Another Fiberal backbencher with hoof-in-mouth disease

Dalton McGuinty’s backbench is stirring up memories of the old Reform and Canadian Alliance caucuses, which during the summer months saw regular eruptions of infighting and ill-advised public comments. (Until Harper took over in 2002 and introduced the party to the concepts of focus and discipline.)

“I believe the Harper government, which receives its foreign policy from David Frum direct from George Bush, should apologize to the Canadian people for their support of the collective punishment of people first in Gaza and now in Lebanon,” he [Ottawa Liberal MPP Phil McNeely] said in an e-mail obtained by the Citizen. “As an elected member of Parliament I cannot believe that the democratically elected members of Hamas have been captured and imprisoned by this rogue state.”

In an interview with the Citizen yesterday morning, Mr. McNeely stood by the comments in the e-mail. He is so upset about the death and destruction going on in Lebanon that he had to speak out, he said.
--MPP calls Israel ‘rogue’ state, Ottawa Citizen, July 20

This comes on the heels of Thornhill MPP Mario Racco’s musings on the have-or-have-not Maritimes the other day:

Liberal MPP Mario Racco (Thornhill) told the Toronto Star that an Ontario NDP proposal to cap gas prices as is done in the Maritimes and Newfoundland is poor public policy.

Racco went further, saying it would be unwise for Ontario to follow the lead of the poorest region in Canada. “Tell me something, what’s the economic status of the Maritimes? Are they `have’ provinces or `have-not’ provinces? How is their economy doing? Why is it that Ontario has been doing much better than them?” he said. “The past performance would suggest to me their (the Maritime provinces’) approach hasn’t been as effective as it has been in Ontario. Why would we rely on their system?”
--Toronto Star, July 19

Premier Pinocchio immediately distanced himself from the comments of both MPPs – and he was already in Charlottetown.