A Canadian premier has come under fire after it was revealed he could spend nearly half a million dollars of taxpayer money on a self-proclaimed ‘radical Marxist comedian’ to help write his speeches.
British Columbia Premier David Eby, 48, secretly hired stand-up comedian Charles Demers, 45, in January of this year – signing a contract that pays him a staggering $165 an hour, with the potential to earn up to $450,000 Canadian dollars ($325,945 USD), according to leaked documents.
Officials have raised two major concerns about the move – the first being Demers’ political stance, as his self-proclaimed identity as a ‘lifelong Marxist’ has sparked controversy and criticism over the years.
In a 2018 interview with CBC, the comedian declared: ‘As a teenager, I was in a radical communist sect, with a Marxist newspaper published in New York that we sold on street corners.’
Secondly, British Columbia is grappling with a record-breaking $11.6-billion deficit – the largest in the province’s history – and critics are now blaming Eby for what they call tone-deaf spending decisions.
‘Premier Eby is telling families and small business to brace for cutbacks while his government quietly signs contracts worth nearly half a million dollars for a comedian,’ B.C. Conservative Peter Milobar said in a statement, according to Juno News.
‘In the middle of the largest deficit in B.C.’s history, this is not only tone-deaf, it’s offensive to every taxpayer,’ he added.
‘At a time that we’re supposed to be having a hiring freeze, at a time that we’re supposed to be seeing potential cutbacks to the workforce, the premier’s office – as long as it suits the premier’s needs – seems to spend money.’
Hellbound and Down 