John Bolton - July 29, 2026


Alberta Women For The Win On Independence - Angela Tabak & Kathy Flett


Episode Stats


Length

14 minutes

Words per minute

190.73

Word count

2,853

Sentence count

160

Harmful content

Misogyny

2

sentences flagged


Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
00:00:00.000 Hi, it's John, and welcome to the channel. Great to have you along today. I've got some
00:00:06.840 guests on with me, obviously. A pleasure to have you here today. We're going to talk
00:00:11.120 about some events, an event coming up, and one of the third-party advertisers, which
00:00:15.580 I admire so much, my friends, Kathy Flett, Angela Tabak, are here from the Alberta Women
00:00:21.020 for Independence. So good to have you here today. How are we today?
00:00:25.280 Thanks, John. Doing good.
00:00:27.200 Same.
00:00:27.600 You know, I've said it before. I want to say this again. You two are the most, the unlikeliest pair with Angela.
00:00:35.480 Angela living way down south. You've got Kathy living up in Edmonton. How did you meet, by the way? 0.79
00:00:40.700 Can you just give us some background on that?
00:00:43.820 Yeah. Oh, yeah, for sure. Yeah. We were both involved with the Wild Rose Independence Party of Alberta.
00:00:50.040 So we met about six years ago. Kathy was on the provincial board and I was a constituency association president.
00:00:56.560 Good stuff. And you're still involved with provincial politics as well. And of course,
00:01:00.440 the independence movement with your third party advertiser. Tell me, how are things going right
00:01:05.060 now with the Alberta Women for Independence? I've got one of your signs out in front of the house 0.51
00:01:09.080 here. I know you've got signs going out there. Has it been a real success for you since you got in?
00:01:14.600 We haven't stopped. We haven't stopped and the calendar keeps filling up and that's great.
00:01:19.440 That's what we asked for and that's what we're getting. And I think the feedback that we expected
00:01:25.740 from people because we do cover all of the questions has been even greater than what we
00:01:31.800 anticipated. And that hunger for it is amazing. Yeah, it's Alberta Women for Independence. Is
00:01:38.780 it mostly women you're talking to or you're getting a good mix of men and women out there?
00:01:43.320 Angela? I would say we're getting a good mix. You know, last week I did do a couple of meetings that
00:01:48.380 were strictly just women. But then I went up north with Kathy and the three meetings that we did up
00:01:54.960 there had a pretty good mix of men and women. Yeah, I think it's important. It was, it's
00:01:59.860 interesting, Angela, I was talking to you yesterday when we were setting up this interview, I was
00:02:03.080 chatting, and you are talking about the 10 questions that are coming up on October the 19th.
00:02:08.320 So many of us are focusing on, in question 10, about the referendum for independence and whatnot,
00:02:14.840 or the referendum on the referendum. But it is important people know about those other nine
00:02:19.820 questions. And the point you made with me was people are going to get to this ballot and there's
00:02:25.240 nine questions and it can be rather confusing if you don't know what they are. People could be
00:02:30.400 standing in the ballot area for half an hour trying to figure this stuff out. So you're
00:02:35.280 educating people about those. And you've done this on your website as well, kind of going through all
00:02:39.200 the different questions. Yeah. Yeah. It's going to be a nightmare. It's going to be a nightmare.
00:02:46.020 Absolutely.
00:02:47.020 If you don't know them.
00:02:47.780 Right.
00:02:48.720 Well, and then our biggest concern is that folks are going to get in there.
00:02:51.700 They're going to see the questions for the first time.
00:02:54.460 And, you know, out of pure frustration, they'll just vote, no, you know, keep the
00:02:59.140 status quo, don't change anything where we have such an opportunity, one, to
00:03:03.900 possibly change some things, but more importantly, to send a message that
00:03:08.740 things need to change.
00:03:10.240 Yeah.
00:03:10.720 You know, um, Kathy, when, um, Daniel Smith announced these, I saved them on my screen.
00:03:16.020 have, I think I have slides of all the questions and I wrote down basically one liners, which could
00:03:22.420 be much easier, but of course it's government. It's got to be much more confusing than we think.
