Juno News - Keith Wilson： “The only viable path forward is independence”

00:00:00.000 U.S. Trade Representative Jamison Greer says it's time for America to get tough on Canada

00:00:10.100 over provincial bans on American liquor sales. Greer told a trade committee hearing he's reached

00:00:17.840 the end of his rope in dealing with Canada on the matter and is looking at enforcement.

00:00:22.720 Every Canadian province, with the exception of Alberta and Saskatchewan, has ceased distribution

00:00:27.300 of u.s wine and liquor products including ontario to the north this is distorting the market causing

00:00:34.420 immense harm to our wine producers in the district and have you and your team raised

00:00:40.500 this issue as well with our canadian counterparts and have they been trying to

00:00:44.980 help us have they been constructive in this issue much like with the dairy issue well it's

00:00:49.620 it's at the provincial level right so we hear from the federal government canada well it's

00:00:53.460 it's the provinces. And we do have two provinces who don't have this. That being said, I think

00:00:58.400 we're kind of at the end of our rope in just asking for them to do this. Think about it this

00:01:02.680 way. There are two countries that have retaliated economically against the United States in the

00:01:06.560 past year, the People's Republic of China and Canada. So that's kind of the company that

00:01:11.080 they're running in. So my sense is there may have to be an enforcement action to deal with this

00:01:15.380 issue on wine and spirits in Canada. An enforcement action could see the U.S. respond

00:01:20.240 with higher tariffs, import restrictions, and other penalties on Canadian goods.

00:01:26.480 There are also ongoing issues over Canadian restrictions on U.S. dairy products, fruits,

00:01:31.920 and vegetables. Meantime, Prime Minister Carney has dismissed conservative attacks on his handling

00:01:37.440 of the U.S. trade negotiations. Carney says conservative leader Pierre Polyev isn't

00:01:43.280 qualified to second-guess him on such matters.

00:01:46.000 In last year's election, Carney promised a negotiated trade agreement with the United States

00:02:02.120 would be completed by last July.

00:02:05.420 A U.S. senator wants the Trump administration to stop insulting Canadians.

00:02:10.440 Gene Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire, scolded Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick

00:02:16.240 over the Trump administration's mocking reference to Canada as the 51st state.

00:02:22.120 Let's listen.

00:02:22.780 Canada's economy leans on the incredible $30 trillion economy of America.

00:02:30.660 There's no doubt about that, Mr. Secretary.

00:02:33.000 But insulting our closest ally and neighbor who provides a lot of business.

00:02:39.060 We have a lot of businesses in New Hampshire, small businesses who work on both sides of the border.

00:02:44.560 We have all those Canadian visitors who are not coming because of your comments and comments by the administration.

00:02:51.540 How does that help our economy?

00:02:54.160 It is outrageous that Canada will not put U.S. spirits on the shelf.

00:03:00.720 It is insulting.

00:03:02.320 It is.

00:03:02.860 And disrespectful to America that they won't even put...

00:03:09.040 in a company that has American spirits.

00:03:12.940 And they won't do it because of the insults

00:03:15.840 from this president and comments like yours.

00:03:19.340 President Trump has taken to refer

00:03:21.100 to Prime Minister Carney as governor,

00:03:23.840 but says he's no longer interested

00:03:25.280 in making Canada the 51st state.

00:03:28.740 Well, former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is back

00:03:31.600 talking about economic matters,

00:03:33.300 including the need for closer ties with China.

00:03:36.100 He says U.S. trade policies have pushed Canada

00:03:39.260 into forging a closer alliance with that country.

00:03:42.620 Let's listen.

00:03:43.460 We're seeing a similar thing happen right now

00:03:45.220 with President Trump threatening the Canadian auto industry

00:03:48.540 where we're now having to look at working with China

00:03:51.860 because the American industry

00:03:54.120 doesn't want to work with us anymore.

