Radwanski interview 'hard to stomach' Former privacy commissioner George Radwanski dug himself in even deeper in a Global TV interview Sunday in which he blamed his problems on underlings, denied a "reign of terror," and explained away his hundreds of thousands of dollars in expense claims, say Parliamentarians.

"The man has more gall than Caesar," said New Democrat MP Pat Martin.

"He seems to be using the O.J. Simpson defence, which is deny everything and hope for a miracle because there's such overwhelming evidence in direct contrast with everything he says."

Liberal MP Reg Alcock described Radwanski's defence as "hard to stomach," Canadian Alliance MP Paul Forseth said "it was over the top," and Martin added that the disgraced former privacy watchdog "has compounded his problems."

In an exclusive interview with Global Sunday, Radwanski spoke for the first time about a scathing audit last week from Auditor-General Sheila Fraser, who reported that the scope of abuses, cronyism, extravagance and misuse of taxpayers' money in Radwanski's former office was beyond her "wildest dreams."

She has asked the RCMP to investigate Radwanski's spending habits.

Martin, Alcock and Forseth, who all sit on the Commons committee that first uncovered Radwanski's suspicious spending, noted that he still fails to acknowledge blame or a pattern of abuse.

They singled out his defence against allegations that he presided over a "reign of terror," bullying and humiliating his staff of 100 and even banishing those he disliked to another floor so he wouldn't have to see them.

"Yes, I could be tough, but never vicious or cruel," said Radwanski, who said his aggressive management style was no different than that of prime-minister-in-waiting Paul Martin.

"Story after story, profiles of the next prime minister, Mr. Martin, talks about how he goes into rages at his staff and screams at them to the point where they call it, 'the beatings,' " Radwanski said.

"It's sort of tossed in and no one says this individual is unfit for any public office or what not. I never yelled at my staff, I never abused people. I never was personally critical of them. I would criticize their work and I was demanding."

Radwanski comparing himself to the future prime minister is "laughable," said Pat Martin, the New Democrat MP.

"By all accounts, Paul Martin's people revere him and work hard out of respect and enthusiasm for the job. Radwanski's people paint a picture of an absolute horror of a man," Martin said.

Radwanski, who has a law degree, told Global Sunday if he is guilty of anything it was trusting some senior officials in his office. The reward for "working my guts out," he said, has been public humiliation.

He explained his lavish travel and hospitality bill over two years -- in which he and his senior director-general of communications, Dona Vallieres, spent $500,000 staying at posh hotels, eating extravagant meals and flying first-class around the globe -- as a failure on the part of the public to understand the costs of international travel.

"I do understand that for the average Canadian struggling to make ends meet, not travelling like that, not going to restaurants like that, the reaction is, 'Who does this guy think he is?' " said Radwanski. "Well first of all, this kind of travel I was doing, travelling almost constantly, mostly within the country but also internationally on short trips, believe me it's only glamourous to those who don't get to do it."

In her report, Fraser pointedly referred to a $100 breakfast for two in Hawaii. Radwanski said it was the going rate in hotels frequented by business travellers.