Kenney denies Caylan Ford was 'handpicked', says racism claims were ‘completely absurd’

CALGARY — Former Alberta premier Jason Kenney has refuted claims that Caylan Ford was a “handpicked” or “parachute” UCP candidate, contrary to information published by Press Progress.Taking the stand at the Court of King’s Bench on Monday during Ford’s defamation lawsuit, Kenney said he had never heard of the plaintiff before she initiated contact at a 2017 UCP event in Marda Loop, adding that he encouraged her candidacy but rejected reports that he orchestrated her nomination.He also disputed that she lacked ties to the Calgary community, noting she had grown up in the riding of Calgary-Mountain View, which she sought to represent.Kenney described Ford as an “optimal candidate” at the time, citing the party’s interest in recruiting younger, female contenders, as well as how impressed he was by her intellectual background and her work on the Falun Gong movement and human rights issues in China — issues Kenney took an interest in.However, he emphasized to the court that he made no promises to her about securing a nomination.“I made it clear to all prospective candidates that they would have to win their nomination on their merits,” Kenney said. “I did not endorse any nomination candidates, it would be inappropriate for a leader of a party to do so."Justice Lorena Harris heard Kenney also testify about his knowledge of growing tensions between Ford and political activist Karim Jivraj, telling the court that Ford had told him the two had initially been friends and shared intellectual interests before their relationship began to deteriorate in 2018..'I’M WILLING TO BE A TEAM PLAYER': Caylan Ford recounts resignation talks in court.According to Kenney, he was told Jivraj began acting “irrationally” towards the plaintiff, making threats and becoming “extremely hostile.”The former premier also revealed he had seen erratic behaviour from Jivraj first-hand at several political events, recounting an incident during a campaign function where Jivraj appeared intoxicated, asked a “long, rambling question” during a Q&A session, and became loud and aggressive at a post-event reception.Kenney said similar behaviour occurred at several other events.“It became quite common to see his conduct in a way that appeared to be public drunkenness,” Kenney stated, adding he decided to distance himself from Jivraj going forward.On the night of March 18, 2019, when some of the Facebook Messenger texts between Ford and Jivraj were made public through a Press Progress article, Kenney said he was briefed by staff members that the NDP had released them.He testified that he viewed Press Progress as closely tied to the NDP, describing it as “an astroturf organization” and “an organ of the Broadbent Institute.”Kenney told the court the party’s initial response was to dismiss the allegations, defending Ford’s record and background, adding that the notion she was racist and a white supremacist was “obviously ridiculous” and “completely absurd.”However, he said the situation quickly escalated over the course of the evening as the story gained more momentum.“It was very clear to us by then that they had a well-developed plan they’d probably been working on for weeks or months,” Kenney testified..'OUTRIGHT LIES': Caylan Ford tells court Jivraj spread false claims during UCP race, later alleged assault .He added that campaign officials became increasingly concerned about the possibility of additional messages being released, especially after learning Ford had deleted her records of the conversation with Jivraj.Knowing her background, Kenney said his initial response was to stand by Ford, but it soon became clear that the controversy posed a massive risk to the UCP.Kenney told the court campaign officials thought the controversy could dominate the crucial opening week of the election and distract from core campaign messaging.Given that uncertainty, Kenney said he decided it would be too risky to allow Ford to remain as a candidate and said Ford herself had offered to "proactively" step down in a phone call earlier in the evening.“It was a very bitter decision because I was a big fan of the plaintiff and her candidacy,” he said, but added he was concerned about the other candidates and wasn’t prepared to “jeopardize” the outcome of the election because of her candidacy.In cross-examination from Perry Mack — defence counsel for the Broadbent Institute — Kenney stated he viewed the comments attributed to Ford as “contentious” but believed her to be a good person.“I believe and still do believe that the plaintiff is a person of good faith and has no hatred in her heart,” Kenney testified.He did, however, acknowledge the language used was still “very problematic” and carried the risk of benefiting the party’s political opponents.

Kenney denies Caylan Ford was 'handpicked', says racism claims were ‘completely absurd’

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