The Parti Québécois has shown one of its candidates the door for posting anti-Muslim comments over the span of several years on social media.
Pierre Marcotte was supposed to be formally named Wednesday — which marks the seventh day of the election campaign — as the PQ candidate for the Drummond-Bois-Francs riding.
In a blog post on xaviercamus.com, screen captures show Marcotte’s postings on his Facebook page from 2015.
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“Islam is dangerous,” he wrote. “We have to ban this religion the way we ban pitbulls and sawed-off rifles.”
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He also recommended immigrants “be obligated to eat a few good slices of bacon” in order to move to Canada.
Marcotte also took aim at politicians, calling Québec Solidaire co-spokesperson Manon Massé a “femi-nazi” in 2017. In another post, he claimed the left-leaning party had been “infiltrated by Islamists.”
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He also accused Quebec Liberal Party Leader Philippe Couillard of “rolling out the red carpet” for the Islamic State.
When asked about Marcotte’s views on the campaign trail, PQ Leader Jean-François Lisée said he was disgusted by the comments.
“We fundamentally disagree with some of his opinions, his writings,” Lisée said.
“We consider that Islam is a religion as respectable as others.”
After Marcotte was ousted from the party, the leader also admitted the PQ didn’t properly vet the would-be candidate.
“There is someone who didn’t do their work over the past six days,” he said.
— with files from The Canadian Press
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