“Future Ready” with full stomachs and affordable daycare http://daveberta.ca/wp-admin/post-new.phpThe Alberta NDP government’s awkwardly branded “Future Ready” campaign includes some pretty good policy initiatives. Premier Rachel Notley unveiled this week that the government plans to fund healthy breakfasts for low-income students in primary… Continue Reading →
Continue readingTag: Derek Fildebrandt
Alberta Politics: ‘Taxpayers Federation’s’ true Astro-Turf nature finally worms its way into public consciousness
PHOTOS: Canadian Taxpayers Federation Communications VP Scott Hennig at the 2013 Manning Conference in Ottawa, the annual spring bean-fest for right-wing activists organized by Preston Manning’s eponymous training camp for market-fundamentalists. Below: Winnipeg commentator Dougald Lamont, author of an opinion piece published yesterday by CBC Manitoba about the CTF; CTF
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Air Horn Politics
“We’re all seriously suffering from a kind of Trump derangement syndrome…he uses up so much of the oxygen and it’s like having…a big air horn installed in your head and you just can’t get away from it.”— Garry Trudeau, the … Continue reading →
Alberta Politics: Brian Jean’s crack about beating Rachel Notley may have ended his hopes to lead Alberta’s right
PHOTOS: Opposition Leader Brian Jean, haunted by the radicalism of his own rural-dominated party, now looks like he’s stumbled into the same snake pit of anger and misogyny. (Photo from Wildrose.ca.) Below: Premier Rachel Notley, the subject of Mr. J…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Standard & Poor’s downgrades Saskatchewan’s credit rating and The Anger Machine falls silent
PHOTOS: Like a flock of starlings, the entire Canadian Perpetual Outrage Industry knows when to wheel and turn instantly. Since they do it electronically, it’s almost as if they’re … a machine! Below: Brad Wall, the crumbling Colossus of the Prai…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: A spectre is haunting Alberta, and Wildrose Leader Brian Jean wants to assure you it’s not him!
PHOTOS: The plot thickens … like the gravy at a certain truck stop restaurant. The spectral presences of Jason Kenney and Stephen Harper eating breakfast are not quite visible in the booth. Below: Mr. Jean, plus the real Mr. Kenney and the real Mr. H…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: A Tale of Two Parties: NDP stages slick post-victory convention while Wildrose Opposition tears itself to pieces
PHOTOS: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley addresses the provincial NDP Convention in Calgary yesterday. (Photo from Ms. Notley’s Facebook page.) Below: Wildrose Leader Brian Jean, his supporter, MLA Pat Stier, and NDP party first VP candidates Ann Wilson…
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Party Business
– The Wildrose constituency association in Lac La Biche-St. Paul-Two Hills passed a motion this week calling for Brian Jean to face a leadership review at the party’s annual meeting in Red Deer on October 28 and 29, 2016. That… Continue Readi…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Alberta Opposition Leader Brian Jean now officially ‘embattled’ as Wildrose insurrection appears to spread
PHOTOS: Is Wildrose Party Leader Brian Jean contemplating being given the boot by his party’s radicals … or giving it to them? (Wildrose.ca photo.) Below: Lac La Biche-St. Paul-Two Hills MLA David Hanson (photo also from Wildrose.ca), Twitter infor…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: NDP environmental policies: Who’re ya gonna believe? Mark Carney or Rick Strankman?
PHOTOS: Bank of England Governor and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley at yesterday’s brief news conference in the provincial Legislature Building. (CBC Photo) Below: Rick Strankman and Michael Bloomberg. Who’re ya gonna believe, huh? Mark Carney, form…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Keeping things in in the Right perspective: Wildrose says NDP’s carbon levy is much like killing 10 million people
PHOTOS: Wildrose Agriculture Critic Rick Strankman thinks the NDP Government’s carbon levy is just murder. (Photo grabbed from his Facebook page.) Below: NDP Economic Development Minister Deron Bilous, Wildrose MLA Drew Barnes, another member of the …
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: A Timeline of Derek Fildebrandt’s “suspension” from Wildrose
The Wildrose Party was not one big happy family this week. Albertans might be confused about what exactly happened between Wildrose Party leader Brian Jean and Finance critic Derek Fildebrandt. It might be one of the most bizarre political stories o…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: On the War of the WRP, Saskatchewan’s Great Wall and the mysterious appeal of Alberta Health Services
PHOTOS: A meeting of the Opposition Wildrose Caucus gets under way with Leader Brian Jean and Leader Lite Derek Fildebrandt explaining their differences to each other. Actual Alberta politicians of the right may not appear exactly as illustrated. Then …
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Suspension of maverick MLA didn’t amount to much, even before Wildrose leader’s apparent flip-flop
PHOTOS: Wildrose MLA Derek Fildebrandt appears to be ahead in the race with his party leader, Brian Jean, this past weekend at least. (Photo grabbed from Mr. Jean’s Facebook page.) Below: Blogger Dave Cournoyer and a smiling Mr. Fildebrandt. That was…
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: The 5 conditions Derek Fildebrandt must meet to return to the Wildrose Caucus
The Fildebrandt Saga continues as Brian Jean backtracks, kind of… Just over forty-eight hours after he suspended Finance critic Derek Fildebrandt from the Official Opposition Caucus, Wildrose Party leader Brian Jean appears to be backtracking…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Questions, questions, questions about tomorrow’s Public Accounts Committee meeting chaired by … Derek Fildebrandt?
PHOTO: Derek Fildebrandt, a (former?) Wildrose Opposition MLA and as of right now chair of the Legislature’s Public Accounts Committee. (Photo © David Climenhaga, just sayin’.) Tomorrow morning, the Alberta Legislature’s Standing Committee on Pu…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Brian Jean’s Wildrose Party leadership is now unquestioned: the fall of Derek Fildebrandt explained
PHOTOS: Brian Jean will be in the background no more … Back in 2015, Derek Fildebrandt was dominating the conversation, refusing to answer questions from a CBC reporter who had annoyed him, as his former party leader looked on, apparently bemused (CB…
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: The Sad Sad State of the Conservative Menace: On Derek Fildebrandt & Being An Asshole In Politics
I met Derek a couple of times on one of Michael Coren’s old shows. You talk before, afterwards, and during the breaks on these things. He seemed a decent enough chap, chatting away about how the CTF PR-team handled its responses to various issues as they arose. And when you
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: The Sad Sad State of the Conservative Menace: On Derek Fildebrandt & Being An Asshole In Politics
I met Derek a couple of times on one of Michael Coren’s old shows. You talk before, afterwards, and during the breaks on these things. He seemed a decent enough chap, chatting away about how the CTF PR-team handled its responses to va…
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: The Sad Sad State of the Conservative Menace: On Derek Fildebrandt & Being An Asshole In Politics
I met Derek a couple of times on one of Michael Coren’s old shows. You talk before, afterwards, and during the breaks on these things. He seemed a decent enough chap, chatting away about how the CTF PR-team handled its responses to va…
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