PHOTOS: Departing Alberta trade ‘envoy’ to Washington, D.C., Rob Merrifield, back in the day when he was a federal cabinet minister. Below: Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice, who hired Mr. Merrifield a year ago, and Premier Rachel Notley, who let him go at the end of last week. It was
Continue readingTag: Alberta Politics
Alberta Politics: The election of Jeremy Corbyn to lead Labour is proof that, sometimes, hope triumphs over fear mongering
PHOTOS: Jeremy Corbyn on Sept. 5, campaigning in Margate. (Photo by Chris Beckett.) Below: A young Mr. Corbyn, always true to his principles; the catastrophic Margaret Thatcher; 1970s Labour prime minister Harold Wilson; NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair. If you’re one of those who imagines Alberta has embarked on a “dangerous
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Fake news: Wildrose urges market-based breathing solutions to ease air-quality woes
PHOTO: The NDP Government refuses to fix Alberta’s air-quality problems with effective market-based solutions and instead wants to force Albertans to ride bicycles like these and be tied up in communist Red tape. If the people illustrated here had true freedom, they could choose the quality of air that suited
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Thomas Mulcair comes to Edmonton bringing the promise of flinty eyed fixes to our national malaise
PHOTOS: NDP supporters lined up to take selfies with the man they hope will be the next prime minister of Canada. And if Thomas Mulcair wasn’t available, as below, there was always his bearded visage on the side of a bus for a selfie. Bottom: Mr. Mulcair, still smiling, as
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Thomas Lukaszuk, once the Gorgeous George of Alberta politics, ponders an unlikely political resurrection
PHOTOS: Thomas Lukaszuk, at what was arguably the summit of his political career, launching his bid in May 2014 to lead the Progressive Conservative Party and become premier of Alberta. Below: Mr. Lukaszuk showing his flowing locks to advantage, 1950s wrestling star Gorgeous George, and Edmonton-Castle Down MLA Nicole Goehring.
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Almost as beloved as Brad Wall, you’ll be shocked to learn the identity of Canada’s second most popular premier!
PHOTOS: The second-most popular premier in Canada. You know, what’s her name … Really! She’s in there somewhere! Below: B.C. Premier Christy Clark and Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger. A week ago, the Angus Reid polling company, which nowadays styles itself an Institute, released its regular poll of Canada’s premiers’ popularity.
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta Politics: Mulcair and Trudeau bring “Change” and “Real Change” to Edmonton this week
In a competition to own the “change” message, the NDP are holding a “Rally for Change in Edmonton” on Sept 10 and the Liberals are holding a “Rally for Real Change in Edmonton” on September 9. It is clear that both parties have identified varying degrees “change” as a common
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta Politics: Federal candidate update from Alberta – 41 days until election day
With forty-one long days left until the October 19, 2015 federal election, here are the latest candidate nomination updates from Alberta.
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Give some credit to Jerry Bance for improving the quality of Conservative public discourse
ILLUSTRATIONS: Is it time to give Jerry Bance a break? After all, he’s raised the tone of Conservative discourse in Toronto, and raised our national profile abroad. (Image grabbed from the CBC, just as Mr. Bance reaches for the cup.) Below: Mr. Bance in happier times, with both his hands
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Labour Day 2015: Analyzing Europe’s refugee crisis through the lens of labour rights
PHOTOS: The Za’atari camp for Syrian refugees in Jordan. Below: International studies scholar Vijay Prashad; former Conservative Senator Hugh Segal. On Labour Day 2015, the world’s attention is focused on the great migration of desperate human beings streaming into Europe from the economic and military catastrophes of North Africa and
Continue readingIn This Corner: Stuff Happens, week 34: One little boy changes everything.
The Syrian refugee crisis has convulsed Europe for weeks now, while making only the tiniest dent in the North American conscience. But that all changed this weeks thanks to one little boy, and one gut-wrenching photograph. All this year, thousands of desperate Syrian refugees have been pouring into Europe in
Continue readingIn This Corner: Stuff Happens, week 34: One little boy changes everything.
