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Retired Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis is loving his newfound freedom, even if his old party isn’t.

“I can speak my mind,” he told The Gargoyle Wednesday. “I’ve got views and positions. And if it doesn’t sit well with some folks there, what can I say?”

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Party insiders couldn’t stop talking about Karygiannis’s appearance on a political talkshow Tuesday evening alongside Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett. The one-time colleagues locked horns on the issue of abortion.

Karygiannis, who surprised many by announcing in January that he was stepping down after a quarter-century in the House of Commons, is proudly anti-abortion.

He suggested during the testy exchange with Bennett that the party will be hurt by leader Justin Trudeau’s requirement that all aspiring Liberal candidates commit to voting in favour of a woman’s right to choose.

Bennett, who chairs the national Liberal women’s caucus, defended Trudeau’s decision.

Some Liberals were clearly unimpressed with Karygiannis’s appearance, while others chuckled at seeing the equally outspoken Karygiannis and Bennett going toe-to-toe.

Karygiannis wasn’t worried by the reactions, and suggested he’s not finished yet.

“For a long, long time, I would be called to go and make comments, and the party would say ‘No, you’re not going,’ ” he said. “So now, they call me, I’m going.”

lberthiaume@ottawacitizen.com

Twitter.com/leeberthiaume