Rebel News LIVE! Toronto 2022: Maxime Bernier

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Rebel News LIVE! is the best place to meet freedom-oriented newsmakers — and just as important, to spend the day with like-minded Rebel News fans from coast to coast.

In 2022, we brought Rebel News Live! to Toronto and Calgary.

The events started in the morning with a light breakfast, then we heard a bunch of speeches. Next, we had lunch, and then we got back to the speeches. And, for Premium ticketholders, there was a VIP dinner afterward with the Rebel News cast and our speakers!

Maxime Bernier's full speech can be seen above. Below is a brief teaser for non-subscribers, followed by a summary of the speech.

On Nov. 19, 2022, People's Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier was a featured speaker at Rebel News LIVE! just outside of Toronto.

Bernier's upstart People's party formed prior to the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the former cabinet minister abandoning the Conservative Party of Canada following a contentious leadership race. As the pandemic came to dominate the world's narrative, the PPC was the one federal political party that stood against the massive government overreach from near the beginning.

Second source of modern mass hysteria

In his speech at Rebel News LIVE!, the 59-year-old Bernier told those in attendance and watching online that he likely agreed with everything other speakers would say about COVID-19. Because of this, he said he wanted to focus on another subject of mass hysteria: the war in Ukraine.

While expressing sympathy for the innocent people on both sides that have been affected by the conflict, Bernier claimed this was another situation the global left-wing is trying to frame as the most important issue.

As losses of lives mount on both sides of the conflict, the PPC leader told the crowd that we should be focused on other, more local, issues. The geopolitical situation that led to this war, Bernier said, was much more complex than simply: Russia bad, Ukraine good.

Canada should have remained neutral, worked to establish peace

But it doesn't matter who is “good” and who is “bad” in this instance. The biased and dishonest corporate media, Bernier said, have drummed up support for this war that Canada never should have gotten involved with in the first place. In Bernier's opinion, Canada should have remained neutral, working with our allies to help establish a peace process.

After all, Ukraine isn't a member of NATO and Canada is under no obligation to defend the nation. In fact, Bernier said, there are dozens of ongoing conflicts around the world at any given time. Why don't we hear about these tragedies on a regular basis from the corporate media and why is the global political establishment escalating the Ukraine conflict, Bernier wondered.  

With no formal alliance between Canada-Ukraine and no fundamental interest in the country, Bernier said our leaders need to focus on their duty to defend Canada — not solve the world's problems.

Putin isn't the “new Hitler”

But some people say Russian President Vladimir Putin is the new Hitler and that if the West doesn't stop his aggression, he'll invade more European countries, potentially even NATO allies like Latvia. Because of his desire to negotiate an end to the war, Bernier described how some people have likened him to a modern Neville Chamberlain, the British leader synonymous with trying to achieve a pre-war peace with the Nazis.

This is different, Bernier said. Russia's economy is roughly the same size as Canada; it has no real ability to invade or occupy NATO countries. So, are we defending democracy in Ukraine, Bernier asked.

In his opinion, not really. Ukraine is an unstable country, far from a model democracy. In 2014, a coup removed Ukraine's pro-Russia president. More recently, Ukrainian President Voldomyr Zelensky has banned any pro-Russia political parties from the country.

Canada doesn't need to be involved in every country's conflict

Addressing the number of Canadians with Ukrainian heritage, the PPC leader said just because we have citizens from various countries doesn't mean we need to get involved in every one of these countries' conflicts.

We need to consider the Russian perspective, Bernier said. No matter what the CBC reports, Bernier is adamant he is no Russian asset for thinking this way. Even without sympathy for Putin, who Bernier described as a brutal tyrant who has imprisoned — and very likely killed — his political opponents and censored his country's media.

His values are not mine, Bernier reiterated. But that doesn't mean Putin's crazy and that his criticisms should be entirely dismissed.

NATO's continued eastward expansion helped cause this war

Putin's invasion of Ukraine, his “special military operation,” Bernier said, was because of NATO's eastward expansion. We need to remember, Bernier said, that the West is not the whole world; if the U.S. dollar collapses as the world's reserve currency, we will move from a U.S.-centric unipolar world to a multipolar world with emerging powers.

Through support for Ukraine, Bernier said, the West is not helping itself; rather, this support is causing the rest of the world to form a coalition against the West.

In closing, Bernier points to previous Canadian prime ministers who opposed becoming embroiled in foreign conflicts, like Jean Chrétien not joining the Iraq war and both Pierre Trudeau and Lester B. Pearson not joining the Vietnam war, with Pearson also playing a key role in defusing the Suez Crisis in the 1950s.

At the conclusion of his speech, Bernier then fielded questions from Rebel News fans in attendance.