As a work of political performance art, NDP Opposition Leader Naheed Nenshi’s challenge yesterday to United Conservative Party MLAs to sign a letter saying they are proud Canadians, opponents of Alberta separatism, and promise to make that known to voters is not bad. Not bad at all.
Your typical UCP MLA, after all, is a guy who’ll risk a speeding ticket with points for a chance to sign a Canadian Taxpayers Federation pledge to never, ever raise taxes or run a budget deficit.
But put their name to, literally, a pledge of allegiance to the country whose flag they’re always posing before? What do you want to bet that turns out to be a different matter entirely?
Well, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating and all that. If they won’t sign, it’s probably because they want to pledge allegiance to another flag entirely, not Canada’s, for personal and political gain. It’ll certainly mean they’re tacitly admitting their party has become a separatist entity under the leadership of Premier Danielle Smith and they’re either good with that, or they don’t have the courage to stand up for their country against their party’s Alberta Prosperity Project faction.
The UCP will be as unhappy as a swarm of wasps that they’ve been smoked out about this, of course. Just watch what the foreign and domestic rage bots start to say on the hate site previously known as Twitter. Actually, save yourselves the indigestion. You don’t need to look to know what’s being said.
I imagine the UCP communications brain trust was up all night slamming the AI to come up with some believable excuses, just in case some reporter asks. We respect all constituents’ beliefs! We don’t want our dual citizens to feel bad! Yadda-yadda.
The pledge it’s unlikely any UCP MLA will sign is pretty simple, a mere 33 words if you count the fill-in-the-blank spots.
“I, _____, MLA for _____, affirm that I am a proud Albertan and a proud Canadian. I am opposed to separatism and I will make my position known and clear to my constituents.” There’s space for their signature and the date the document was signed.
It’s critical that Canadians stand together, Mr. Nenshi said in a statement yesterday. “We have entered a dangerous new phase of global politics.”
“In times like these, we need nothing less than absolute clarity from our leaders,” he said. “Our health-care system is in crisis, the cost of living continues to outpace inflation, and yet our premier is busy stoking the fires of separatism with her separatist government.
“‘A sovereign Alberta within a united Canada is intentionally vague double-speak,” Mr. Nenshi continued. “It only gives Donald Trump, the U.S. secretary of the treasury, and those trying to make us the 51st state, power to escalate their threats and weaken us from within.
“It’s time for the premier to stop putting us in danger and for every MLA to make their position clear. I’m sending a letter to all MLAs, asking them to sign a pledge and be on the record: are you on Team Canada or a separatist?”
As for his party, Mr. Nenshi said, “Alberta New Democrats unequivocally denounce separatism. … Can the UCP say the same?”
Well, we’ll soon know the answer to that poser.
This matters, Mr. Nenshi said, because separatism doesn’t reduce the cost of living, build hospital beds or hire teachers, and it will scare away investment, costs us jobs, and put all Albertans “in an extremely vulnerable position.”
Hard to argue with any of that.
From the UCP’s perspective, wouldn’t the best thing to do be to instruct all their MLAs to sign the pledge, and then tell the NDP, “OK, now let’s talk about who would make the best government!”
Mind you, as of last night anyway, Alberta media seemed shy about covering the story. The Red Deer Advocate filed a report, and City News posted an advancer.
There was a day when Conservative politicians in Canada could be counted on to be patriotic Canadians, even if it took them a long time to accept new ideas that happened to be good ones – like our beautiful Maple Leaf Flag, for example.
But that was before the MAGA virus infected Canadian Conservative parties. Now it would seem, many Conservatives hate Canada so much they’d be happy to destroy it and join the nightmare below the 49th Parallel.
If any Alberta Conservative, united or otherwise, wants to prove me wrong, it’s really quite easy. They can just sign the pledge!
Bob Ascah, 71, author, teacher, public servant, and raconteur
Bob Ascah, a familiar friendly face in Edmonton’s progressive community, was the author of the indispensable ABPolEcon blog and well known for his work as a university teacher, senior civil servant, researcher and commentator. Always generous with a smile and a good yarn, he was a true raconteur.
Robert Lawrence Ascah died on Jan. 20 in Edmonton after a short but difficult illness. He was 71. “What remains is the shape of a life well and consciously lived,” his family obituary said.
Dr. Ascah was born in Montreal on May 27, 1954, studied commerce and public administration at Carleton University in Ottawa and completed a PhD in political science at the University of Alberta. Over the years, he worked as a senior public servant at Alberta’s Intergovernmental Affairs and Treasury departments, at Alberta Treasury Branches, and as chair of the University of Alberta’s Institute for Public Economics. He was a research fellow at the Edmonton-based Parkland Institute and published the ABPolEcon blog independently.
“His blog was a source of much wisdom and understanding,” wrote retired Rabble.ca publisher Duncan Cameron on Dr. Ascah’s obituary page. “His ability to put Alberta into context made him a must read. His loss will be felt wherever people gather to inform each other about the politics of oil and gas.”
“Titles were never the point,” Dr. Ascah’s family obituary said. “What mattered was how he lived inside them, as a patron of the arts, a protector of the environment, and someone who believed deeply in the role of culture and environmental responsibility. He showed up. He funded. He defended. He asked better questions. He paid attention.”
Dr. Ascah is survived by his wife Linda and many family members.