Liberal MP Anthony Housefather has decided to stay in the Liberal caucus even though his party supported an NDP motion in favour of Palestinian statehood."The adoption of the motion and all the events that preceded it have angered me as much as they angered most of the Jewish Canadians that I have communicated with," the Montreal MP said in a press release Friday."But I also know that my core values remain Liberal ones and after serious reflection, I believe my greatest value to Canadians is staying in caucus to advocate for the centrist classical Liberal Party that I believe in."The NDP motion originally called on the government to officially recognize Palestine as a state and to "suspend all trade in military goods and technology with Israel."Most Liberal MPs supported the motion after late amendments. The final wording urged the government to "work with international partners" to "pursue the goal of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East," and to work "towards the establishment of the State of Palestine as part of a negotiated two-state solution."The motion also was amended to call on the federal government to "cease the further authorization and transfer of arms exports to Israel," rather than suspend trade in military arms and technology.Housefather, Ben Carr and Marco Mendicino were the only Liberal MPs to vote against the amended motion.At the time, Housefather told CBC the motion suggested "a false equivalency between the State of Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas.""Canada should be standing with Israel. Canada should be defending the right of Israel to fight back against a terrorist organization. We should not be passing motions that make a terrorist organization equivalent to a democratic state," he said.On Friday, Housefather told CBC News Network's Power & Politics that recent conversations with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau regarding his concerns about antisemitism in Canada prompted him to stay with the party."I had very, very painful discussions where we talked about what I felt was not enough action by the government. And he said, 'Come work with me, come work with (special envoy on Holocaust remembrance and combating antisemitism) Deborah Lyons, play a leadership role on this file and we will fix it,'" Housefather told host David Cochrane."That was a meaningful thing to me and I want to be part of that work."Still, Housefather told Cochrane the motion was "absolutely terrible.""I can't pretend to say that everything the government will do will be something that I agree with, but at least I'll have my voice at the table," he said."If my voice is not there, that's taking away a pro-Israel voice away from the party that's in power."Housefather, the MP for Mount Royal, Quebec, is also Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board. He is a member of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights and Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.
Liberal MP Anthony Housefather has decided to stay in the Liberal caucus even though his party supported an NDP motion in favour of Palestinian statehood."The adoption of the motion and all the events that preceded it have angered me as much as they angered most of the Jewish Canadians that I have communicated with," the Montreal MP said in a press release Friday."But I also know that my core values remain Liberal ones and after serious reflection, I believe my greatest value to Canadians is staying in caucus to advocate for the centrist classical Liberal Party that I believe in."The NDP motion originally called on the government to officially recognize Palestine as a state and to "suspend all trade in military goods and technology with Israel."Most Liberal MPs supported the motion after late amendments. The final wording urged the government to "work with international partners" to "pursue the goal of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East," and to work "towards the establishment of the State of Palestine as part of a negotiated two-state solution."The motion also was amended to call on the federal government to "cease the further authorization and transfer of arms exports to Israel," rather than suspend trade in military arms and technology.Housefather, Ben Carr and Marco Mendicino were the only Liberal MPs to vote against the amended motion.At the time, Housefather told CBC the motion suggested "a false equivalency between the State of Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas.""Canada should be standing with Israel. Canada should be defending the right of Israel to fight back against a terrorist organization. We should not be passing motions that make a terrorist organization equivalent to a democratic state," he said.On Friday, Housefather told CBC News Network's Power & Politics that recent conversations with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau regarding his concerns about antisemitism in Canada prompted him to stay with the party."I had very, very painful discussions where we talked about what I felt was not enough action by the government. And he said, 'Come work with me, come work with (special envoy on Holocaust remembrance and combating antisemitism) Deborah Lyons, play a leadership role on this file and we will fix it,'" Housefather told host David Cochrane."That was a meaningful thing to me and I want to be part of that work."Still, Housefather told Cochrane the motion was "absolutely terrible.""I can't pretend to say that everything the government will do will be something that I agree with, but at least I'll have my voice at the table," he said."If my voice is not there, that's taking away a pro-Israel voice away from the party that's in power."Housefather, the MP for Mount Royal, Quebec, is also Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board. He is a member of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights and Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.
