Anglade Accused Legault Of Suggesting People Who Didn't Vote For The CAQ Aren't Quebecers

Liberal leader Dominique Anglade is accusing Premier François Legault of suggesting that people who didn't vote for his party, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), aren't Quebecers. The accusation follows a raucous National Assembly question period on February 3 that dove deep into the thorny trenches of the Quebec language debate.

The specific comment with which Anglade took issue isn't audible in the debate or recorded in the official transcript, but apparently came after the Liberal leader accidentally called the National Assembly president "Mr. Québécois" instead of "Mr. President."

Liberal MNA André Fortin later said the premier had interjected at that moment by saying "Well yes, he is a caquiste," a member of the CAQ. "What he is saying is that everyone who is not a caquiste is not a Quebecer," Fortin said. He called the comment "beneath" the office of the premier and said he expected an apology for Quebecers.

After the question period, Anglade said the suggestion was an example of a "politics of division."

At a press conference in Sherbrooke, Legault said he would not apologize for the comment and tried to reframe the discussion around a proposed requirement for some provincial judges outside of Montreal to be bilingual, one of several topics that emerged from the February 3 National Assembly debate.

"I never said I'm only supporting CAQ, I think that, again, Parti québécois and Québec solidaire have the same position [as] me" concerning judges, the premier said. "We cannot ask for all new judges to be bilingual."

"I'm proud of defending our nation," he continued, referring to the judge issue.