00:03:56.640 And the big example we get right now is on aluminum.

00:04:00.540 Anyone who knows the aluminum industry

00:04:02.200 knows that Canada has for decades

00:04:04.780 They're one of the great places to make aluminum in the world.

00:04:07.500 Massive amounts of hydroelectricity, access to the raw materials,

00:04:11.420 meant that we are a strong, clean, reliable supplier of aluminum,

00:04:16.780 that America, the United States, would buy massively from us.

00:04:20.480 Well, the U.S. recently decided to put 50% tariffs on Canadian aluminum,

00:04:25.920 and though suddenly the Americans weren't buying aluminum from Canada anymore,

00:04:30.480 they were looking to try to increase their own production,

00:04:34.780 which is not easy to do because electricity is so expensive in the States and not as clean.

00:04:39.880 And the Europeans sort of came to us and said, hey, what you make the cleanest aluminum in the

00:04:45.300 world and you're not able to sell it to the U.S., will you sign a deal with us? We said, absolutely.

00:04:51.300 Well, Trudeau once said there was no business case for selling LNG to Europe. And he didn't

00:04:57.020 mention that China has maintained tariffs on Canadian canola and seafood products, including

00:05:02.440 lobster and crab. RFK Jr. has described Canada's euthanasia program as abhorrent and amoral.

00:05:11.740 U.S. Secretary of Health, Robert Kennedy, told a Senate subcommittee this week Canada's MAID

00:05:17.260 program targets the most vulnerable people, including the disabled. I think those laws are

00:05:22.560 abhorrent. And we see in Canada today, I think it's the number one cause of death is assisted

00:05:29.220 suicide and as you say it targets people with with disabilities and um and people who are

00:05:40.580 struggling in their lives and i don't think we can be a moral society we can't be a moral

00:05:46.660 authority around the globe if that becomes institutionalized throughout our societies

00:05:52.820 main causes of death in canada remain cancer and heart disease

00:05:56.740 MADE now accounts for about 1 in 20 deaths nationally.

00:06:01.920 Well, the man who once dismissed Alberta's separation and the movement as a fringe movement now says it could become a real factor in Canadian politics.

00:06:11.380 Former Premier of Alberta Jason Kenney told the Globe and Mail Ottawa may not fully grasp the seriousness of a referendum vote set for October 19th.

00:06:22.760 Well, Premier Danielle Smith says a government website is being set up to give Albertans information about the upcoming referendum question, but she makes it clear she does not support independence. Let's listen.

00:06:35.660 When you talk to people, whether they be politicians or voters, whether it be in Alberta or outside of Alberta, when you talk about a referendum in the fall, most people already assume that independence is going to be on the ballot.

00:06:46.280 So why not just do it?

00:06:49.040 Just choose a question that is clear.

00:06:51.760 Put it on the ballot right now so that conversation can actually start.

00:06:54.940 You can have a yes and a no cap.

00:06:57.180 Why not do it today?

00:06:59.240 Well, because my position is that we should remain in Canada.

00:07:02.420 That's the position of our government.

00:07:04.240 We believe that we should assert sovereignty within a united Canada.

00:07:07.380 So that is our policy.

00:07:08.960 And so others are putting forward a proposal that would have a different position.

00:07:14.420 And so it would not be a government-sponsored question.

00:07:18.620 It would be one that would be a citizen-initiated response.

00:07:22.440 And so we're waiting to see if the court will affirm that and allow the signature collection to be validated.

00:07:29.400 I don't want to prejudge what the court's going to do.

00:07:31.720 I believe they're going to be making their decision in May.

00:07:34.060 Our guest today is Keith Wilson, a pro-independence lawyer who will also be taking part in a debate about independence with former Premier Jason Kenney.

00:07:42.880 Welcome, Keith.

