JaredMilne JaredMilne:
My belated thoughts:
-I'm trying to figure out exactly what Jason Kenney can do to get pipelines built that Rachel Notley hasn't already tried. The only thing that I can think of is targeting environmental charities...but that not only backfired when Stephen Harper did it federally, but it actually got them more donations, or so I read today.
As we've seen, his rhetoric during the election was just that - red meat for his base. He knows he can't do most of what he promised without serious consequences for Alberta.
JaredMilne JaredMilne:
-Looking through the UCP platform, I was really dismayed to see no mention of the Heritage Trust Fund. Peter Lougheed created the Fund for the exact reason we are seeing now, with some of our biggest customers phasing out fossil fuel vehicles, as we see in places like the UK and France. Sadly, it seems like Alberta is back in the same old position of praying for another oil boom and thinking that it will last forever.
The only party that really talked about the HTF was the Liberals, who promised to start saving again. Too bad for future generations, the Liberal party is too toxic to have a chance at forming government in Alberta any time soon.
The mantra of both the UCP and NDP was to pray for another oil boom to balance the budget. Both parties were projecting as much as $8 billion in royalties in 2022 (royalties are 25% of that now). I could see it doubling or even tripling, but quadrupling? Unless TMX gets built, there is no way that will happen.
JaredMilne JaredMilne:
-I noted the UCP's platform cited Jack Mintz's analyses of their tax cut platform. I wonder if they recalled that Mintz has also been an advocate of carbon taxes, although either he or Preston Manning has noted that the taxes have been poorly implemented.
Mintz also advocated for a 4% PST, but Kenney only focussed on the parts of Mintz' work conservatives like.
JaredMilne JaredMilne:
-I'm also disturbed by the UCP stance on Gay-Straight Alliances in schools. Fortunately, as conservative friends of mine have demonstrated, that stance is not universally popular among Alberta conservatives, and I hope they keep Kenney's feet to the fire on that.
I doubt it - there wasn't a peep online from conservatives about Kenney's choice for Education Minister.
JaredMilne JaredMilne:
-On the positive side, I'm encouraged by the UCP's commitment to remaining in the Canada Health Act, and I hope that Kenney will retain his commitment to trim government spending without affecting frontline services. Unfortunately, Doug Ford and Stephen Harper proved to be liars on that front.
Klein's 'Third Way' was soundly defeated by Albertans of all stripes back in the day and any attempt to go that way again will lead to almost open revolution in the streets. I don't think more than a handful of Albertans support healthcare privatization at all.
JaredMilne JaredMilne:
-Also on the positive side, Kenney was one of my favourite Harper government ministers. He helped broaden the federal Conservatives' appeal to ethnic minorities, so that at one point the CPC actually had the most diverse caucus in Parliament, more so than its left-wing rivals. As Patrick has documented, he also helped immigrants and refugees find a home too. Hopefully, he'll be able to follow in Harper's footsteps-and this was another thing I really respected about Harper-is that he'll keep the social conservatives in his caucus from really getting a solid foothold.
In short, while there are real reasons for concern, there are also a few reasons for optimism too.
I don't see many real positives coming from Kenney at all. If he cancels the carbon tax, the feds will impose theirs and then use his stance to reject the TMX, which will effectively kill any sort of oil sands growth. He can bluster and moan about the federal government all he wants, but they control far more levers than he does and he loses in just about any fight he engages in.
About the only positive I see is that if Scheer is beaten in the fall, Kenney will have the chance to go back to federal politics and let someone else be premier.
CKA Super Elite 
CKA Uber 
I wonder how it’s all going to work out 
I am just wondering if you consider BC to ne an Atlantic or a Maritime Province?
