A top Conservative party official charged with election spending violations has let forth a flood of Twitter messages trying to distance Prime Minister Stephen Harper from the case, as opposition MPs kept up their criticism of the campaign-finance controversy.
Sen. Doug Finley, the Conservative campaign manager and the party's director of political operations, shot out dozens of tweets Wednesday night to defend Prime Minister Stephen Harper ("PMSH") over the campaign financing case.
"Anyone who thinks PMSH was that deeply involved in campaign is an idiot," Finley said in one tweet. "Campaign makes millions of decisions in 35 days. Think."
Finley is one of five party officials charged by Elections Canada with "willfully" exceeding spending limits in the 2006 federal campaign by more than $1 million.
He had not commented on the charges since they were made public last Thursday, but signed up for the social networking site Twitter the same day and immediately started using it to speak out on the election spending charges.
"Inevitability used to be death and taxes. Now add Liberal rhetoric & hypocrisy," was one of his tweets in response to Liberal charges over the scheme, known as "in and out" financing.
And after the election spending charges became the focus of a stormy question period Wednesday, Finley scoffed at NDP Leader Jack Layton and Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff.
"Intrigued by Layton Iggy on Elxn spending," he wrote. "Would win OTT [over the top] in any forum."
Ignatieff accused the Prime Minister of encouraging his party officials to break the law and defraud Canadian taxpayers, while Layton demanded that Harper kick Finley out of the Conservative caucus.
For someone new to social media, Finley appeared comfortable engaging his audience. One of his followers quickly chimed in with support: "The twitter crowd R hated filled Liberals enraged that they don't have power + that Cdns R happy w Harper gov."
Finley replied: "Couldn't have said it better myself. Thanks."
The Senator, who has maintained his innocence of all charges, is also undergoing chemotherapy treatments for colon cancer, which he mentioned in one tweet.
"Bad Chemo cycle. Unlike first two. OK now," he wrote. "Elxn Cda stuff no help. Convinced of innocence helps. Also support from friends."
Ignatieff has said the Liberals will make the in-and-out election financing scheme central to the next federal election campaign.
"This is fundamentally an issue about the prime minister's character," he said Wednesday. "And if I have to say this a thousand times, we will make this stick."
All three opposition parties chimed in on the controversy again during question period on Thursday.
"The irony of course is the Conservatives let this scandal happen in an election, in which they were running against a Liberal scandal, the infamous sponsorship scandal," NDP Jack Layton charged.
"Imagine that? Moving money in and out to go after the Liberal government that was playing fast and loose with money," he added. "No wonder Canadians think something's broken up here."
The Conservatives have played down the charges from the start, calling the matter as an accounting dispute between the party and Elections Canada.
On Thursday, Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre described the administrative charges as "typical back and forth that you could expect from a five-year-long administrative dispute of this kind."
Earlier this week the Federal Court of Appeal overturned a civil court victory the Conservative party had said was vindication in the case and confirmed Elections Canada's interpretation of electoral spending laws.
A Conservative spokesman said the party will appeal the ruling.
The disputed national advertising expenses were claimed as local advertising by 67 Tory candidates in the 2006 election.
Elections Canada maintains the scheme allowed the national party to exceed its spending limit by $1.3 million, while letting candidates claim rebates on expenses they hadn't actually incurred.
