Watch above: Independent Senator Patrick Brazeau takes questions after submitting an application for press accreditation.
Senator Patrick Brazeau has found work back on Parliament Hill.
The controversial senator was left without a regular income when the Senate voted overwhelmingly last month to suspend him without pay, but he’ll now begin pulling in some income as a freelance reporter for a Halifax magazine.
READ MORE: Brazeau’s payments put on hold during two-year suspension
Brazeau took to Twitter last week, asking a number of media outlets whether any was interested in hiring him.
“I’m looking for work. It’s not a joke,” he wrote.
One outlet bit.
Brazeau will be covering the Hill for Frank Magazine, a bi-weekly satirical magazine focused on political scandals.
“He approached us,” said Frank’s managing editor Andrew Douglas. “I thought he was joking, but we talked and it sounded like a great idea to me … I think it will be fun.”
READ MORE: Suspended senators still eligible for pensions
Brazeau delivered his application for part-time Parliamentary Press Gallery accreditation Monday afternoon, but the terms of his agreement with his new employer are loose.
Douglas said he is interested “first and foremost” in the embattled senator’s coverage of the ongoing Senate scandal.
“But he has free reign. We’ll see what he writes about,” he said. “He’s obviously got an interesting point of view. He’s coming from a different place than most reporters would be coming from. He knows what it’s like on the other side.”
After submitting his application, Brazeau said much of his focus would be on the “so-called Senate scandal,” saying he doesn’t foresee a problem maintaining objectivity on the file—a standard to which most reporters are held.
Brazeau has no background in journalism, but said the attempt to get back on the Hill where he will have access to the very politicians who turned against him has nothing to do with revenge.
“This is an exercise in trying to get to the heart of the matter, asking some very direct questions and, hopefully, getting answers to questions that many Canadians deserve,” he said.
Brazeau was suspended from the upper chamber in early November along with Senators Mike Duffy and Pamela Wallin. The three senators allegedly collected allowances and expense claims to which they were not entitled.
Each lost their Senate salaries and access to Senate resources, but retained some medical benefits.
Brazeau has consistently denied any wrongdoing, painting himself as a scapegoat used so the Conservatives could save face in the matter.
The embattled senator is also facing assault and sexual assault charges stemming from an arrest in Gatineau, Que. earlier this year. Brazeau was consequently kicked out of the Conservative caucus.
Brazeau wouldn’t comment on those charges Monday afternoon, only saying he’s excited to get back to work and being a contributing member of society.
“When you don’t have work, it’s very difficult to be able to support a family. But I’ve found work, I’m excited to begin and it will be a new chapter in my life,” he said.
Brazeau’s application is still pending approval from the Parliamentary Press Gallery executive, though he can get a temporary pass giving him access in the meantime. The executive is expected to meet within the next two weeks.
Douglas said he is expecting Brazeau to submit at least one or two articles per publication, but the actual output will depend on “how prolific he is.”
Asked what about Brazeau’s pitch piqued his interest, Douglas said he just simply liked the idea of it.
“Frank exists to make people in power uncomfortable, and I can’t think of any other way I could make some of those senators feel more uncomfortable than having Patrick Brazeau in front of them,” he said.
The hire is a bit of an experiment, Douglas admitted, saying he’s unsure of how this whole thing will play out.
“I have absolutely no idea how this is going to work,” he said. “It might blow up in our face, it may be tremendously successful, it may be somewhere in between.”
Brazeau was suspended from the upper chamber in early November along with Senators Mike Duffy and Pamela Wallin. The three senators allegedly collected allowances and expense claims to which they were not entitled.
Each lost their Senate salaries and access to Senate resources, but retained some medical benefits.
Brazeau has consistently denied any wrongdoing, painting himself as a scapegoat used so the Conservatives could save face in the matter.
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