we need to be specifically immediately affected by a really bad idea before we can see it's a bad idea.
What, is Object Permanence a challenge for this Jennifer person?
I mean...Conservatives are upset about who people that they don't even know are having sex with, what women they don't even know are doing with their bodies, who is reading stories in libraries to children they don't even know, etc so there is that.
This seems like it shouldn't be legal...
Excellent, WESTJET has an open mic policy!!! This will never bite them in the ass...
As a non-con this makes me feel a bit queasy towards WestJet.
If you like donald trump and hate women and people of colour the CPC under the leadership of Squinty McProudBoy are your people.
It is great to criticize someone like Pierre for all of the corruption he is part of, lies he confidently says, and plans he proposes that don't solve anything. But why make fun of how he looks? It doesn't speak at all to their moral character and it propagates the idea that it is somehow wrong to look the way you do.
Next time I fly WestJet I will rehearse my stand-up routine, given the precedent they have set. I'm sure they will allow me.
It wouldn't be unheard of for a celebrity to take the mic on an airline (not necessarily Westjet).
As long as the people on the plane know who you are, it is likely that they would allow you. That's the privilege of fame.
Imagine the conservative uproar if this was JT. They would be absolutely losing their shit.
What a fucking asshole
So, I could hurl questions at him from my seat? …Since he’s just an ordinary guy talking on a mic reserved for airline staff.
I don't care too much for it, if he keeps it short, PP can campaign wherever he likes. If I hear an announcement on a train, subway, streetcar or bus, or walk by a square, the most I'd do is roll my eyes and otherwise ignore it.
Politicians get so much flak for taking private charter flights everywhere, yet there always seems to be an article whenever a party leader flies commercial. I get using the PA system to advertise the campaign is unusual but if it's short and they have WestJet's permission it doesn't bother me.