– New polls from Angus-Reid (Wildrose: 42%, PC: 27%, Liberal: 19%, NDP 9%, Other 3%) and Environics (PC: 34%, Wildrose: 30%, Liberal: 23%, NDP 10%). Calgary Grit has more on these polls.
– According to the PC Party website, Patricia Godkin has replaced Jim Campbell as Executive Director (Mr. Campbell recently joined Cenovus Energy as their Vice-President Government Relations and Corporate Accountability). Ms. Godkin previously served as Director of Finance and was the acting Executive Director in 2007 after the resignation of Peter Elzinga. While holding the interim position in 2007, Ms. Godkin faced a challenge from outgoing PC Youth President David McColl, who published an op-ed in the Calgary Herald predicting that “PC Alberta will continue its slow death march, to the beat of a rural drum and tired, stale policies.”
– Vitor Marciano is expected to become the new Executive Director of the Wildrose Alliance. Mr. Marciano recently stepped down from his position on the National Council of the Conservative Party of Canada and served as Campaign Manager for Edmonton-Centre MP Laurie Hawn in 2004 and 2006, and for Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq in 2008. In 2006, he supported former Edmonton-McClung PC MLA Mark Norris‘ bid for the PC leadership. This is the second prominent Edmonton conservative to join Danielle Smith‘s staff in recent months. In February, former PC Party VP Outreach and 2004 Edmonton-Strathcona candidate Shannon Stubbs became Executive Assistant to Ms. Smith.
– Former Edmonton-Meadowlark Liberal MLA Maurice Tougas has written a piece in this month’s Alberta Views Magazine that focuses on Danielle Smith’s time on the Calgary Board of Education from 1998 to 1999. Mr. Tougas’ reliance on comments from former Trustee Jennifer Pollock provided a fairly one-sided perspective of the issue. You can read my four part series Smith v. Board of Education part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4.
– The Alberta Party has posted an update on The Big Listen.
– Tyler Shandro has raised some interesting questions about the interim report of Alberta’s Electoral Boundaries Commission.
– Three years after the a committee of top-tier economic experts recommended increasing the royalty rates collected by the provincial government, Premier Ed Stelmach has cut back the amount of resource royalties that are collected. The Pembina Institute responded by pointing out that “Albertans, the owners of the province’s oil and gas resources, were completely left out of the process of reviewing Alberta’s royalty rates.”
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16 replies on “alberta politics notes 3/15/2010”
Meanwhile the Premier's economic advisory group with Landslide Annie and that party switching goof from Van City have yet to offer up anything tangible. You'd think Ed would have wanted their expert opinion to be part of his "competitiveness review".
Oh wait? That group was yet another dog and pony show? Goodness me, I never would have guessed that.
Those polls are obviously wrong. I didn't see any results for the Alberta Party of Alberta. We desperately need this party to make headway. If we can split the Liberal support in half, we will be very happy
The Alberta Party will be a force to be reckoned with. They have already received a groundswell of support from tens, possibly twenties of people. They will redefine how politics is done in Alberta. Where political parties once offered a well defined vision for our future, we will now have mob rule from the kitchen table, via the big listen.
The Alberta party will not be stupid enough to make the mistakes of Washington, Jefferson and Franklin. Those losers thought it was more important to have republic than a democracy. A republic guided by principles set out in the constitution, where the masses (at the kitchen table) couldn't trample the rights of the marginalized. No, the Alberta party is smart enough to know that we don't need silly constitutions and principles, a foundation, if you will. The Alberta Party is smart enough to pander to the lowest common denominator. That, and that alone, will make them successful in this province.
Glad to see that the WAP is jettisoning the silly conservative fringe group that had held control of the party offices for years. Professional political operatives like Marciano and Stubbs are lifting the party into contention.
The Pembina Institute responded by pointing out that "Albertans, the owners of the province's oil and gas resources, were completely left out of the process of reviewing Alberta's royalty rates."
The Pembina institute would be incorrect, as in a parliamentary democracy, elected representatives are chosen by the people through a system approved by the people in order to represent them in discussions such as this.
Cheap, inaccurate, cliche quote shots = LAME.
TJK – If everyone is represented by MLAs, why do a study at all? Why can't the government just act? The PCs know everything right?
What about the voters who didn't vote for the PCs, who elected MLAs from other parties? How were their opinions measured?
And if your opinion is correct, why was it OK that regular voters were in fact allowed to contribute to the pre-election royalty review? You know, the one you defended as a candidate in 2008?
Truth is, the only people consulted this time was the energy sector, because this review was all about appeasing big oil and getting the PCs back into the energy lobby's pocket.
The opinions of big oil count with Stelmach, ordinary voters don't.
Oliver
You've completely missed the point of my comment.
Responding with a flippant one-line quote like the one they did is cheap and intended to END a discussion rather than begin it. I don't appreciate a lazy discourse.
I never referred to PCs knowing or not knowing everything, the royalty review, "big oil" or lobbying. You extrapolated all that and should not have.
I'm interested in the laziness of the type of commentary Pembina used here, and many use with regards to issues such as there. The fact that it is also inaccurate, yet said in a way that is intended to convey "well obviously, idiot" is even more insulting.
I don't think the Pembina Institute's statements were cheap at all. It may not be lengthy (nee:cloudy) enough for you TJK, but then they aren't here to debate failed PC candidates.
Pembina said ordinary Albertans had little to no say in the "competitiveness review". That's a factually correct statement. It doesn't infer judgement on the decisions that were made, but it does clearly articulate who was privy to the discussions that led to said decisions.
Anon – I don't understand the need for the political shot, but I guess that's your prerogative, whatever.
By the quote it says that Albertans were completely left out, which is incorrect and stated in a way that does not encourage discussion.
"we really believe more Albertans who are not MLAs should have been consulted on this, as they are the owners of the resource and have valuable input to provide" would be a very different quote than the one offered by Pembina.
I find it ironic that TJK is accusing the Pembina institute of 'laziness' when it's TJ's own party that phoned this one in.
The 2007 Royalty review did a comprehensive job of canvassing Albertans and studying the issue before issuing recommendations.
Fast forward to 2010, and the government has slapped together it's sixth royalty framework after a few meetings at the Petroleum Club.
Not, mind you, that I think the motivation of the Tories was laziness. We all know the motivation – Danielle Smith is making inroads with the oil patch, hence the need for the rim job to big oil.
Imposter! I'm the real Lloyd Snelgrove's creepy goatee. And I wouldn't be caught dead using tweedy, elbow-patched, elitist terms like "hence" and "mind you." Daveberta, I demand a public inquiry into this identity theft!
You know, I hadn't really thought of it before, but a political party that stands for nothing but majority rule and has a name that implies a certain forced provincial patriotism IS kinda fascist.
Do we want a world where you hate Alberta if you're not part of the Alberta Party? A world where what is popular is right?
I call foul on both of the above creepy goatees!
Not only would I never use elitist terms like 'hence' and 'mind you,' I would never, ever, call for a public inquiry.
Ahh Maurice. Late to the party as always. Reporting on a 12 year old story that was already rehashed 6 months earlier.
Here's a story for you, Mr. Tougas. There's this thing called the Information Superhighway, but some people call it the Internet, and it can plug your computer into all these other computers to share information and communicate through what they call Electronic Mail. Better get on that. I hear it's going to change everything.
Would the real Lloyd Snelgrove's creepy goatee please stand up?
What? That Vitor? Well, sorry, but for me that marks the jump-the-shark moment of the Wildrose Alliance. Whenever and wherever that guy is involved, nothing good comes of it.