Nothing says make me leader of a party that seems to have accidentally struck a chord with voters than spreading false information and then admitting it.
Jim Bennett wants to lead the Liberal Party.
This week Bennett admitted to the Telegram that some things he said about a fish plant in New Ferolle may not be true. Here’s the relevant bit from the Telly story:
A June 10 Liberal news release said, “the minister has agreed to a move which will see the community lose its whelk license at the whim of the operator.”
…
Bennett admitted to The Telegram the information in his news release may not be accurate. He said he approves releases, but doesn’t actually write them, and he’d have to go back and read what he actually said.
“I might be wrong on that,” he said. “If I’m wrong on that, I’m simply wrong. I need to go back and read what I actually said. I don’t know if transfer is imminent or if it said it has been transferred out.”
There’s no way to make that right, no matter how much Bennett tries to explain it away.
First, there’s plenty to use to criticise the crowd that is running the place these days. You don’t need to make stuff up.
Second, blaming staff for the content of the news release is just cowardly crap. Like Bennett told the Telegram, he approved the release. Since Bennett approved the release, the responsibility rests entirely on his shoulders to ensure that what it says is correct. He can’t lay it off on anyone else. And even if a staffer screwed up, the person in the top job takes the hit for it.
Bennett will have to improve the quality of his game quite a bit between now and the fall if he enters the Liberal leadership race and expects to win. Politicians who light their arse on fire tend not to go very far, some current cabinet ministers notwithstanding.
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