Reporter Calls Out Mark Carney For Saying Danielle Smith Is "Stupid", Then Pressed On F35 Delay

When you were leaving the press conference, you spoke with Minister Robertson, and I want to read what you said out.What are you doing?This is stupid.You've got an off -ramp.Take it.That to me sounds like you're talking about Daniel Smith.

No, I was about Minister Robertson.Look, I have, I think...

Mark Carney was already under pressure when reporters confronted him about a comment that they overheard him say that was rather unprofessional after a scrum yesterday.Shortly after that, the conversation shifted to the controversial and often waffling subject of the F -35 and whether the government would actually walk away from it in favor of the lower generation Swedish Gripen.Now, Mark Carney came out and said that this is going to be solely focused on operational requirements.But the question is, why haven't we made our purchase decision already?Because the operational requirements have been determined years ago.Let's take a look.

What are you doing?This is stupid.You've got an off -ramp.Take it.That to me sounds like you're talking about Daniel Smith and the Alberta referendum question.

I was talking to Minister Robertson.

Can you clarify what you were discussing at that point in time?Because the scrum was about what the Smith had done.

It was about Minister Robertson.I'm going to take your question about the relationship with Canada and Alberta, Canada and the federal government, and the provinces.We practice cooperative federalism.We work together.What we're focused on is making the federation work.We're doing that with Alberta, with respect to a variety of aspects of energy.

It's much more than a pipeline.It's nuclear.It's interconnects with British Columbia.It's a new industry of carbon capture.It's restarting the renewable market.It's getting a carbon market that actually works, that other provinces can be able to join, so we can broaden out a national carbon market.

That's what we're doing there.We're here talking about defense industrial strategy, the benefits of the announcement we just made around the negotiations led by Secretary of State Kerr and President Guzman on the Global Eye, and the fact that That will bring a third of the production of those aircraft to Canada, of the global production, a minimum of a third, to Canada, benefits for supply chains in Quebec and also across the country.That's what we're focused on and that's the thing.That was not about the...My answer is my answer, thank you.

So isn't this interesting?Mark Carney has a look of extreme concern at the beginning when the reporter is actually asking the question and that shifts to Uh -oh, and then that shifts to complete embarrassment because he was just caught probably calling Daniel Smith stupid in front of the press gallery.Not exactly the thing that you want to say when you're trying to say that we're not dividing, we're trying to work with everybody, and we're trying to adopt cooperative federalism.So he tries to shift and say, no, no, I was calling my minister stupid, okay?With regard to what?And if it was just a joke, Why couldn't you just say, well, yeah, you know, it was it was to do with this.

And, you know, we had a laugh about it afterwards.It didn't really mean anything.Done.And it would have actually humanized him more as a prime minister.But instead, he says, oh, well, yeah, I was a bit Robertson, but I'm going to completely reframe your question into the question that I want to answer, and that's what I'm gonna answer.And then when the reporter kind of comes back at him later, like, okay, that didn't answer the question.

Well, my answer is my answer.Calm down, Mr. Carney.I thought this was a bad thing to do.kind of be talking down to reporters like that.No?Only for conservatives?

Got it.Okay.But it's these interactions that keep creeping in with Mr. Carney, with the reporters.We should hear some more conversation online about how Mr. Carney treats reporters, especially female reporters, because he seems to treat them with a lot more hostility than he does the men.Just an observation about the party that considers itself the feminists.

You've decided to buy Saab's Global Eye.

Yes.

When is Canada getting submarines and are you prepared to buy Griffins?

I didn't catch the last...

And are you prepared to buy Griffins?

Well, first, we will take those decisions, both of those decisions in due course after proper deliberation and taking into account of all the considerations.First and foremost, operational requirements of the Canadian forces.Secondly, very importantly, the broader industrial benefits So, we will take Mr. Carney at his word.

Top priority, operational requirements from the Canadian forces.Okay, got it.Well, Mr. Carney, this is now May of 2026.We've been talking about the F -35 for more than 14 years, okay?14 years.And there is stacks of evidence that the operational requirement question has been settled.

Now, there's a lot of people online that have opinions about the F -35 versus the Gripen.There's a lot of people that have different stats they want to cite, but here's the bottom line.When it comes to the equipment that we're using in this country, the people that we should be actually listening to and the only opinion that actually matters are the people, the men and women that are actually going to be using this equipment to defend Canada and to keep their lives safe while doing it.That's it.So the people that actually understand the requirements, the people that write the requirements, maybe those are the people that the government should actually be listening to.Just a thought.

So if you don't believe me, Take a look at this.F -35 beat Gripen fighter jet by a mile in 2021 defence department competition.Data obtained by Radio Canada shows Lockheed Martin jet was clear winner.The American built F -35 fighter jet dominated its Swedish rival Gripen in terms of technical and military capabilities during a competition held by the defence department in 2021.The competition focused on each fighter jet's capabilities in defending the North American continent and the likelihood of success in various missions against modern military forces.The F -35 got a score of 95 % on military capabilities, with a total of 57 .1 points out of 60.

