This week from AB: April 14, 2025

Alberta, Canada, and Trump meltdown; thank goodness this is a short week.

From the UCP’s burning desire to be the most corrupt Alberta government ever, to a federal election teetering between hot-or-not, to the dumpster fire that is Donald Trump, my drafts folder has increased dramatically over the past week. The silver lining is I can use the spiciest parts of all that unfinished work. It’s probably heresy, but I really wish we’d just affix Easter break to the first week of April.

Alberta

QP with GIFs

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday

UCP cover up hits a snag

I was working for the Government of Alberta during the 2015 election. We received an email telling us that we were not permitted to be involved in a political campaign even if we wanted to do so on our own time. My immediate response was “try and stop me,” even though I didn’t actually have a campaign to work on.

To my chagrin, I never thought to send it to the media. Someone far more savvy than I did, though. The government walked it back saying they just meant we couldn’t represent the public service on the campaign. Words have meaning and all that jazz.

This week, someone sent a photo of the email on their computer screen (this is the way to do it so they can’t trace its origin, in case anyone needed to know) sent from a “senior ADM (assistant deputy minister)” in Alberta Health asking staff to forward requests for interviews from the Auditor General to legal representation. Of note, staff were not asked to do the same if contacted by the judge-led investigation the UCP is paying for with public funds to try and get ahead of the shitshow they created. Almost as if they’ll find out everything they want to know before they decide to make any part of that one public.

Premier Smith said it’s the UCP’s way of “helping facilitate” interview requests for an independent office. Sure, Jan.

Injustice

The omnibus Bill 39 makes changes to the Legal Profession Act. UCP has decided that the Alberta Law Foundation should be funding more legal aid instead of the government, but also, that the Justice Minister should have veto over where the Alberta Law Foundation’s funds are distributed (March debate, Hansard, page 2694).

Justice Minister Mickey Amery said Thursday that “the organizations that were receiving funding from the Alberta Law Foundation will continue to receive that, but there will be transparency, there will be accountability, and there will be oversight… and the changes that are being proposed within this act will ensure that they receive the appropriate, responsible spending.” (page 2853)

Two provincially appointed board members quit last week after Minister Amery denied the Alberta Law Foundation’s attempt to fund services.

Separation games

A majority of Albertans are proud Canadians but there is a small and angry minority who have convinced themselves that oil and gas will happily fill the coffers of a much smaller “nation” and trickle-down economics will translate into the wealthiest little welfare state in the world.