Poilievre points at media to explain Rainbow Bridge 'terrorist attack' comments

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he was relying on media reports in the House of Commons when he referred to Wednesday’s explosion on the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls as a “terrorist attack.”

When a serious incident occurs, it’s customary for the Official Opposition leader to ask the prime minister for the latest update at the beginning of question period.

On Wednesday afternoon, Poilievre asked Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to update the House on the situation at the Rainbow Bridge.

“We’ve just heard media reports of a terrorist attack, an explosion, at the Niagara crossing of the Canada-U.S. border. At least two people are dead, one is injured. It is the principle responsibility of government to protect the people. Can the prime minister give us an update on what he knows and what action plan he will immediately implement to bring home security for our people?” Poilievre asked.

A vehicle exploded on the American side of the bridge, killing two people. U.S authorities said Wednesday evening that the explosion was not a terrorist attack.

During a press conference on Thursday, Poilievre was asked if it was responsible of him to label the incident as terrorism before officials had indicated whether that was the case.

The Conservative leader pushed back, pointing out that he was referring to media reports when he asked his question on Wednesday.

“What I said, and I was right, is that there were media reports of a terror related event,” Poilievre said Thursday.

He specifically pointed to CTV, which initially reported that Canadian security sources were operating on the assumption that the incident was terror-related.

“So do you think the CTV was irresponsible in putting up that tweet?” Poilievre shot back at the reporter who asked the question on Thursday.

Senior government sources also told CBC News on Wednesday afternoon that the Canadian government was told that the initial investigation was being approached as a possible terrorist incident because it was an explosion at a critical infrastructure point.

The sources said that in such incidents, the operating assumption is that an explosion is a deliberate act until it’s proven otherwise.

Poilievre timeline in question

On Thursday, Poilievre only pointed to CTV when talking about the “media reports” to which he was referring. But it appears Poilievre asked his question in the House before CTV’s reporting was published.

The timestamp on the article indicates that it was published at 2:39 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Subsequent tweets from the article’s author and CTV itself were published at 2:40 p.m. and 2:50 p.m. respectively. Poilievre asked his question at 2:25 p.m.

A number of American news outlets had begun reporting the incident as a terrorist attack before CTV’s article was published. A Fox News reporter tweeted that the explosion was a terrorist attack just before 2 p.m. on Wednesday.

The Liberals, who have been trailing Poilievre’s Conservatives in the polls recently, seized on the moment to accuse the Tory leader of not taking responsibility.

A vehicle burns at the Rainbow Bridge U.S. border crossing with Canada, in Niagara Falls, N.Y., in a still image from a video. (Courtesy Saleman Alwishah via Reuters)

“Instead of owning up to his mistake like a leader would do, instead of recognizing that what he did was irresponsible as any leader would do and any Canadian would be expected to do, he doubled down,” Government House Leader Karina Gould said Thursday outside the House of Commons. “This is not leadership.”

During a panel discussion on CBC News Network’s Power & Politics, former Conservative cabinet minister James Moore said news outlets can get things wrong, but added Poilievre could have owned up to his mistake.

“The unfortunate thing is that there’s an economic incentive to be first when you’re in the media. But there’s a moral and ethical incentive to be correct and I think those things often get lost,” he said. “Politics can fall into that trap as well.”

Pierre-Yves Bourduas, a former deputy commissioner of the RCMP who now runs a public safety management company, said Poilievre’s statement in the House was “regrettable.”

“These types of declarations need to be supported by clear evidence,” Bourduas said. “Otherwise, panic could set in within the general public.”

The Rainbow Bridge reopened to traffic late Thursday.