via: email newsletter | Rebel News

By Ezra Levant

I was turned down for a mortgage last week by the Royal Bank.

Ouch!

Rebel News was looking to buy an office building in Calgary for our growing staff.

At first I was embarrassed by this rejection — after all, I’m nearly 50 years old, I’ve been a Royal Bank customer for 22 years.

How humiliating!

But then my embarrassment turned to anger.

Because the Royal Bank loans officer who reviewed my application told me my mortgage was only cancelled because Rebel News has the wrong opinions.

I recorded that phone call, because it’s too incredible to believe without proof (click here to listen for yourself).

It’s an absolute scandal: the Royal Bank has a blacklist of Canadians it considers political enemies.

And no surprise, Rebel News and I are on that list. (I wonder who else is.)

I made a short video showing what the Royal Bank’s mortgage officer told me, and what he wrote to me in emails, too. He said, again and again, that we have sterling credit, and that the bank’s Calgary branch really wanted to approve the Rebel News building.

But Toronto ordered them to cancel it:

How ironic. We wanted to buy an office building so that we could never be cancelled or deplatformed. And even before we bought it, we were cancelled and deplatformed.

(But I have a plan to buy the building anyways — I’ll tell you about it in a moment.)

The bank’s Calgary branch went through our mortgage application with a fine-tooth comb. We showed them everything — our Rebel News financial statements, going back years. My personal finances, because I agreed to personally guarantee the mortgage. We showed them all the details about the office building. We had an independent appraisal done. We even sent over environmental reports and structural inspections.

The Calgary bankers were so impressed that they hopped on a Zoom call with me, and even joked that our application was so strong, they wanted to give Rebel News mortgages for two buildings, not just one!

And right after that call, they sent me an email confirming it. Not only did they agree to a mortgage, but they wanted to offer us a huge line of credit too. I didn’t ask for a line of credit, but that’s how good they felt about Rebel News as a customer.

Click here — I will show you a copy of that incredible email in the video.

I was so excited. This building was going to be my big New Year’s announcement to our viewers: to tell you about our new office, not just for us at Rebel News, but for all conservatives sick of being deplatformed and cancelled.

It would be an office building for other conservative journalists and political activists, for campaigners, for public intellectuals — the kind of place the left has so many of.

And I tell you one thing: in our building, we certainly wouldn’t be asking people nosy questions about their private medical status in order to work there!

The building makes sense in so many ways. Calgary has a 30% office vacancy rate right now — so prices are very affordable. I don’t think we’ll ever have such a great opportunity to buy a building of our own.

But then the Toronto office of the Royal Bank just killed the deal. And they refused my repeated requests to meet with them or even just to talk to them on the phone.

I guess some things never change — don’t trust the Royal Bank if you’re a conservative or a westerner.

Frankly, I’m worried that they’re going to try to cancel my home mortgage, too.

But I’m not going to let them win. I think we should go ahead and buy this building together — crowdfunded by Rebel News’ viewers! (If you agree, click here.)

So let me tell you a bit more about the building.

It’s going to be the Rebel News office. We’ve got six journalists in Calgary now, and we’re growing. But we don’t need a whole building just for them.

Here’s the big idea: we’re also inviting other like-minded conservative and democracy groups to work out of the office building too.

I’ve spent the past few months calling fellow travellers and telling them about it and everyone is pretty excited. For example, our friends at True North have agreed to put their Calgary staff in there too. I’ve talked to five groups that are actively considering it.

It’s going to be amazing. I imagine a place not just for established groups but for start-ups, like a Silicon Valley incubator, where conservative activists have a desk, and wifi and a mailing address, to get started.

We’d each have our own offices. But there would be common areas — a lounge area and cafeteria we’d all share; and there would be a big boardroom that any of us could book. And other really useful rooms — like a YouTube studio and a podcasting studio that anyone in the building could use. It’s called “co-working” in real estate lingo, but it would be just for people who work in freedom-oriented politics and media and organizing.

The building is pretty big — more than 15,000 square feet. Some space is already rented out, which helps cover the costs, but gives us room to expand in the future. So there’s going to be a lot of space for public gatherings. It’s going to be a place for speakers, for events, for townhall meetings, for book launches, even for conferences.

It’s un-deplatformable. And maybe that’s why the bank killed it.

I’ve been toying with different names for the building, like the “Freedom Factory”.

