Brian Mulroney recently said he no longer recognized himself in the Conservative Party. I’m no conservative, but I sympathize with him. The current Conservative Party just isn’t the conservative party we knew for most of our history. It seems to be focussed on the economy at the expense of everything
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Views from the Beltline: Alberta—the political province
Canada’s central and eastern provinces, with the exception of Quebec, are all governed by the same two parties that date from the time of Confederation—the Liberals and the Conservatives. The western provinces have been much more politically creative. Three of the four are governed by parties that didn’t exist at
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Sundre hospital renamed to honour MP Myron Thompson, long-time foe of equality for same-sex couples
“They’re trying to take away our culture, they’re trying to take away our history,” Donald Trump complained back in 2017 about activists who call for the removal statues of Confederate and colonialist heroes. Mr. Trump’s supporters have been loudly making their agreement known ever since, including here in Alberta where
Continue readingAlberta Politics: As predicted, ‘Fair Deal’ Panel reheats the Firewall Manifesto to manufacture consent for policies Albertans don’t want
Consider the report of Alberta’s “Fair Deal” Panel, released yesterday by Premier Jason Kenney with considerable fanfare. It strongly suggests the Harper-Kenney wing of the Canadian Conservative movement is made up of people who purport to be Canadian patriots when they’re in power in Ottawa but are Prairie separatists when
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Preston Manning, the bad penny of Canadian politics, turns up again on Alberta’s sovereignty-association commission
Preston Manning is the bad penny of Canadian politics. So no one should be surprised he’s turned up again! Much good rarely comes from Mr. Manning’s interventions in politics, which never seem to end, so don’t expect positive results from his appointment by Alberta Premier Jason Kenney to what might
Continue readingAlberta Politics: UCP Leader Jason Kenney, political lifer elected at 29, mocks 29-year-old NDP candidate with sophomoric and offensive joke
I hear, “a gay 19 year old.” Quite clearly. I speak, of course, of Jason Kenney’s notorious cheap shot in Cochrane last Thursday, in which he mischaracterized the NDP’s newly acclaimed candidate in the Airdrie-Cochrane riding for a few laughs. Speaking at a United Conservative Party rally at an upscale
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Donner Canadian Foundation, prominent funder of right-wing groups, helps bankroll new ‘think tank’ closely connected to CTF
A new “think tank” with close connections to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation received $50,000 last year from the Donner Canadian Foundation, a prominent funder of right-wing ideological organizations in Canada. SecondStreet.org describes itself on its website as “a new think tank that will be launching in early 2019.” The organization’s
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Effort by religious schools to halt enforcement of Alberta’s GSA protection law tossed out by Medicine Hat judge
An effort by the so-called Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms to get a court injunction to halt enforcement of the Alberta law that prevents schools from informing parents when students join gay-straight alliances fell short in a written ruling of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench in Medicine Hat yesterday.