00:03:26.120 I mean, for instance, there's, there's nine different questions. I think, um, four of them
00:03:31.820 have to deal with changing the constitution. If I remember correctly, I'm thinking of words like,
00:03:37.040 or questions like have provinces select judges, not the federal government. I think that's one
00:03:41.380 of them. It will take constitutional change for some of these things. So chances are, even if
00:03:45.520 people vote in favor of them, some of these questions will never, ever come to be in the
00:03:49.920 province of Alberta. Oh, none of them will. I'm glad you're so optimistic. Be under no illusion.
00:03:59.000 Yeah, that's right. None of them will. And what Angela and I are going around and talking about
00:04:06.520 is that that's why we have to vote yes to those questions, like to all the questions one through
00:04:12.660 nine and particularly those constitutional questions is vote yes because that sends the
00:04:17.600 message that we are so well aware Albertans don't have a say in confederation we know that and we're
00:04:24.380 going to show you that and then on top of that by voting yes to all of those constitutional
00:04:28.900 questions we've now put the ball in the premier's court to do something with those votes and that
00:04:34.600 gives us an opportunity to watch in real time that our premier who is arguably one of the strongest
00:04:40.040 we've ever had um not perfect none of them ever are but certainly one of the strongest we've ever
00:04:45.500 had is not going to be able to do anything with what we are voting for we actually yeah yeah uh
00:04:52.960 angela we have precedent with this going back to 2021 we voted on something like this nothing
00:04:57.420 happened yeah yeah i mean that was jason kenny doing the token equalization referendum question
00:05:05.180 knowing full well knowing full well that nothing would happen and i mean after the vote it was in
00:05:12.100 the 60s i think it was around 63 percent somewhere there um of albert and said yeah we want to we
00:05:18.700 want to look relook at equalization we want to fix it um and you know so he sends a letter to
00:05:25.540 the federal government and the other premiers with zero response so we know that we're going
00:05:32.240 to see exactly the same thing with these four constitutional questions. I guess we're doing the
00:05:37.520 token constitutional question referendum thing again, but it's all right. We'll keep sending
00:05:42.720 that message and showing folks that nothing's going to change. Kathy, what's been the response
00:05:46.560 to this when you're talking about these nine other questions? Of course, many of us are focusing on
00:05:50.820 question 10, but what are people saying to you? And what kind of feedback are you getting when
00:05:54.440 you're trying to educate them about this? Well, when we get to question one, typically what I'll
00:06:00.280 use it and even last night i did it on people's tvs i'll put it on the tv i'll use a slideshow
00:06:05.380 and throw it on the tv or if we're in a bigger setting it'll be on a powerpoint
00:06:09.280 and just the sheer size of question one their eyes bulge out like what this is this is the question
00:06:17.580 and then we work through it and then they're so grateful that angela and i are doing this to walk
00:06:24.300 them through these questions so that they have a heads up i'm like you can just zip in and out of
00:06:28.740 that ballot box now because you know exactly what it says you know exactly how you're going to vote
00:06:32.060 and you don't have to waste time it has been amazing they love it i edited it down when the
00:06:37.300 premier did this and question one is should alberta decrease immigration that's basically
00:06:42.620 the question i think question number one so i'm glad that you're doing this and when it comes on
00:06:47.000 to number 10 how kind of feedback are you getting with that angela because that's that's the big
00:06:51.780 the big question the the one that has the most consequence i guess for alberta and canada
00:06:56.760 Well, I mean, ultimately, the answer to all of the questions or the true solution would
00:07:04.280 be Alberta independence.
00:07:06.280 We would have control of our immigration system and be able to make it more sustainable, make
00:07:12.380 it more of a blessing to everyone involved, Albertans and newcomers.
00:07:17.760 The constitutional questions would be a no brainer.
00:07:21.820 And so, yeah, when we look at that question, we understand that there is some frustration