By contrast, the Gripen E finished with a score of 39 .5.netting 19 .8 points out of 60, according to the Department of National Defence, ranking obtained by Radio Canada.The gap is particularly significant in scoring for mission performance, an ability to upgrade the aircraft over its life cycle.Asked to comment on the results of the competition, D &D said the review of the F -35 purchase is ongoing.The Department of National Defense assessment suggests the Gripen's results were quote -unquote systematically inferior.to the F -35 in terms of military capabilities," said Justin Massey, a defence expert at the Université du Québec à Montréal.

He said the results are particularly interesting as Canada is reviewing the possibility of buying fewer F -35s in favour of Gripens.Quote, Do we want a less capable aircraft for Canada?End quote, Massey said.Former Royal Canadian Air Force Lieutenant General Yvan Blondin says the numbers confirm there is no real competition between the F -35 and all the other American or European aircraft that were once in the running for the Canadian contract.The F -35's advantages reside in its greater stealth and ability to integrate information from various military assets such as ships, other F -35s, and surveillance aircraft, he said.When you compare them, they're not even close, said Blondin, who retired from the Canadian Armed Forces in 2015.

Quote, the F -35 is the best fighter jet in the world by far.End quote.Still, another retired officer, Charles Duff Sullivan, argued the Air Force has long wanted the F -35 and that the criteria used in the 2021 competition favored the aircraft.F -35 defenders launched counterattack against Swedish fighter jet proposal.A dozen former high -ranking Air Force officers sent lettersbacking F -35 purchase.

Former high -ranking officers of the Canadian Armed Forces are mounting a defence of the planned acquisition of 88 American F -35 fighter jets, hoping to put an end to the ongoing courtship between the Canadian government and the Swedish firm Saab.According to information obtained by Radio Canada, a dozen former high -ranking officers of the Royal Canadian Air Force sent a letter to the federal government to reiterate the benefits of acquiring a full fleet of F -35s to meet Canada's military needs.The signatories are hoping to prevent the Canadian government from reducing its F -35 order and replacing that capability with Gripen E fighter jets made by Saab, a Swedish industrial giant that promises to create thousands of jobs in Canada.According to sources, the signatories of the letter include Tom Lawson, who was Chief of the Defence Staff of the Canadian Armed Forces from 2012 to 2015.In an interview with CBC News, he refused to comment on the letter but raised questions about plans to purchase Gripen fighter jets.Quote, Unfortunately regarding the F -35, there is just nothing available in the free world that comes close to the quality of the F -35.

End quote, he said.Quote, The F -35 is so far beyond anything that the Gripen can provide.that anything you'd be saving in terms of money by going to a second fleet would be lost because that fleet would be close to useless in a wartime situation.It really does make us nervous as we watch our elected officials romance the Swedes in this case." former Canadian Armed Forces Chief of the Defence Staff.

Just to go back to the F -35s, you are actually considering then to go to a mixed fleet, even though it requires two sets of hangars, different pilots, different mechanics.That's what you're considering.And so to just answer that first, a mixed fleet,okay for fighter jets, but not good for your submarines?

Well, to be clear, Mr. Chair, the program is under review.There's many outcomes.Nothing's been decided.I think the Minister and the Chief of Defence were very clear, nothing's being held up.The program is under review and that's it.

And no outcome and no decisions have been made.So under the comments that were made at committees last week, we had the commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force, chief defence staff in the past, the deputy minister of defence have all said the F -35 is the plane we need and we need to have our pilots in stealth.The threat is from stealth aircraft.Why would we consider anything else?

As I said, the program's at a review.Nothing has been stopped.So if you follow that logic, we are still getting the aircraft.It's in production.We're building the infant.The program is under review.

The outcome hasn't been determined.It's a very, very important decision and we'll take the time we need.We need to get the decision right.

So the decision actually was made.It was made back in 2023 when Justin Trudeau announced that we were going to be purchasing 88 F -35s.And then all of a sudden it wasn't finalized.somehow, for some reason.And the problem is, is during this whole time, this is what doesn't get talked about enough.During this whole time, the Royal Canadian Air Force has been configuring their hangars and their facilities to receive the F -35.

This needs to be talked about, because if Mark Carney wants to talk about money, if the Liberals want to talk about money, oh, well, you know, we're concerned about cost.We've already been spending a lot of money on retrofitting these hangars across the country to receive the FDU.that they were told was going to be coming.And they were told this three years ago.The other thing that needs to be considered is that Mark Carney will also talk about the fact that, oh, well, you know, there's going to be lots of jobs that are going to be coming.And, you know, there's going to be Canadian companies that are going to be involved.

