Last June, Naheed Nenshi began his campaign to lead the Alberta NDP by observing that Premier Danielle Smith and the United Conservative Party “only know how to do two things: They know how to pick fights and they know how to waste money.”
About the same time, Calgary-Varsity NDP MLA Luanne Metz refined that concept a little, noting that they “pick fights and waste your money.”
Ms. Smith and the UCP, meanwhile, apparently remain determined to prove the truth of the new NDP leader’s observation.
The UCP War on Doctors hasn’t ended
If you were relieved that the UCP’s long War on Doctors appeared finally to be over, thanks to the pay agreement with the province’s physicians announced last spring, you’re in for a disappointment if not a complete surprise.
The Alberta Medical Association, which bargains collectively on behalf of the province’s physicians, revealed yesterday that while the pay deal is ready to be implemented, the government appears to be stalling. AMA Past President Paul Parks told media the deal was supposed to take effect this month. Instead they’re being told the Treasury Board is still twiddling its thumbs.
“The impact of indecision and inaction is that Albertans’ health-care access will deteriorate and many will suffer and some will sadly and needlessly die,” Dr. Parks told a news conference. “You can’t sign a lease, you can’t hire staff, and you can’t run a clinic based on hope.”
The new pay formula, moving away from the fee-for-service model, was supposed to stop the province from haemorrhaging doctors, if readers will pardon the metaphor. It’s probably too soon to call it a broken promise, but the delay does suggest the UCP doesn’t really mind if a few more docs pull up stakes and depart for greener pastures.
Municipalities are stuck with the tab for UCP’s MAGA policies
Alberta’s municipalities, traditionally the farm league for aspiring Conservative politicians, no longer seem to have the ear of the UCP Government.
Many municipal politicians are furious about the UCP’s decision to channel MAGA conspiracy theories and ban electronic tabulation machines, which they say will slow down counting and dramatically increase local election costs.
Yesterday, St. Albert Mayor Cathy Heron said she’ll be taking a motion to the Alberta Municipalities convention tomorrow in Red Deer calling on the group to beg the province to allow the use of tabulators, which are not the same as U.S. voting machines.
St. Albert, a city of 70,000 northwest of Edmonton, has been using the tabulators for years, she told the CBC. “They’ve provided timely, efficient, and quite honestly accurate counting of our residents’ votes. So we want to continue that because now we’re going to get the exact opposite. We’re going to get less timely, and less accurate, and much more costly counting of the votes.”
Ms. Heron said the City of Red Deer has estimated the tabulator ban will cost it $1 million to count the results of the October 2025 municipal election. And she said Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver told her the province doesn’t actually distrust the machines, it’s just that “a certain part of the population” has indicated they don’t trust ’em. We all know what part of the population that is and why Mr. McIver is paying attention.
Ms. Heron called the policy a knee-jerk reaction, which seems fair. Alas the province is unlikely to change its tune when it falls to municipalities to pay the freight.
Premier gratuitously insults new Alberta Senator
In an appearance Saturday before the Canada Strong & Free Network, the re-branded Manning Centre, Ms. Smith lit into the federal Liberals’ choice of Kris Wells, a post-secondary educator and champion of Alberta’s 2SLGBTQI+ community, assailing the St. Albert resident as “a radical, extreme LGBT activist.”
Yeah, we get it. The premier would have liked it better if the prime minister had appointed the Conservative winners of the province’s performative and constitutionally meaningless “Senate nominee elections,” and it’s all very well for her to complain they were not chosen. But to gratuitously insult the new Senator shows a distinct lack of class.
By contrast, Senator Well’s response was genuinely classy. “I’ve known @ABDanielleSmith for over a decade,” he tweeted. “She knows my door is always open to meet with her any time she wants to talk about evidenced-based policy, rule of law, and human rights. There’s nothing radical about following the Canadian Charter of Rights & Freedoms.”
Some MAGA UCP members take aim at Danielle Smith
To be fair, Ms. Smith doesn’t pick every fight she gets into.
Consider the email to members of the UCP’s MAGA base risibly accusing Ms. Smith and the UCP cabinet of “holding secret meetings on how to implement Sharia law here in Alberta.” The email bears the name of Nadine Wellwood and the “1905 Committee.”
Ms. Wellwood was once an anti-vaxx former People’s Party of Canada candidate and UCP nomination candidate in the Livingstone-Macleod riding that Premier Smith calls home. In November 2022, she was skidded by the UCP’s candidate selection committee for comparing vaccine passports to Nazi policies. The 1905 Committee appears to be a new home for disgruntled Take Back Alberta cadres.
The proximate cause of the dissatisfaction with the premier appears to be comments made by Ms. Smith last spring to members of the Muslim community that the UCP would consider allowing mortgage financing structured to accommodate the religion’s prohibition of interest charged on loans, as well as finding ways to “give Albertans the flexibility to observe major faith-based cultural holidays more easily.” The letter also suggests the group thinks tax money for religious schools should only go the Christian variety.