00:07:28.260 because it's not the question that so many people canvassed to get signatures on.
00:07:33.640 However, it does further the conversation.
00:07:37.240 Some people say it's just kicking the can down the road.
00:07:39.420 Well, we're still going down the road and we can follow that can as long as we need
00:07:43.760 to and get this done.
00:07:45.760 So we're encouraging folks, don't be discouraged.
00:07:49.700 keep going and let's make something good of it. And again, wonderful opportunity to send a message
00:07:55.660 to our fellow Albertans, to the rest of Canada, that things need to change and they need to change
00:08:01.120 real quick or we're out of here. Yeah. Well, things are going to change
00:08:06.140 within three months. Hard to believe. It's not that far away now, is it? I mean, we'll be
00:08:11.280 soon into Labor Day. We're going into a holiday weekend this weekend. Labor Day will be with us
00:08:17.800 before too long. Summer goes by so quickly, as you know, and October the 19th is coming real fast.
00:08:23.260 How can people help you guys out if they want to make a donation to you? It's very important. I was
00:08:28.960 talking with Jason Levine about this, who's another third-party advertiser. We need to make
00:08:33.480 sure that the money continues all the way along. The very important last five weeks of this are
00:08:38.040 going to be crucial if we want to win this thing. How can people get money to you so you continue to
00:08:43.840 go out there and educate people, get signs out there as well. Kathy?
00:08:47.720 Easiest way is online. Go onto our website and you can either donate with a credit card,
00:08:53.440 if that works for you, if you want to collect those points, or you can e-transfer us. And all
00:08:58.860 of the directions are on there. All I ask is that, please let me know that you are in Alberta,
00:09:04.240 confirm that. And if you're donating anything over $50, please give me your mailing address
00:09:10.500 so that I can report it properly with Elections Alberta.
00:09:13.180 Yeah, and an important thing that I've learned through this,
00:09:16.040 PayPal and e-transfers, fill out all the information
00:09:19.760 because it's kind of going to be out of your hands.
00:09:22.340 If they don't do that, it could end up that the money ends up going
00:09:25.140 to Elections Alberta and we don't want that to happen.
00:09:28.340 So fill out all the information.
00:09:29.520 It certainly makes it easier for you so you're not trying to track people down.
00:09:32.420 And in some cases, you won't even be able to do that, right, Angela?
00:09:35.940 Yeah, 100%.
00:09:37.160 we are as compliant as we can be with elections alberta regulations and rules we are playing
00:09:45.400 nice in the sandbox and um 100 transparency and we all chuckled because we know that there are
00:09:52.280 those who aren't doing that but that's not us we are 100 transparent and you know what john
00:09:58.360 my goodness i understand that times are rough for a lot of people and yet and when we see those
00:10:05.640 smaller donations especially coming in you know the 10 the 20 the 30 dollars i know that that was
00:10:11.160 a sacrifice for that person and that that money represents their desire for self-determination
00:10:17.160 and their desire to see a free alberta and so we use that money so very carefully i'm i'm just
00:10:24.280 very very very conscious of that yeah and you're doing great work and and you know what's nice
00:10:28.600 about this over over this period that we've had over the last year or so at times people have
00:10:33.640 made donations to independence groups, not necessarily TPAs. And it's been hard to find
00:10:39.060 out where that money's going. You can see it on the street when you see one of your signs or
00:10:44.020 you're having an event and people like to see that, that their money is actually going towards
00:10:47.460 something. Now, speaking of an event, I'm going to be at one on Thursday night. I don't do a lot
00:10:51.840 of these things. I don't. And I'm taking a little bit of a trip. I'm going to Cardston on Thursday
00:10:56.280 night. I'm excited about this. Unfortunately, Kathy, you can't be there on Thursday, but
00:11:00.600 I'm gonna be with you, Angela.
00:11:02.260 What the heck are we doing on Thursday night?
00:11:04.660 Why am I going to Cardston?
00:11:06.220 Oh my goodness, it's gonna be so fun.
00:11:08.460 And you know what, folks are excited down here.
00:11:10.860 We did a mail out to all the mailboxes.
00:11:13.020 We've got folks, volunteers delivering flyers door-to-door
