ALEX CONSIGLIO
NEWS REPORTER

As the federal party leaders campaign across the country, they’ve had some explaining to do.

KEEP YOUR PANTS ON, JACK:
Some in the media have been questioning the health of NDP Leader Jack Layton, who has battled prostate cancer and recently had hip-replacement surgery. In response, Layton offered to strip in front of journalists for inspection. No one took him up on the offer.

TORY FRIENDS ONLY:
The Conservatives aren’t taking any chances at Stephen Harper’s rallies. Possible opposition supporters are being vetted and barred, like Awish Aslam, a University of Western Ontario student who was blocked from a rally in London, she said, because of a photo of her with Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff on her Facebook page.
Harper sidestepped the accusations: “I think it’s better when you are turning people away than when you can’t get people to come.”

LOOSE LIPS:
Ignatieff has had to deal with a couple of candidates whose past remarks caught up with them. First, it was revealed that André Forbes, Liberal candidate for the Quebec riding of Manicouagan, was a member of a white supremacist group who once called natives “featherheads.” He was abruptly dropped off the ballot by the party.
Then, the word came that John Reilly, Liberal candidate for the Alberta riding of Wildrose, had suggested not all sexual assaults warranted jail time. He apologized and was kept on.

SUN vs. CBC:
A CBC online test called the “Vote Compass” suggested it could help Canadians figure out which party best reflected their values. To date it’s had over 1 million responses, but critics say it’s slanted to the Liberals.
“If you’re giving opposite responses and getting the same result, that’s not correct,” a Queen’s University political science professor told the Toronto Sun.
In response, CBC said “the Sun/QMI chain has been misleading its readers about CBC’s Vote Compass… during an election when trustworthy journalism is so important to a functioning democracy.”