Now, with a leadership review vote at the party’s Nov. 1 and 2 annual general meeting in Red Deer, such policy considerations appear to have put the premier in conflict with some of her previously most passionate MAGA supporters in the party’s base.
NOTE: Yes, everything political seems to happen in Red Deer. The simple explanation is that the city of 100,000 or so souls is exactly half way between Calgary and Edmonton. Ms. Smith, who complains bitterly that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is sending too many immigrants to Alberta, also suggests she’d like to see Red Deer grow to a million people. You can’t make this stuff up.
Yes, the list of enemies of Smith and the UCP is amazingly long and seems to keep growing. At this point I suspect it is close to half of Albertans they are suspicious and negative about, which of course likely includes most of those who voted against them and probably even some who voted for them.
I had hoped that the Nixonian approach to politics the previous UCP Premier Kenney seemed at times embrace might diminish after the UCP replaced him. But unfortunately the UCP chose a successor more sympathetic to conspiracy theories and those that spread them. Her head is so far in that hole, so she is very suspicious of anyone who has another view of the world.
So, she attacks AHS, doctors, health care workers, teachers, the education system, municipal leaders, academics … and the list goes on and on.
So hospitals are to be transferred to friendly religious organizations, funding is for more for new private schools and public transit expansion for a major city is sabotaged. These are not coincidences, but consistent signs of Smith and the current UCP leaderships world view.
This is not the reasonable sounding government Smith tried so hard to portray to us in the last election. But many have already noticed that while Smith is capable of sounding reasonable for brief periods of time, it is not something she does for long.
Personally, as a result of keeping track line by line of her ‘policies’ as they emerge from the cesspool that is the TBA/UCP government, I don’t think she ever sounds reasonable.
There are two other things the UCP is good at: delaying and distracting. Remember the renewables energy moratorium, which effectively killed that industry in Alberta? Remember the Green Line moratorium and funding withdrawal that has effectively killed that project? Well, grizzly bears! Take that, peasants! Laser focus on the 7000 grizzly bear hunting licence applications! Look over there, not over here. Don’t keep reminding us of our failures. We don’t just kill industries and projects. We are very successful at inviting people to do actual killing of endangered species.
Speaking of the Green Line LRT, is “Make Ric McIver Retire Again” trending yet? To the former Calgary alderman and transportation minister, thanks for nothing, Ric. Keep on keeping silent about the Green Line, which is is an issue in the constituency you claim to represent. It wouldn’t do to cross the premier, would it?
If Ric McIver’s silence can be attributed to Danielle Smith, I will consider voting UCP.
What I see in the Tabulators ban is the Reform (UCP) cynically downloading yet another unnecessary expense onto Alberta Municipalities, while opening up all kinds of challenges to elections where the “wrong” people get elected.
Just part of the overall scheme to take power from Albertans by limiting the power of their Municipalities to influence the Reform (UCP) aims.
Are we back on Sharia law ,oh my before Steve Allen and during Steve Allen’s war ,this was a theme
Next comes the 7 virgin thing ,yawn
The UCP are acting like a full blown dictatorship. It’s time they are dumped.
It really looks like Smith is slipping into default mode of “tongue clutch slip” – tongue engages before brain.
Or maybe her brain is catching some neutral and letting tongue do it’s own thing?
Interesting stuff. Somehow misguided though, does Smith think by having Red Deer grow to a million people that it will remain a rural stronghold, or will it shift to just another Edmonton / Calgary where the UCP will not do well? As noted above and on Bill Maher the other week… “You can’t make this stuff up.” is really fitting for Trump and of course Smith. Maybe a bunch of people (maybe 10000) can jump in and buy UCP memberships then vote out Smith at her next leadership meeting? The problem is while Smith is horrible, who is there that could fill those shoes will any sense of reality?
I see the Alberta Taliban is at it again! Mimics. That’s our government now. Such a sad story. They aspire to show us the glory of? Oklahoma? Really? Our host does not make this stuff up! For our “Be Bestest” Premier? Only the Bestest will do for Miss Management! https://youtu.be/Tyvn3QR7BRk?t=2
Ahh Dani. The poo cookies won’t ketchup to you? Really? Maybe re think that! Here’s your tune for the day! https://youtu.be/nHk6wqqXMlg?t=1
So, when will daft Danny bring back the Lord’s Day Act. What about banning gambling or is that too much of a tax loss. After all, gambling is a sin!
OMG, Sharia law, that is so yesterday, oh right those people alleging those types of things are from another century and from other mind set or mindless set.
The Doctors in B.C. made a nice salary agreement with the government a while ago. We still need doctors, from small towns to the larger cities.
Guess Smith’s lack of action may have to do with trying to either get doctors to move from the province or is trying to save a few bucks at the expense of the doctors and their patients. Oh, well this is what Albertans voted for and now they will have to learn to live with it or die because of it. Albertans did this to themselves. Of course the children of Alberta didn’t get to vote and all of this impacts them also and not in a good way.