Liberal operatives planted 'stop the steal' buttons at conservative conference

Two Liberal Party staffers attended last week's Canada Strong and Free Networking (CSFN) Conference where they planted buttons that used Trump-style language and highlighted division within the Conservative Party.

The conference, often referred to by its former name, the Manning Conference, is an opportunity for conservative-leaning Canadians to talk about policy proposals and network. It was held at the Westin Hotel in downtown Ottawa.

Some attendees noticed buttons appearing at the event.

One said "stop the steal" — an apparent reference to Donald Trump's attempts to overturn the result of the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

The Liberal Party of Canada has sought to tie Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to the American president in speeches and ads. Some Conservative supporters have expressed skepticism about polling numbers that put the Liberals ahead.

Another button had the name "Jenni Byrne" crossed out, with the name "Kory Teneycke" underneath. Byrne is the national campaign director for the Conservative Party of Canada. 

Teneycke is a longtime Conservative strategist, who played a key role in Ontario Premier Doug Ford's re-election campaign. He has been deeply critical of the Conservative Party of Canada's campaign to date.

The buttons were scattered in the event space in a way to give the impression that they were made and left by people attending the conference.

In fact, the idea came from the Liberal war room.

On Friday night, in two Ottawa bars, campaign workers shared how the party was behind this move — how two Liberal Party staffers attended the conference intended for conservatives and placed these buttons in areas where attendees would find them.

One of those conversations was in the immediate earshot of this journalist. A Conservative source overheard the other conversation.

The Liberal Party did not respond to a request for comment, but also did not deny their campaign's involvement. 

"It's unfortunate, but not surprising that the Liberals would seek to misrepresent the views of attendees of our conference," said CSFN spokesperson Alex Spence in a statement.

"These divisive, gimmicky tactics say more about the Liberals than they do of the united and growing Conservative movement."