00:07:44.420 uh thanks for having me on all right paint me a picture of the day after a pro-independence

00:07:51.720 referendum vote do you think that premier smith who is a staunch supporter of the federalist side

00:07:58.660 should resign right afterwards i mean given her position as a believer in in federalism

00:08:09.220 Would you think that that would be appropriate?

00:08:13.400 Well, the Supreme Court of Canada was clear in its 1998 decision on succession and the

00:08:19.700 Quebec reference, where the court laid out a legal pathway for any province to become

00:08:25.160 independent, which includes the process of a referendum where a clear majority vote in

00:08:30.880 favor on a clear question for independence.

00:08:34.140 So, after that vote, if it's successful, the Premier is going to have a choice. She's going to either have to step down or she's going to have to lead the negotiations and the follow-up steps towards independence.

00:08:50.320 The Supreme Court of Canada did not say in its decision that if a clear majority vote on a clear question, then negotiations for independence must ensue unless the Premier doesn't want them.

00:09:01.460 So it'll be incumbent on her to make a personal decision.

00:09:06.640 I'm hopeful that she'll be reactive to the will of the people

00:09:11.060 and lead the negotiations with the federal government

00:09:14.880 and the steps towards implementing independence.

00:09:18.560 I mean, it would be an awfully awkward scenario, wouldn't it?

00:09:21.660 I mean, she's pro-federalist side.

00:09:24.840 And then after a vote, then potentially you're saying she could just flip

00:09:31.020 and say okay i'm with the independent side now albertans have had their say and i'm going to be

00:09:37.340 the person to negotiate a termination of our relationship with canada i mean do you think

00:09:43.260 that that's a practical way to move forward i mean given her stance i do i mean it's only she knows

00:09:52.620 the answer to those questions but um clearly the supreme court of canada which is the binding law

00:10:00.620 of canada binding upon the federal government and all of the provinces is clear that where a

00:10:06.780 decision is made by the people to become independent the provincial government must

00:10:11.920 lead the negotiations and implement the steps towards independence so she'd either have to

00:10:18.280 decide that's something she's comfortable with or not and i never really quite understood the idea

00:10:23.840 of a sovereign alberta in a united canada i mean at some point you got to pick a lane you cannot

00:10:30.540 be sovereign within the context of your being a province in another country you know what i'm

00:10:39.000 saying maybe she could explain it to me one day in a way that makes sense i mean i understand the

00:10:44.660 quebec experiment you know and the fact that they consider themselves a nation but they're not really

00:10:50.840 a nation everybody knows that they don't have a seat in the un well that might that having is not

00:10:57.960 having a seat in the UN might actually be a good thing these days. But more to your point,

00:11:03.200 the reality is that what I haven't heard from anybody who's saying, let's fix Canada,

00:11:12.720 whether it's Jason Kenney or anybody else, is how they plan to do it. Because first of all,

00:11:17.520 it doesn't seem to me that other parts of Canada even think they're broken. I don't think the

00:11:23.680 carny liberals think Canada is broken. They're quite happy having Albertans work really hard

00:11:29.440 and send $30 to $40 billion extra to Ottawa. They're quite happy controlling our lives,

00:11:37.260 providing us with MAID instead of health care and things like that. So I just don't know how

00:11:43.940 anybody who thinks, who, it seems there, even those who are not separatists acknowledge that

00:11:50.940 Alberta has legitimate grievances and that acknowledge that Alberta has good reason to

00:11:56.040 feel that it's being treated unfairly and it doesn't have proper representation in the House

00:12:00.780 of Commons and so on. But none of them have laid out a plan that I've seen to have it addressed.

00:12:06.300 The only plan that makes sense to me, legal plan that actually has viability, is independence.

00:12:13.540 And that's why I think an increasing number of Albertans are supporting it.