The “Centre for Democratic Unity” is growing on me — I know it sounds a bit lefty, but I think it works. Everyone there is working to make our democracy better. And unity — well, imagine all these conservative groups that are splintered right now, coming together under one roof.

There’s a lot of splittism in conservative politics right now. How about some common purpose?

Just seeing each other and talking with each other every day in the common areas, or at events, will be amazing. I’m already recruiting conservative leaders and thinkers for a monthly speakers series in the common areas there — I’ll be sure to invite you. That’s the whole point of this place.

The left has a ton of these buildings, by the way — I actually stumbled into one by accident in Toronto. I couldn’t believe where I found myself: every Tides Foundation and Soros Foundation leftist was hanging out there. Free wifi, a desk, software, other services.

But mainly, they were building a sense of community and camaraderie. It was more than just an office; it was a team. They learned from each other, supported each other. And they were winning.

We don’t have anything like that on our side. And it’s time we did.

That’s why this building is so important.

I told the bank I was going to put my life savings in as a downpayment on the building, and I’d guarantee the mortgage personally and with Rebel News.

I’m all in. You heard what the mortgage officer said on the phone — he was impressed by that.

(Here’s a longshot: if you or someone you know is in a position to replace the Royal Bank’s mortgage — or even a chunk of it, please tell me. If you’re a serious real estate lender or investor who doesn’t discriminate against conservatives, I’ll show you the mortgage application I gave to the Royal Bank. Please send me an email to Ezra@RebelNews.com if you are in a position to lend us the money, secured against the building, and if you think a mortgage rate of 5% is a good rate of return.)

So maybe a miracle will happen, and an angel investor will give us the mortgage that the Royal Bank won’t. But I’m not counting on it.

So let’s see if we can do it ourselves.

Many hands make light work. Let’s crowdfund it — a permanent home for Rebel News, but also for other conservative groups.

Brick by brick we’ll buy this place. And instead of owing money to the bank, we’ll own it outright. And if we do, we can make it available to whomever we choose — not to whomever Trudeau or his bankers choose. Instead of having a liability, let’s have an asset, and use it to build our movement.

I am completely committed. I know our team is. I know other conservative groups are excited about this, too. Will you help us, please? Or will you let Trudeau and his friends at the Royal Bank blacklist us?

If you want to defy Trudeau and the Royal Bank, please click here or go to BuyTheBuilding.ca. And if you help me, I promise you we will make that building a fortress from which we will fight for freedom every day.

Please go to BuyTheBuilding.ca and chip in whatever you can.

We need a lot of help — more than we’ve ever needed before. But it can be fun too — if you can help us with a $250 donation, we’ll have a brick with your name and a short message from you on it, so we’ll see that every day as we pass by.

If you donate $1,000, we’ll give you a brick, plus engrave your name on a brass plaque that we will hang on our boardroom wall.

And if you can afford to chip in $5,000 — we’ll put your name on a cornerstone of our office.

And if you are a guardian angel who has the ability to help us beyond our expectations, if you are in a position to donate $50,000, we will officially name a key room in the office after you — like the boardroom; or the YouTube studio or the podcasting studio.

The pandemic and the lockdowns have shown the value of Rebel News. We’ve never done more important journalism. Our motto “telling the other side of the story” has never been more relevant. We now have 52 staff across the company — we need an office in Calgary. But this new building isn’t just for us. That’s why I like the name “Centre for Democratic Unity”. This building will be a home for the entire movement!

Please go to BuyTheBuilding.ca and help us out. I wanted to buy an uncancellable building — but then the Royal Bank cancelled it. We can’t let them have the last word.

Thank you.

Yours truly,

Ezra Levant

P.S. It’s a scandal that a chartered bank keeps a blacklist of Trudeau’s political enemies. But you know the saying: don’t get mad, don’t get even, get ahead. Let’s use this setback to actually buy the building ourselves, without Trudeau’s bank involved. Click here to help!

P.P.S. I have spoken to other conservative and freedom-oriented media, think tanks and activists, who are all interested in moving their offices into this building, too. Wouldn’t it be great to have a space of our own? The left does it — maybe it’s time we do too! Click here to learn more.

P.P.P.S. I’m hoping that we can crowdfund most of the cost of the building. But if anyone reading this is a seasoned real estate investor who would consider picking up the loan that the Royal Bank threw out, please send me an email, at Ezra@RebelNews.com. I know it’s a long shot, but I have to ask!