The Syrian refugee crisis has convulsed Europe for weeks now, while making only the tiniest dent in the North American conscience. But that all changed this weeks thanks to one little boy, and one gut-wrenching photograph. All this year, thousands of desperate Syrian refugees have been pouring into Europe in
Continue readingAlberta Politics: The refugee crisis: Harper Conservatives just can’t spin it both ways
PHOTOS: Refugees from the Syrian civil war clog a road near the Syria-Iraq border. (UNHCR photo.) Below: Saskatchewan Conservative MP Kelly Block’s constituency leaflet; Ms. Block herself; Immigration Minister Chris Alexander. For several years, the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper has played to the worst instincts of a significant
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Wildrose Party wins Calgary-Foothills by-election, and fairly decisively, but leaves plenty of grist for the mill
PHOTOS: Wildrose Party candidate Prasad Panda celebrates his victory last night in the Calgary-Foothills by-election with Wildrose Leader Brian Jean. (Photo from Mr. Panda’s Twitter account.) Below: NDP candidate Bob Hawkesworth and PC candidate Blair Houston. Within moments of Wildrose Party candidate Prasad Panda emerging as the winner in the
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta Politics: Wildrose steal Foothills from the PCs while NDP hold on to ‘orange wave’ support in second place
Wildrose Party candidate Prasad Panda became his party’s only MLA from Calgary by winning tonight’s by-election in Calgary-Foothills and stealing the constituency away from the Progressive Conservatives. PC candidate Blair Houston finished third in the constituency that elected former Premier Jim Prentice in another by-election ten months ago and in… Continue Reading →
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Controversial Wildrose leaflet had similarities to B.C. Liberals’ Chinese-language ads smearing NDP
PHOTOS: Wildrose Leader Brian Jean, at right, appeared on a Calgary talk radio program yesterday. (Grabbed from Twitter.) Mr. Jean failed to repudiate accusations made in a Chinese-language party leaflet that the Alberta NDP advances communist ideology. Below: The late U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, anti-communist witch-hunter; former B.C. NDP candidate
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta Politics: Calgary-Foothills: The first by-election in Alberta’s post-PC political world
Today’s by-election in Calgary-Foothills is the first litmus test for Alberta’s political parties in the post-Progressive Conservative political world. When Rachel Notley led NDP candidates to victory in fifteen constituencies in the city on May 5, 2015, the “Orange Wave” broke at the boundaries of this constituency as conservative… Continue Reading →
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Will Wildrose Leader Brian Jean repudiate his Calgary-Foothills candidate’s ‘communist’ characterization of the NDP?
PHOTOS: Part of the Wildrose Chinese-language brochure that compared the NDP to communists. Below: Wildrose Calgary-Foothills candidate Prasad Panda, former Tory education minister Thomas Lukaszuk, NDP candidate Bob Hawkesworth, former Wildrose House leader Rob Anderson and former Wildrose leader Paul Hinman. What words should we use to describe the Chinese-language
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Conservatives have to tie themselves in knots to sustain their narrative about Alberta’s fiscal situation
PHOTOS: Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci, dressed in a sombre blue suit, delivers the fiscal report to predictable reactions from the opposition. Below: Wildrose finance critic and chief sloganeer Derek Fildebrandt as he appeared yesterday. Given the history of this province and its current goings on, our various stripes of
Continue readingAlberta Politics: On this day in 1971, Alberta woke up to an unexpected PC government that turned out to be a dynasty
PHOTOS: Peter Lougheed addresses his supporters immediately after winning the 1971 Alberta election. Below: The front page of the Calgary Herald, 44 years ago today. Readers with eagle eyes will notice that the lead story carries the byline of Kevin Peterson. Mr. Peterson went on to be managing editor, editor-in-chief
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