00:12:16.420 Yeah. I mean, the cards, the feds are holding all the cards really. And there has to be an

00:12:24.340 acknowledgement and they like the status quo to your point. They like the status quo, hold all

00:12:29.820 the cards. So unless they are absolutely forced into doing something, they won't do it because

00:12:36.520 they like things just the way they are. And speaking of Jason Kenney, there was this quote

00:12:41.500 in the Globe and Mail. If they get enough of those frustrated federalists voting for leverage

00:12:48.420 and you get, I don't know, 20, 30, 35 percent, yes, that creates a permanent divisive fact in

00:12:55.860 our politics. It will turn the separatist movement from a marginal fringe to a real

00:13:01.560 factor in our politics that will be disruptive for a long time to come. Well, this is the same

00:13:05.620 man who dismissed your movement as fringe, just a small group of angry people who are not getting

00:13:14.140 their way and making a lot of noise. But now he seems to be acknowledging, no, this could be an

00:13:19.860 issue. And he's even acknowledging later on in that article in the Globe and Mail that, you know,

00:13:26.260 maybe the feds are not really taking this as seriously as they should. What do you make of

00:13:30.820 all of this. Well, I'm longing for the old days a few months ago where they were severely

00:13:36.320 underestimating the independence movement. We enjoyed it when they'd say, oh, it doesn't stand

00:13:42.720 to hope. We'd just say, I just keep telling yourself that. That's fine. But, you know,

00:13:47.800 and I don't agree that he's describing something new. Separatist movements have existed throughout

00:13:54.460 the history of the province. You know, the reason we have the 1930 natural resources transfer

00:13:59.660 agreement in Alberta and in Saskatchewan that transferred control of all of the mines and

00:14:04.440 minerals, which we now know is the third largest reserve of oil and gas in the world, from the

00:14:10.480 federal government to the Alberta government was because there was a separatist push. The reason

00:14:16.480 that Premier Lougheed in the 80s was able to get the amendment Section 92A to the Constitution,

00:14:23.960 the last time the Constitution has been amended, to give the provinces greater control over resource

00:14:28.260 development was because there was an independence push and there was actually a threat to turn down

00:14:34.900 the volume of oil being supplied through the pipeline into sarnia from alberta which turns

00:14:42.240 into the most of the oil and gas and the jet fuel used at pearson so we've come to these points in

00:14:47.360 the past they simmer up i don't think it's anything new i think what's happened is the

00:14:54.340 Liberals under Trudeau and Carney have been much more ideologically extremist.

00:15:01.300 They're determined to hold back our oil and gas industry and other industries.

00:15:06.460 And then they have these other ideological agendas that do not sit well with Albertans at all, whether it's MAID or these other, to be blunt, woke agendas.

00:15:17.340 They're soft on crime.

00:15:19.120 people think it's just about economics and it's just the separatist movement here is just about

00:15:24.940 a pipeline in economics. It's not. It's much deeper than that. Albertans do not support

00:15:30.500 the cultural direction that the federal government's taking the country and do not

00:15:35.700 support the reckless deficit spending that's causing inflation and making life unaffordable

00:15:41.020 for our kids. Yeah, and now they have a majority government, which is probably the best friend of

00:15:46.760 the independence proponents that they could ask because anybody thinking,

00:15:53.000 well, they've got a minority government,

00:15:54.900 there has to be an election maybe in 2026 or the next year,

00:15:59.860 and now poof, they've got a majority,

00:16:01.840 which they got in frankly a sneaky little way.

00:16:05.500 The hope that they could extract this government in favor of one that's more in

00:16:11.140 favor of economic growth and resource sector growth that's extinguished and i'm wondering

00:16:18.020 if that's not worth another five to ten percent of support on your side what do you think

00:16:24.820 well not only that how it happened this is the first unelected majority government

00:16:30.660 they did it through floor crossing and effectively offering some form of reward that is not disclosed

00:16:36.980 or is disclosed and is troubling to MPs who were elected and ran on another party platform,

00:16:44.180 made a representation as to their views, betrayed the voters. And it was an affirmation for Albertans

00:16:51.540 that we're not voting our way out of this in terms of voting in federal elections.