Continue readingAlberta Politics: U.S.-based Atlas Network, which has ‘reshaped political power in country after country,’ a funder of Canadian Taxpayers Federation
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation, a self-described non-partisan tax watchdog and taxpayer advocacy group once headed by Alberta Opposition Leader Jason Kenney, has always been tight-lipped about the sources of its own funding. This may be mildly ironic, given its vocal demands for transparency in government policy, but as a private organization
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Group making incendiary ‘ideological sex clubs’ claim about Gay-Straight Alliances has history of backing social conservative causes
As was widely reported yesterday, a judge of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench will begin hearing arguments in Medicine Hat today in a legal effort by a social conservative group to upend the Alberta law that prevents schools from informing parents when students join a gay-straight alliance. The claim
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Innisfail-Sylvan Lake and Fort McMurray-Conklin by-election updates
The United Conservative Party has announced the nomination period to choose a candidate for the upcoming Innisfail-Sylvan Lake by-election. The deadline for candidates to enter the nomination contest is April 16 and a vote will held on April 28. The by-election must be called by August 5, 2018. Seven candidates have
Continue readingAlberta Politics: As expected, UCP Leader Jason Kenney chalks up another convincing win in Calgary-Lougheed by-election
PHOTOS: UCP Leader Jason Kenney celebrates his victory in the Calgary-Lougheed by-election last night (Photo: CBC). Below: NDP candidate Phillip van der Merwe, Liberal leader and candidate David Khan, and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, all their photos grabbed for simplicity’s sake from Twitter. Never mind Surrey and Alabama. Jason Kenney
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Calgary MLA Dave Rodney to make way for new Conservative Leader; ex New Democrat Karen McPherson to join Alberta Party
PHOTOS: Calgary-Lougheed MLA Dave Rodney, centre right, gets close to the new Conservative leader … in 2011. Below: Newly elected United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney; another look at Mr. Rodney, the renowned Everest summiteer; and Alberta Party recruit Karen McPherson (Photo: Connor Mah, Wikipedia Commons). Members of the Alberta
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Guest Post: Tales from the annals of inevitable right-wing political victories in Western Canada
PHOTOS: Parliament Hill in Ottawa, whence he came to save his province from socialism … Below: Guest post author John Ashton, Jason Kenney (Photo: Creative Commons, Michał Józefaciuk, Senat Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), and Elwin Hermanson (Photo: Twitter). “It’s my belief that history is a wheel. ‘Inconstancy is my very essence,’ says
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Paul Hinman wants to contest UCP leadership! He has till tonight to raise $57,500! I’m not making this up!
PHOTOS: Would-be UCP leadership candidate Paul Hinman, back when he was Wildrose Alliance MLA for Calgary-Glenmore. Below: Preston Manning, Ted Hinman, and Ernest Manning. Paul Hinman? Seriously? Has somebody stumbled over a mysterious time capsule buried by the Wildrose Alliance Party way out on the lone prairie? Probably somewhere down
Continue readingAlberta Politics: With three right-wing political parties now possible instead of one, has Jason Kenney’s roll of the dice crapped out?
PHOTOS: Jason Kenney, as he may see himself, gets ready to roll the unite-the-right dice. Actual Alberta conservative politicians may not appear exactly as illustrated. (Photo: Publicity shot for Sky Full of Moon, 1952.) Below: The real Mr. Kenney, plus the real Katherine O’Neill, Greg Clark and Stephen Mandel. Snake
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Like rust, Preston Manning apparently never sleeps: Jason Kenney is just his latest manifestation
PHOTOS: Preston Manning has every reason to feel pleased with himself as he moves toward his goal of uniting Alberta’s right on his own terms, with an extreme social conservative candidate like Jason Kenney in the vanguard. Below: Mr. Kenney; Alberta Party Leader Greg Clark; Danielle Smith, just before she
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Ted Byfield’s back, cyber-crusading for Jason Kenney’s bid to lead Alberta back to the Fifties!
PHOTOS: Ted Byfield at the microphone (Edson leader photo). Below: Alberta Education Minister David Eggen, the late Link Byfield, Mr. Byfield’s son, and a cover from the bad old days of Alberta Report magazine. Like the proverbial bad penny, Ted Byfield is back. It should come as no surprise that
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Is veteran Tory’s bid to run as Liberal in by-election to replace ex-PM a sign of sagging Conservative fortunes nationally?
PHOTOS: Veteran Conservative Lee Richardson with Alberta premier Alison Redford, who he served as principal secretary. Below: Prime minister John Diefenbaker, who Mr. Richardson served as executive assistant, and Alberta premier Peter Lougheed, for whom he was chief of staff. Understanding history requires a long view, and the picture that
Continue readingAlberta Politics: The twists keep coming: Ex PM pitches woo to Wildrosers for Kenney Con coup as candidate cries counter Kudatah!
PHOTOS: “That group of NDP activists was this big!” Jason Kenney is shown at the launch of his campaign to spring a kudatah on the Progressive Conservative Party in this CBC photo grabbed from the Internet. Actually, I have no idea what Mr. Kenney was saying when the CBC photographer
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