'I raised that': Ryan Cleary admits he wanted Bob Buckingham out

Embattled Progressive Conservative candidate Ryan Cleary has admitted during an interview that he asked theprovincial NDP about running in Virginia Waters-Pleasantville, despite flatly rejecting that very question on Oct. 30.

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"That was one of the things that was mentioned in the meeting," Clearytold NTV'sLynn Burry, during an interview Thursday.

"I raised that."

Cleary says 'absolutely not'

The meeting in question involved Cleary, NDP Leader Earle McCurdy and several members of the party executive, Cleary said.

It occurred just days afterClearywent down to defeat as the NDP MP for St. John's South-Mount PearlOct. 19.

When asked that very question by CBC News reporter David Cochraneon Oct. 30, after rocking the political landscape by announcing he was joining the PCs, Clearysaid "absolutely not."

Cleary said he was seriously considering running for the NDP, and questioned how the party's candidate for Virginia Waters-Pleasantville, high-profile lawyer Bob Buckingham, could contestanelection campaign while also acting as defence attorney in an ongoing murder trial.

"You can't do both," Cleary said during the interview. "And then it was raised about whether I could run there."

Burry did not ask Clearywhy he didn't reveal that on Oct. 30, and Cleary has declined repeated interview requests from CBC News.

N.L. NDP is 'poisonous,' says Cleary

An NDP spokesperson, Jean Graham, said McCurdyquickly rejected Cleary'ssuggestion that he replace Buckingham.

A week later, Cleary announced he was joining the PCs, and is now the party's candidate in Windsor Lake.

Cleary has been heavily criticized for his decision, and admitted to Burry that he's been called a "hypocrite."

But Clearyrevealed a longstanding dislike for the provincial NDP, calling it "poisonous," and also explained an earlier comment about not seeing "eye-to-eye" with McCurdy.

Clearysaid he wasblamed for instigating a leadership revolt that resulted in a serious fracturing of the provincial NDP in the fall of 2013.

Cleary said he was disciplined by the party's federal leader, Tom Mulcair, andCleary"went off his head."

"I had absolutelynothing to do with it," Cleary said, adding that he later received an apology from Mulcair.

As for McCurdy, Cleary said his dispute with the party leader dates back to McCurdy's time as president of the Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union..

Clearyquestioned whether McCurdy and the unionwerein a conflict of interest. He said helearnedin early 2014 that the organization was receiving millions of dollars from the federal government to administer various programs, while at the same time being charged withrepresentingthe interests of the fishing industry.

Cleary also commented on what he said were disrespectful comments by McCurdy about PC Leader Paul Davis during a meeting with Mulcairprior to the federal election.

He said it all played into his decision to run for the PCs.

"I thought about how I felt about Earle McCurdy, as leader of the FFAW, as leader of the NDP, and the different things that happened with the provincial NDP down here, and in some ways it has been poisonous. And I did consider running for the NDP because it was the easy way. In the end I couldn'tdo it," he said.

When asked Friday about Cleary's comments, McCurdy said he was not willing to engage in a mud-slinging match.

He said hewould onlytalk about values, issues and NDP candidates.

"I have no interest in giving that story any more oxygen," he said.