Andrew Telegdi
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Andrew Telegdi, PC , MP (born May 28, 1946 in Budapest, Hungary) is a Liberal Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons. Telegdi was elected in the riding of Waterloo in the general election of 1993, and in the riding of Kitchener—Waterloo in the elections of 1997, 2000, 2004, and 2006.
Telegdi is known for his blunt outspokenness on several issues. A Hungarian expatriate who entered Canada as a refugee, Telegdi has spent much of his parliamentary career on civil libertarian and immigration issues.
Telegdi emigrated with his family to Canada in 1957. He attended the University of Waterloo in the 1970s, and served two terms as president of the Federation of Students, UW's student union, in 1973-1974. After graduating, he became executive director of Youth in Trouble with the Law, and was a board member of the Working Centre (St. John's Soup Kitchen). Telegdi was also appointed to the board of governors of Wilfrid Laurier University.
Telegdi was a city councillor in Waterloo, Ontario from 1985 to 1993 while at the same time he was a regional councillor in the RM of Waterloo.
He ran for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as member of the Ontario Liberal Party in the 1990 provincial election, but finished third against Progressive Conservative Elizabeth Witmer in the riding of Waterloo North. He won an easy victory to the Canadian House of Commons three years later, however, and has been re-elected by comfortable margins since that time.
Telegdi was appointed parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Citizenship of Immigration on July 16, 1998, but resigned the position on May 18, 2000, claiming that he could not support certain provisions in the government's proposed Citizenship Act. He was particularly concerned with a clause which gave Canada's parliament the right to remove a person's citizenship. Commenting on this issue, he said "For me, my citizenship comes before my party."
During this controversy, Telegdi argued that placing parliament above the courts on citizenship issues was similar to "what Hitler used to do". Telegdi was widely criticized for this comment, particularly in that the sitting minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Elinor Caplan, was Jewish. The Canadian Jewish Congress called for Telegdi's removal from the Liberal caucus. In response, Telegdi noted that his stepfather was a Jewish refugee from Romania, and claimed his comments had been reported out of context in a sensationalistic manner. He also issued the following statement: "What I have said is that a liberal democratic state such as Canada should never remove citizenship lightly. That is what Hitler did to Jews, Gypsies and many others. That is what Stalin did to millions. All totalitarian regimes have engaged in these practices."[1] He also issued an apology for his comments to the House of Commons. This controversy does not appear to have hurt Telegdi's standing with the local electorate.
Telegdi is a liberal on most social issues. He is a strong supporter of gay rights and same-sex marriage. He also opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq as unnecessary, noting that his own childhood years had been spent in neighbourhoods ravaged by the horrors of war.
For several years, Telegdi was a supporter of Paul Martin in his bid to succeed Jean Chrétien as leader of the Liberal Party. Soon after Martin succeeded Chrétien as Liberal leader and Prime Minister, Telegdi was appointed parliamentary secretary to the Prime Minister with special emphasis on Aboriginal Affairs. He held this position until just after the 2004 election and is currently vice chair of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration[2].
| Preceded by: federal riding created in 1996 |
Member of Parliament for Kitchener—Waterloo (1997-present) |
Succeeded by: (Incumbent) |
| Preceded by: Walter McLean, PC |
Member of Parliament for Waterloo (1993-1997) |
Succeeded by: federal riding abolished in 1996 |