And there's already Canadian companies that are involved in the F -35.So what are you going to tell them?Because you may actually be costing tens of thousands of jobs for the companies that are actually helping in the production of the F -35 already.And when we need to upgrade it later on, they will no doubt be a part of that.So what are you going to tell all the Canadians that are going to lose their jobs just so you can give more jobs?And this is the shell game that Mr. Kearney tries to create because he sacrifices tens of thousands of jobs over here only to get less jobs over here.

But he jumps up and says, oh, we're adding all these jobs.And everyone says, oh, look at the banker go.Meanwhile, we have a net loss of jobs.So this is what the ministers or the deputy, sorry, parliamentary secretary, Mark Carney keeps creating these titles like, you know, they're candy.Don't listen to him.Don't listen to me.

Listen to this person.

I want to just start off quickly just talking about, there was again a comment made by Ambassador Hoekstra to CBC that if Canada doesn't buy the F -35s that the U .S.will then have to pick up the slack and flag their F -35s in Canadian airspace to intercept any potential threats.So if I can talk to General Spicer -Banchette as to her position on the F -35sour sovereign control of airspace without F -35s?

Thank you for the question, Mr. Chair.So I would offer that Canadian presence in NORAD absolutely reduces the risks and increases Canada's autonomy and ability to defend itself.The F -35 is one of the capabilities that Canada has decided to procure, in addition to several others that are part of an overall system of integrated air and missile defence that will ultimately strengthen Canada's ability to defend.

So the F -35, though, would be the most interoperable from the fighter jet platform requirement that we would have?and would be the best one to put Canadian pilots in to protect themselves and protect Canada?

So the F -35 is the only fifth generation advanced technology fighter aircraft available to Canada and was selected in the competition that was conducted by the Government of Canada.And it is the only one at this moment that can meet all of the most advanced adversary threats that we are seeing that are being promulgated and advanced technologically from Russia and from China.was selected due to advanced stealth capabilities, data sensor and sensor fusion, and increased lethality.So it has, with its advanced radars and detection systems, the ability to remain undetected and see further distances to essentially engage before being detected and also to integrate massive amounts of information from the battle space through the cockpit and be able to I guess, think more in terms of doing a lot of those calculations for the pilot.And all of these things have led to the F -35 being selected and beingwhat would be necessary against adversary fifth generation threats.

Ladies and gentlemen, this committee meeting, as noted, was January of 2026.So this is a current general in the Canadian Air Force, and she is there talking about, this is why we need it.Some people out there will say, well, you know, the Gripen's faster and it can land on a road if needed.Okay.You know how many roads are in the Arctic?not many.

If they did land on a road, you know what a pain in the butt?It would actually be to actually get equipment out there to service it.And they'll say, well, you know, it's too cold.Okay.Tell, tell that to the Americans that are running the F -35s out of Alaska.Tell them that.

I'm sure they would be interested to hear that the cold is a problem for the F -35 as they're flying out of, out of Alaska.So this is the point, and this is where it makes a lot of sense to me.So number one, the F -35 slots into the North American Defense Strategy and North American Defense System under NORAD.And the computer systems that are on the F -35, they are designed not just to look at their own sensors and provide information to the pilot.It takes information from aerial reconnaissance, from naval reconnaissance, and it takes all of that information and incorporates that into the intelligence it's providing the pilot.Gripen doesn't do that.

So when people are trying to say, well, one -on -one, you know, the Gripen can outperform the F -35 because of its speed and, well, okay.What good is speed if you can't see the target?And this is the issue.And this is why the F -35 performs far better.Well, you know, the Gripen has better range.What's the point if you can't see the target?

This is the issue.And what's the point when you have one aircraft that is taking intelligence from virtually every single military asset in the operating theater and aggregating that for the pilot versus the fourth -generation fighter that does not?And the general even says, we need to be going up against Russia and China.And people are talking about using fourth -generation fighters to do that when they're going to be having their own fifth -generation fighters coming at us.I don't think that's a wise idea.When Mark Carney talks about operational requirements and his secretary to the Minister of Defence is saying, well, you know, it's under review.

The review's over.The RCAF have drawn up their requirements.They've said this is what they need.The decision has been made on what they need.It's been made back in 2021.It was made by Justin Trudeau in 2023, and it's been made now.

They're already in the process of outfitting all of their bases around the country to actually receive the F -35.Can we get this governmentthe Liberals out of the way that have just been waiting and the cost is going up for the F -35 as we keep going?We could have had this at a fraction of the price, but we've waited so long and we're continuing to wait that the price is just escalating to the point where it's going to be costing billions of dollars more, tens of billions of dollars more than if we had purchased them in the first place.So the decision has been made.Stop cozying up to your European buddies, stop making this about politics, and start making this about the only thing that should be important.

Operational requirements and protecting the Canadians actually using the hardware.Get it done.