Tories give boot to Tony Clement
Scheer says MP no longer a member of Conservative caucus after sexting scandal
OTTAWA — Longtime Conservative MP Tony Clement was forced out of his party caucus Wednesday, the day after he admitted to sending someone sexually explicit images and a video.
He said in a statement issued Tuesday evening that he’d sent the images in the last three weeks to someone he believed to be a “consenting female” but who later demanded money if Clement didn’t want them posted publicly.
Initially, Clement resigned only as the party’s justice critic and from his committee roles; Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer didn’t ask him to leave the party caucus. He said he was taking Clement at his word that the “terrible lapse in judgment” had been a one-time thing between two consenting adults.
But after the story broke, allegations washed over social media, largely from young women, that Clement’s online behaviour was not so pure. He’s long been known to be a prolific user of social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Several people online Wednesday said that Clement had used Instagram in particular to connect with numerous young women and message them privately.
“New information became available today that suggests there are allegations that this is not an isolated incident and therefore I’ve asked Tony to resign from caucus and he has done so,” Scheer said later in the day.
He said an internal party investigation hadn’t started but that, or a Parliamentary one, was not out of the question.
He said the Conservative party has a code of conduct for MPs that he expects them to follow.
“I don’t know that too many people . . . have to be told not to share explicit images and videos with people that you haven’t met, but obviously this is a terrible decision, extremely poor judgment,” Scheer said.
Clement did not respond to numerous attempts by The Canadian Press to comment on the allegations. However, in an email to The Globe and Mail he denied harassing anyone on social media.
Clement has also made some posts himself that included sexual overtones. He once posted a Valentine with his own caricature and the words: “Hey girl, come lobby this caucus member.” Another time, he publicly posted a picture of himself shirtless.
Of particular concern in Clement’s case was the risk to national security when an MP with top security clearance opened himself up to an extortion attempt. Clement was an original member of the new National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians, created in 2017 to oversee national security and intelligence activities carried out across the government.
Scheer said both the RCMP and the security officials in the Privy Council Office were investigating to determine whether national security had been put at risk.