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Rick Mercer Report: Paul Calandra's fragrance would be called 'Obfuscation'

Monday, December 2, 2013

There's a new smell coming out of Ottawa these days and, according to the Rick Mercer Report, it's Paul Calandra's obfuscation.

A fragrance commercial parody was uploaded to YouTube on Monday poking fun at the Tory MP tasked with deflecting questions about the Senate expense scandal in question period.

Calandra, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, has received criticism from opposition parties and a variety of pundits due to his penchant for throwing out anecdotes, insults and accusations rather than answering questions.

But, according to the popular CBC show, those habits make him the perfect pitchman for a fragrance that "says everything, and yet nothing at the same time."

"Go ahead," the ad concludes. "Dare to muddy the waters."

This isn't the first time Calandra has been ridiculed over his question period performance since Parliament resumed in October.

PressProgress put together a video of the MP saying the words "very clear" 24 times in 45 minutes.

And a hilarious website has popped up — askpaulcalandra.com — which allows users to feel just as frustrated as the opposition.

But it's possible the negative attention is beginning to take a toll.

On Friday, Liberal MP Sean Casey asked the Tories which law firm would defend Conservative Senator Irving Gerstein for his "role in the cover-up in the PMO."

Calandra's response suggested he is aware his style is not everyone's cup of tea.

"On a daily basis, I am asked to get up in the House and I am asked a lot of questions. When I answer, on occasion the opposition gets all upset and some in the press get all upset with the way I answer questions," Calandra said. "However, when there is a question like that, how can one answer a question like that, a question that is so completely disrespectful of this place? There are two options: I could answer it back just as disrespectfully, or I could do what I am about to do and ignore it."