Two weeks after her former boyfriend allegedly referred to her as a dog in the House of Commons, Belinda Stronach was called a bitch on a popular Vancouver radio show by a former chief of staff to then-prime-minister Brian Mulroney.
Ms. Stronach is not demanding an apology of Norman Spector, who was also Canada's ambassador to Israel.
"I have been a politician for a short time and I have developed thick skin so I think people will judge Norman Spector's comments for what they are," said Ms. Stronach, an auto-parts heiress who became a Conservative MP before crossing the floor to the Liberals.
But she made it clear she found the remarks more than a little distasteful.
"I think Norman Spector has some issues that he needs perhaps to deal with," she told reporters who waited for her after a late afternoon committee meeting. "I do find it somewhat appalling that such crude language can be used in particular by a former public official. And thank goodness he no longer represents Canadians."
Mr. Spector was a guest on the Bill Good show when he was asked about remarks allegedly made by Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay.
Liberal opposition members say they asked the Foreign Minister during Question Period if he was not concerned about the effects that bad air would have on his dog --to which they say he replied, "You already have her," as he gestured toward Ms. Stronach's empty seat.
Mr. MacKay has repeatedly denied the remarks, which do not appear in the official transcript of the House of Commons but can be partially discerned on an audiotape of the event.
Mr. Spector told radio listeners that Ms. Stronach's breakup with Mr. MacKay, as well as a role she is alleged to have had in the marital problems of former Toronto Maple Leaf Tie Domi, rendered her a bitch.
"I think she's a bitch. It's as simple as that," Mr. Spector said. "And I think that 90 per cent of men would probably say she's a bitch for the way she's broken up Tie Domi's home and the way she dumped Peter MacKay. She is a bitch."
Mr. Spector did not back down from the remarks in a telephone interview late yesterday.
"I think it's the perfect choice of word that the Oxford English Dictionary describes as 'malicious or treacherous,' " he said. "So I think as an analyst of politics, I chose the right word."
Mr. Spector noted that he has never been a member of the Conservative Party and that as chief of staff to Mr. Mulroney, he was seconded from the public service.
"I have no concerns about the Conservative Party, or the Liberal Party or any other party. I'm speaking as an analyst. And as an analyst, I think the behaviour she showed, particularly when she crossed the floor and that whole incident, qualifies as treacherous."
Mr. Spector also told the radio show that the issue about Mr. MacKay's remarks would not have remained in the public domain if it were not for the number of female reporters in the Ottawa Press Gallery.
"Half the Press Gallery now are women and women find this very offensive," he said.
Ms. Stronach said she found that remark insulting toward the female reporters on Parliament Hill because it suggests that they have a bias in the way they do their jobs.
Mr. Spector's entry into the "dog" fray came on the same day that House Speaker Peter Milliken said he could not act further on a point of order raised by Ms. Stronach over Mr. MacKay's alleged remark.
There is a dispute over whether the remark was actually said and it is not his job to determine where the truth lies, Mr. Milliken said.
Ms. Stronach said she respects the Speaker's position, but the incident "shows we have a long way to go in the House of Commons because this is our place of work and it's not appropriate to make comments like that in our place of work."
With a report from Bill Curry