Senator Lynn Beyak is fighting back after Andrew Scheer booted her from Conservative caucus for "simply racist" posts on her website, disputing the Tory leader's version of events and calling him an inexperienced leader who fell for a ploy from the opposition.
In a lengthy statement released on Monday, Ms. Beyak portrayed herself as a defender of free speech. She said neither Mr. Scheer nor anyone from his office told her to take down a letter from her website which contained comments that Mr. Scheer, opposition MPs and indigenous advocates have called racist and offensive towards aboriginal people. She also denied refusing Mr. Scheer's request to take the content down.
"Contrary to his statement, that he asked me to remove content and I refused, neither I nor my staff ever spoke with Andrew Scheer or anyone from his office, at any time," Ms. Beyak said.
Ms. Beyak said the first she learned of her removal from the Conservative caucus was when the Tory leader released a late-night statement last week.
She said Mr. Scheer's office also released talking points to the Conservative caucus saying she admitted to posting intentionally racist correspondence about indigenous people on her website.
"That statement is completely false. I would never say or do such a thing," she said.
The now-independent senator accused Mr. Scheer of falling for a media-led distraction campaign away from controversies involving Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, such as the ethical violations for his Aga Khan trips, and meeting with former hostage Joshua Boyle, who has been charged with 15 offences and was once married to Omar Khadr's sister.
"A good leader would never have fallen for such a ploy, but when an inexperienced leader wins by a small margin, and does not adequately consider other viewpoints, some wisdom and common sense are lost," Ms. Beyak said.
"We deserve better leadership other than the current choices, who are mired in, or hampered by, political correctness."
Mr. Scheer's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
Ms. Beyak's comments come as the head of Canada's largest Indigenous organization National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN), Perry Bellegarde, said the Senate ethics committee, which can recommend the expulsion of senators, should take a look at her actions. Fellow senator Lillian Dyck also said it is possible that the content of letters that Ms. Beyak posted on her parliamentary website constitutes a hate crime.
The decision by Mr. Scheer and Conservative Senate Leader Larry Smith to remove Ms. Beyak from caucus came after almost a year of controversy that began when she declared some good had come from Indigenous residential schools.
One of the letters Ms. Beyak posted to her website included comments about a First Nations culture "that will sit and wait until the government gives them stuff."
"Promoting this comment is offensive and unacceptable for a Conservative parliamentarian. To suggest that Indigenous Canadians are lazy compared to other Canadians, is simply racist," Mr. Scheer said in his statement last week.
He said he learned of the comment this week and demanded Ms. Beyak remove the content from her site, but she refused.
Ms. Beyak defended her decision to post the correspondence on her website.
"Canadians can read and decide for themselves what is relevant and helpful for a fresh start for those Indigenous people who still suffer, and who live in hopelessness and poverty with inadequate housing and dirty water. Discerning citizens don't need government to tell them what is allegedly racist," she said.
