A day after Casey's call for Trudeau to step down, what do the other 3 Island MPs say?

A day after Charlottetown Liberal MP Sean Casey publicly called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down as party leader, CBC News asked the Island's other three Liberal MPs where they stand.

Only Lawrence MacAulay, the veteran MP and cabinet minister from Cardigan, provided a concrete response, saying he continues to support Trudeau's leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada.

"It was under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership that we lowered the retirement age back to 65 and boosted OAS for seniors 75 and over, made historic investments in our infrastructure and small craft harbours, delivered the Canada Child Benefit and $10-a-day child care, dental care, and pharmacare, and made massive steps forward on the environment,"MacAulay said in an email statement.

"These are the things that matter to Islanders, and he has my full support."

Malpeque MP Heath MacDonald declined an interview but staff said his office would issue a statement in support of Casey's position. They later called back to say there would be no statement Wednesday.

There was no response from Egmont MP Bobby Morrissey.

MP Sean Casey says some Liberals are privately supporting his bid to have Trudeau quit as leader

13 days ago

Duration 2:52

Charlottetown MP Sean Casey says he's getting private support from several members of the federal Liberal caucus a day after he said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should step down as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada ahead of the next election.

Casey, meanwhile, said his phone has "blown up" with messages of support following his exclusive interview with David Cochrane on CBC'sPower & Politics on Tuesday, where he said he agrees with what he is hearing from his constituents that "it is time for [Trudeau] to go."

The feedback that I've received from people in the riding and from people that I know has been overwhelmingly positive and supportive. Liberal MP Sean Casey

But there has also been some online "hate," he said in an interview Wednesday afternoon.

"The feedback that I've received from people in the riding and from people that I know has been overwhelmingly positive and supportive. And the feedback that I've received on social media, especially Twitter, is filled with hate."

He said about half a dozen fellow Liberal MPs, including Morrissey and MacDonald, have complimented him for speaking out.

"The only ones who are reaching out to me, I would say, are those who feel the same way as I do and haven't yet stated so publicly."

'It's time for him to go': P.E.I. MP Sean Casey urges Justin Trudeau to step down as Liberal leader

14 days ago

Duration 2:17

Charlottetown Liberal MP Sean Casey says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should step down as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada ahead of the next federal election. During an interview on Power and Politics Tuesday, Casey told CBC's David Cochrane: 'It's time for him to go.'

In an earlier interview Wednesday on CBC-Radio's Island Morning, Casey said people have told him they don't want another four years of Trudeau, but don't like the idea of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre as prime minister either.

"I knocked on 500 doors this summer, I've knocked on about 4,000 in the last year and a half, and you get on somebody's doorstep and they look you in the eye and they say, 'I'm scared to death of Poilievre, Sean. I want to vote for you, but I just can't' over and over again."

Liberals down in the polls

The CBC's Poll Tracker suggests the Liberals are trailing the Conservatives by roughly 20 percentage points.

An election must be held by next October, but because the Liberals have a minority government, a non-confidence vote in the House of Commons could trigger one sooner than that.

UPEI political scientist Don Desserud said he expects more Liberal MPs to speak out on Trudeau's leadershipas they see the writing on the wall.

They're pretty sure it's not going to turn out OK for the incumbent Liberals, and that's a significant statement to make at this stage.Don Desserud

"It's not even, 'Well, you know, maybe it will be all right, maybe things will turn out OK.' They're pretty sure it's not going to turn out OK for the incumbent Liberals, and that's a significant statement to make at this stage."

Casey isn't the first Island politician to call for Trudeau to step down. Percy Downe, an independent member of Canada's Senate with long ties to the Liberals, wrote anopinion piecethat was published in National Newswatcha year ago calling for the prime minister to resign as leader of the federal party.

Last month, Downe published a follow-up letter, writing, "The opportunity for Justin to resign was last winter, and that window to give a new leader the opportunity to establish themselves with different policy and budgetary decisions is now past."