Chris Selley: Liberal minister’s thalidomide disaster an insult to Canadians’ intelligence

Chris Selley

Damage control is supposed to be a tactic for politicians, not a governing philosophy. If Kent Hehr said what they allege, he has to go; if he didn’t, he has to say so

The allegations levelled against disabilities minister Kent Hehr Tuesday by a group of thalidomide survivors seemed at first, to my mind, almost unbelievable. On their suffering, relative to the old days, Hehr allegedly told the survivors: “Well, you don’t have it so bad. Everyone in Canada has a sob story.” On their shortened life expectancies, he allegedly told them: “So you probably have about 10 years left then now. That’s good news for the Canadian government.”

The rush to judgment on Twitter seemed both confident and immediate. But come on, I thought. How could someone capable of saying something that patently insane to a group of victims — victims who are in a compensation fight with the federal government, no less — have made it in politics for 10 years, in the Canada legislature and now in Ottawa, without blowing himself up sooner?

A single misconstrued remark can send a sensitive conversation spiralling hopelessly out of control. Memories formed in fury are even more fallible than the other kinds. This had all the hallmarks of a wild misunderstanding. As such, I expected Hehr would find the most delicate possible way of explaining that he really didn’t say what the thalidomide survivors said he said. Because otherwise — surely to God — the only alternative would be to for him to make way, or be made to make way, for another disabilities minister. If he said anything like what he is alleged to have said, allowing him to stay on would be like appointing Don Cherry to be minister of official bilingualism.

Hehr got his chance to defend himself after Question Period on Tuesday, when he dutifully presented himself to reporters for interrogation. And he did not offer a defence.

Reporter: “Did you really say everyone in Canada has a sob story?”

Hehr: “We talked for a half-hour about the trials and tribulations of many people in this country and in fact about the difficult situations of the people with thalidomide. I understand how difficult their life has been as a result of that.”

Reporter: “But did you utter that phrase?”

Hehr: “We talked for a half-hour on numerous issues. We talked about the difficulty (they have had), the difficulty of many people with disabilities and the fact that our government is trying to build a better Canada through our ministry. I know for a fact that they’ve had a tremendous amount of difficulty. I want to work as hard as I can on behalf of their organization.”