Health-care costs, labour unrest, education funding and the struggle to exert influence in Ottawa — I reported on these stories extensively as I began to cover the Alberta legislature for CBC Edmonton in 2000, and they remain top of the public agenda some 20 years later.
The differences are the faces of influential politicians and the means used to shape their messages.
As of Jan.1, I take on a new challenge as the CBC/Radio-Canada branch president of the Canadian Media Guild. It’s a full-time job representing CBC/Radio-Canada unionized employees across Canada.
I leave behind a big stack of reporter notebooks at the Alberta legislature press gallery office, and drawers full of memories and anecdotes. With that in mind, here’s a snapshot of a few of the events and people I remember most.
Memorable people
There were many memories made over the last two decades, but there are some people whose actions or presence I’ll remember most vividly (in no particular order).
Members of the Alberta legislature press gallery photographed with Ralph Klein during his last days in office. (Government of Alberta)
Ralph Klein: A former Progressive Conservative premier and political leader who was pushed out by his own party, Klein retired the debt in 2004 but failed to deliver an encore.
In 2006, PC party members came to Calgary in huge numbers to vote on Klein’s leadership. With blue inflatable clackers in hand, the party gave Klein a standing ovation as he entered the hall to give his address. But the crowd voted against their man and sent him packing.
Klein’s departure caused the PCs to flounder for the next 12 years as the party looked for a solid replacement and agenda. He died in 2013 at the age of 70.
Pam Barrett: Feisty and memorable, Barrett led the two-seat NDP from 1997 until 2000, forging a close relationship with Klein while holding him to account. It was Barrett who walked Klein into the legislative chamber for his final question period in 2006. Memorable too, was the way Barrett departed public life: she announced her resignation as party leader at a hastily called news conference Feb 3, 2000. Barrett declared her decision was prompted by a near-death experience while in a dentist’s chair. Her dentist was also at the news conference. Barrett was 54 when she died of cancer in 2008.
As Alberta’s first female premier, Alison Redford made headlines when she resigned from her post after months of controversy. (CBC)
Alison Redford: Considered a red Tory, Redford was remarkable for being the unlikely winner of the PC leadership race in 2011 only to fail to win support from her caucus and the public. She was dogged by controversial policy decisions and spending scandals.
As remarkable and memorable as her swearing-in in the rotunda of the legislature was in October 2011, so too was the day she resigned in March 2014 — in the very same spot she made history as Alberta’s first female premier.
Brian Mason: A jolly politician with a folksy style, Mason ascended from Edmonton city council to provincial NDP leader and later a cabinet minister in Rachel Notley’s government. He bridged the divide between the NDP government and testy rural politicians. It was under Mason’s leadership in opposition, however, that the scrappy NDP consistently punched above its weight and attracted media attention for almost everything it did. Mason also produced the best spoof videos the NDP ever made.
Rachel Notley and Jason Kenney: The stories of these two politicians are still unfolding. Notley achieved the unbelievable feat of annihilating the once-mighty PC dynasty in 2015, only to lose power four years later.
She now leads the Official Opposition and appears poised to take another run at Kenney in the next provincial election.
A former federal cabinet minister under then-prime minister Stephen Harper, Kenney shocked the Alberta political establishment in 2016 by steamrolling into the PC leadership race. In 2017, he united the PCs and Wildrose under a new banner, the United Conservative Party.
I remember thinking at the time that rank-and-file PCs didn’t really see him coming.
Kenney outplayed them all in a political game they should have been prepared for. At the PC convention in Red Deer, he bused in youth supporters and stacked influential committees with his own people while Harper held court in a side room, edging votes Kenney’s way.
Elected premier in April 2019, Kenney is sticking to the economic plan he was elected on, even though polls suggest many Albertans aren’t happy with the path he’s taking.
Remarkable turns
Social media wasn’t even a thing in 2000, but in politics now, it’s everything.
In the early days, TV reporters were assigned one story and had to meet a 6 p.m. deadline. The entire day was spent setting up interviews, being in neighbourhoods, or on a stakeout with a camera operator.
Today, reporters juggle numerous assignments, filing for web, radio and TV, taking photos, shooting video and yes — appearing on TV and on radio. Interspersed with all of that is a prerequisite that one eye always be kept on social media.
Social media is a political specialty that has evolved from a casual amusement to an integral part of politics and political coverage. Just consider the impact of a single tweet from U.S. President Donald Trump.
When your time is done, it’s done
Very few political leaders have clawed their way back once the party decides it’s time for a change.
Although he served as premier from 2006 until 2011, it appeared Ed Stelmach, the affable farmer from Andrew, Alta., didn’t sit well with his party establishment in Calgary. Alberta’s first premier of Ukrainian descent, Stelmach brought in a lobbyist registry and conducted a royalty review — considered almost blasphemous in some conservative circles.
He won another majority government for the reigning PC party — but the rumbling continued. After the Christmas break in 2010, Stelmach suddenly announced his intention to resign.
Getting pushed out also happened to Ralph Klein and Alison Redford, and most recently to federal Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer. It doesn’t seem to really matter which party is doing the knifing, though I haven’t seen it play out in Alberta to anyone other than to those in the premier’s chair at the time.
Different governments, same challenges for reporters
There’s always a battle for public transparency and accountability, regardless of which party forms government.
It was no easier to file a freedom of information request under the NDP government than under the PCs or the UCP.
I secretly hoped the floodgates of information would open wide after the fall of the PC government, but that certainly wasn’t the case.
The NDP government had its own way of not telling reporters what was going on, and stuck to it. They were new at the job in 2015, but quickly figured out that consolidating their messaging and keeping reporters at bay were integral to running government.
It’s a trend that continues to tighten under the Kenney government, making it increasingly difficult for reporters to cut through the political spin.
As I prepare to start my new job, I remember fondly the many people I’ve met at the legislature, from the cleaners and cafeteria staff to maintenance workers, security personnel, office workers, journalists and legislators. Here’s hoping the next decade brings resolution to some of the stories I’ve covered over the past 20 years.
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