00:11:16.720 to make sure that everybody knows about this.
00:11:18.680 And it's just come on out for the conversation.
00:11:22.500 It's going to be lighthearted, nothing heavy,
00:11:26.160 but hey, let's talk about some of these questions
00:11:29.080 that we're gonna be asked to vote on in October.
00:11:31.300 Let's be informed.
00:11:32.900 And what are some questions?
00:11:35.180 What are our what ifs?
00:11:36.260 What are our objections?
00:11:39.480 What are our concerns?
00:11:40.640 Let's have a discussion about it
00:11:42.100 and see what we can come up with.
00:11:44.320 I'm really looking forward to it, John.
00:11:46.160 I am too.
00:11:47.000 It's gonna be fun being there.
00:11:48.120 Kathy, I'm just wondering,
00:11:49.080 when you're doing these events,
00:11:50.340 what's the number one thing that pops up?
00:11:51.780 Can you think off the top of your head there?
00:11:54.340 Concerns by people.
00:11:55.860 Concerns by people.
00:11:57.180 The number one thing is, is, is it going to matter?
00:12:01.060 There's not a lot of trust in government that these questions are going to go anywhere.
00:12:06.240 And so it's, it's that continued push that this is, this is the tool we've been given.
00:12:11.140 This is the tool we're going to use.
00:12:12.600 So let's keep going.
00:12:14.460 And, and that's probably the biggest one right now.
00:12:17.720 Yeah.
00:12:17.920 So those top nine questions won't matter.
00:12:20.160 The one at the bottom that you were talking about earlier, Angela, if we vote for this
00:12:23.940 one all those other ones won't matter because we can do a lot of that stuff in a an independent
00:12:27.560 independent alberta in the future right absolutely really important yeah yeah so the event uh where
00:12:34.880 is it happening and how can people take part and apparently t-shirts oh yeah i've got volunteers
00:12:42.700 come in and we're making t-shirts they're fun alberta crest t-shirts we're gonna have those
00:12:47.660 for free um it's at the cardston civic center it's kind of funny most people are like where's
00:12:53.420 specific time town hall we're going to town hall yep um that's where we're gonna have it uh doors
00:12:59.900 open 6 30 thursday night uh we'll kind of start the conversation at seven o'clock yeah we're gonna
00:13:07.100 have t-shirts and lawn signs if folks want lawn signs and also john what we have discovered over
00:13:13.900 this last week is that folks really want our handouts our flyers to share with your friends
00:13:20.140 and neighbors. So I'm going to Lethbridge today to print off several hundred of those because
00:13:25.940 we've got a bunch of meetings this week that we're going to need them for, that folks can
00:13:29.320 take that information. Now they know how to have the conversation. They can share it with their
00:13:34.740 family and friends and maybe cross some obstacles and some barriers that have been there before.
00:13:41.740 Yeah, I think of all the third-party advertisers, you know, I think you're doing something really
00:13:45.840 different here, talking about those nine other questions, which is so important. Because you
00:13:50.480 know what it's like, you go out, people go out to vote on election day, this will be a referendum
00:13:54.520 day. And, you know, I haven't got a lot of time and you're going to be standing there going,
00:13:58.140 why is this person taking 30 minutes here? But you'll find the quick people, oh, Angela and
00:14:03.860 Kathy, they were educated from Angela and Kathy. So we'll know as we get into the ballot box. So
00:14:10.620 again, this is awesome. So thanks very much. Again, this will be happening at the Cardston
00:14:15.100 Civic Center, 67 Third Avenue West in Cardston. Doors open at 630 on Thursday night. Seven o'clock
00:14:21.740 the discussion starts. I'm looking forward to that. Your website is abwomensindependencenetwork.com,
00:14:28.120 correct? Yes. Great. So if you would like to make a donation to Alberta Women for Independence,
00:14:33.180 go do it there. Thank you for what you guys are doing. I think it's awesome. And I'm looking
00:14:37.300 forward to Thursday night. Thank you. Thank you, John. Kathy Flett, Angela Tabak from the Alberta
00:14:43.280 Women for Independence, abwomensindependencenetwork.com is the website if you'd like to support them.
00:14:50.040 Thank you very much for watching this video. If you liked it, give it a thumbs up,
00:14:53.460 subscribe to the channel, ring the bell for notifications. I will see you in the next one.