Redford Stumbles, or was Tripped

Smoky Lake Signal Article 194 (October 26, 2011)

Whispering in the Wind

Redford Stumbles, or Was Tripped?
Less than a month ago, when Alison Redford was first elected leader of Alberta’s Progressive Conservative Party many, if not most Albertans viewed her election as a refreshing change from the status quo – after all she did run her leadership campaign on a platform of “change” and transparency – in my view, she continues to opine a sincere desire to do things differently. Alison Redford was sworn in as Alberta’s 14th Premier on October 7 and a week later formed her first, smaller cabinet team – a cabinet that reflects; regional representation, youth, experience and both, right and left wing perspectives in Alberta’s “progressive conservative” movement – no question, a well balanced cabinet team. So you would think that Premier Redford would be given some sort of a honeymoon so she could get more comfortable with her cabinet appointments; allow some time for her to get into the swing of things; and a little time to test her skills in the art of governing, delegating and agenda setting – well she wasn’t given the luxury of a honeymoon period and in real time, things have blown up in her government’s face, blown up in spades! To recap the current situation; last Friday morning it was reported that former leadership contender Ted Morton, now Alberta’s Minister of Energy sent a letter to the Alberta Utilities Commission indicating the government was reviewing three proposed electric transmission projects in the Edmonton area and that any decisions regarding these three projects would have to be delayed until further notice. Later that same Friday, Premier Redford said in Calgary that there was a “miscommunication” regarding one of the projects and the Alberta Utilities Commission could release its decision on the “Heartland” project based on their time schedule. Without going into the merits or non-merits of the electric power generation and transmission issue; and there is a lot to be said about how the former Stelmach government handled the electricity transmission question; what is seriously bothersome is how “miscommunication” could occur between possibly the two most senior cabinet people in the Alberta government – surely such a controversial question would involve cabinet discussion and at the very least, would have several senior civil servants around to advise on the specific wording of such an important directive. I’m sure Albertans haven’t heard the last of what happened last Friday and I do think Premier Redford deserves a better deal than what she is getting. For the moment I am reminded of a quote from one of William Shakespeare’s plays: “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.”

United States Protectionism –
Protectionist sentiments have again arisen in the United States and I think the situation is more serious for Canada than it was a few years back. US President Barack Obama announced last month that he wants to implement a $447 billion job plan that includes “Buy American” provisions – the clause, as it presently stands, prohibits the use of foreign made iron, steel and other manufactured goods in all of the program’s public works projects. Almost immediately Prime Minister Harper’s office issued a statement saying that the government will “defend Canadian interests” and added that if the Buy American provisions are fully implemented and Canada is not excluded, the Canadian economy could be negatively affected and growth in Canada stalled. The Canadian government was successful in 2009 and obtained a wavier from similar Buy American provision in the United States, but things are quite different today – first the US economy is in much worse shape than it was in 2009; second Barack Obama is seeking re-election in November, 2012 and he doesn’t want to go against the protectionist mood in the US where over 90 percent of the electorate is supporting the Buy American provisions.