Trudeau says Poilievre ‘has to run to American billionaires’ to attack CBC

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attacked Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre Monday for urging Twitter to label CBC as “government-funded media,” the morning after the social media platform added the tag to CBC’s account.

“When they’re trying to attack a foundational Canadian institution, the fact that he has to run to American billionaires for support to attack Canadians says a lot about Mr. Poilievre and his values,” Trudeau said at a press conference. He said Conservatives are “always there to defend” tech giants.

“I think it says a lot about the Conservative Party of Canada. They’re choosing to constantly attack independent media organizations, journalists who are working hard to keep Canadians informed and support our democracy.”

Speaking in French, Trudeau also criticized Poilievre for “pretending” he can go after English-language CBC but not French-language Radio-Canada.