00:16:57.780 It was an affirmation that the structural allocation of seats and how the party system

00:17:03.620 works in Canada is fundamentally disinventageous to Albertans and not representative. We have

00:17:09.620 taxation without representation. So yeah, it was a big boost. Carney generally though, I said this 1.00

00:17:15.540 right after he was elected. I said, he's going to be, my prediction was, I didn't realize he was

00:17:20.620 going to perform at this level, that he was going to be the biggest proponent for Alberta

00:17:24.700 independence that we'd ever seen. And he keeps affirming it. When he stood in front of the

00:17:29.380 microphones a few weeks ago, or I guess a few months ago now, and said that our relationship

00:17:34.400 with the United States is over, right? 90% of Alberta's trade is north-south with the United

00:17:43.180 States, the largest economy in the world. We're closest to them geographically. And for him to

00:17:49.580 announce that that amazing business relationship, economic relationship that we have with our

00:17:55.460 largest, most powerful nation in the world is over. Really upset a lot of Albertans. And then

00:18:02.980 he replaces it with a closer affiliation with China. Like, you really can't even make this

00:18:11.120 stuff up. It seemed if I were to predict these things to you a few years ago, you'd think I

00:18:15.900 wasn't mentally stable. So he is the biggest proponent. And then look what happened at their

00:18:21.020 convention and then his video, YouTube video last weekend. He, you know, politicians and leaders

00:18:27.940 usually inspire hope and he mocked it. He said, hope is not a plan and nostalgia is not a strategy.

00:18:37.800 He used the same phraseology on that red tinge stage that looked like something from a super

00:18:43.540 villain set when at their convention and his wife got up and then slowed down again the phrase.

00:18:50.120 They could say New World Order like it's a new ginshu knife, but they go New World Order, like central casting stuff.

00:18:59.280 So to your question, the bottom line is Prime Minister Carney has been the best booster of Alberta independence beyond even my wildest expectations.

00:19:11.040 Well, we did have the MOU, Memorandum of Understanding, that was signed between himself

00:19:17.540 and Premier Smith, who then took it to the party and touted it.

00:19:24.480 The reaction, from what I recall, was not very positive.

00:19:28.300 But has that not been much of a game changer in terms of Albertans' belief that things

00:19:36.920 will change in terms of promoting the oil sector and exploiting this amazing resource?

00:19:44.120 It's been an affirmation of how bad things are. And the reason is the fact that

00:19:53.720 so much pressure has to be brought by a province to get Ottawa to pay attention to help unleash

00:20:00.360 economic growth. We had RBC come out with a report last week about a trillion dollars

00:20:04.840 worth of investment lost we had the canadian federation of business talk about unprecedented

00:20:10.840 departure from canada of small businesses of job creators of high wealth taxpayers

00:20:18.280 and the reason the mou hasn't changed the equation much is number one it's an illustration of how

00:20:25.480 bad things are that you have to kind of negotiate some special deal but more importantly this

00:20:30.360 right after he announced the mou um he simultaneously announced that he was giving

00:20:38.520 premier eb of british columbia and the first nations a veto over the pipeline so it doesn't

00:20:45.080 matter if every detail is negotiated and settled on the carbon taxes and the pathway project and

00:20:50.760 all of these other features of the mou it's dead on arrival unfortunately because he said

00:20:56.520 well there's not going to be a pipeline unless eb and bc agrees and the first nation agrees and

00:21:01.980 they immediately stood up and have repeatedly said there'll be no pipeline so it's all theater

00:21:06.540 i think it's obvious that mark carney still is in an era of climate alarmism he believes he's

00:21:13.720 going to save the world there's going to be big statues of him um and he's going to make sure

00:21:19.500 that there's a transition away from fossil fuels, there was a Freudian slip. And he is going to use

