Alberta Votes 2019 Day 4 #ableg #abvote #abpoli

Friday March 22, 2019

Interesting opinions:

Danielle Smith tries straight talk: Albertans want the spending without the bill. While we have many choices in most ridings, she says the NDs are offering to spend like Lougheed, the UCP is willing to cut like Klein, and Albertans don’t want either only. Can you say minority government that keeps each in check?

Jen Gerson wrote a heartwarming ode to earning Albertans’ votes through democratic means instead of retaking one’s rightful place in government as a side plot in Game of Thrones.

Policy:

Alberta Liberals announced a very intriguing Indigenous Rights policy as a pillar of their platform. ALP leader David Khan is an Indigenous Rights lawyer in Calgary and is running in Calgary-Mountainview.

The Alberta Party announced it would bring in dental cleaning coverage for kids and advocate for a return to fluoridation in local water supplies. This is part of the Children First Plan they have been announcing this week.

NDP promised funding for the Bow River flood mitigation project will come from the carbon tax. The billion dollar project has been a source of friction as UCP had not committed its support. Greg Clark, Calgary-Elbow’s Alberta Party MLA, took immediate issue as flood mitigation been something he has worked on for his constituency since 2013. The UCP  decided to support the Springbank proposal Friday.

UCP vows to stop lies and myths about Alberta oil sands. Kenney has promised to create a “war room” to swiftly counter any person, place or narrative that doesn’t align with the party’s view, beginning with environmental groups. Jason Kenney has long been a free speech advocate for some. He claimed the “spectrum of views” on climate change, and women’s rights, are welcome in the party, but also said a UCP government would boycott companies that do not support oil and gas employees. So, there are limits, or not, it depends, I guess.

Scandalous Additions:

Believing women should “give” their husbands sex isn’t a one off for some of the more religious UCP candidates. And no, this isn’t the same one as yesterday… this is another one.

The UCP changed (vandalized) a road sign to look like it didn’t say 6.9. Aside from being illegal, it was just really, really weird.

Rachel Notley called the Senate’s decision to skip hearing from Albertans on Bill C-48 (tanker ban) an “unprecedented stampede of stupid“. Alberta Senator Paula Simons offered to fill in the blanks as to how that decision was made.

UCP MLA Grant Hunter pondered whether Cardston residents were bred from superior stock and somehow threw in Aryan undertones – in a community newspaper.

25 sleeps until Election Day…

Deirdre Mitchell-MacLean

Tips? [email protected]

Twitter: @Mitchell_AB, @thisweekinAB

Recap: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3