00:21:29.500 Canada and particularly Alberta as a test case. Albertans are done. The world desperately needs

00:21:34.800 our oil and gas. We should be supplying it. We're a stable supplier. You don't have to bomb things

00:21:39.460 here like they're doing in Iran. You don't have to have wars like they're having in Russia and 0.74

00:21:43.680 Ukraine. Albertans can be a stable supplier. The only reason we're not, the only reason we're not

00:21:49.100 one of the richest places on the planet Earth is because of the deliberate policies coming out of

00:21:54.580 Ottawa. And like I say, an increasing number of Albertans are realizing the only viable path

00:22:00.300 forward is not to amend the Constitution, is not to vote our way out of this in terms of trying to

00:22:06.300 get the CPC in power in Ottawa and all that stuff. The only way out is to vote yes in an independence

00:22:12.060 referendum on October 19th. Yeah, I mean, I think Carney's opposition to Alberta oil,

00:22:19.160 the resource sector, has less to do with environmentalism than it does with his own

00:22:24.580 investments elsewhere. And, you know, there are oil producers that are much more profitable

00:22:34.980 elsewhere in terms of making him richer. And I know it's not a popular point of view, perhaps,

00:22:43.440 but I believe he has financial interests that want to see oil produced elsewhere. And Canada,

00:22:49.760 it would be a competitor to that. And therefore, that's the real reason, in my opinion.

00:22:56.160 But I want to ask you about this because there had been some talk. And yeah, it's a little gray

00:23:01.980 in terms of where it came from but this was a discussion that was had between uh jeff rath

00:23:09.260 and a supporter in hamilton ontario i worked at stelco who apparently overheard a conversation

00:23:19.500 uh from uh coming from the prime minister himself that suggests that the the government

00:23:27.180 of ottawa in canada would use the emergencies act as an avenue in the event of a yes vote in the

00:23:36.700 referendum and stop it in its tracks because they would see it as a uh as a threat to canada

00:23:46.780 its sovereignty and its security and under that proviso or criterion in the act they could stop

00:23:57.180 independence for Alberta for moving forward. You're a lawyer. Maybe you could address that for me.

00:24:06.700 Well, as you may be aware, I've also been legal counsel to the Freedom Convoy protesters and was

00:24:13.100 on the ground in Ottawa during the protest and was there dealing with the government when they

00:24:18.900 invoked the Emergencies Act. And my clients had their bank accounts frozen. And I saw everything

00:24:23.560 that flowed from it. And I also dealt with the litigation where the courts have ruled that it was

00:24:28.360 improper, unreasonable, unconstitutional, and breached charter rights. So I'm very familiar

00:24:35.660 with the Emergencies Act and seeing how it can be abused by this government. So I don't place

00:24:42.980 anything in this stuff about somebody at Stelco said something or didn't. It's just unverifiable.

00:24:48.720 But I have, prior to this, done an analysis of, well, what would happen if and when, hopefully, Alberta votes to become independent? And could the federal government use the Emergencies Act?

00:25:02.980 And my analysis, legal analysis is no, because the process of independence is a lawful one, because the Supreme Court of Canada has made it part of the constitutional framework of the country that any province can vote in an election through referendum to secede.

00:25:20.780 So there would be no pretext to invoke it.

00:25:23.880 Now, of course, there was no pretext to invoke it against the protesters in Ottawa in February of 2022.

00:25:30.480 And that didn't stop the government.

00:25:32.020 So I think if they were to unlawfully invoke the Emergencies Act again and try and use force against Albertans, I think that would attract a significant international response and would have very serious repercussions for the Canadian government.

00:25:51.740 And I think there would probably be a very strong response from our neighbors to the south, the United States of America. Of course, Alberta supplies 55% of their oil imports. I think they would be creating a national security crisis for the United States. I just can't see the federal government even thinking of going down that road.

00:26:16.980 so you're saying a yes vote would then be followed by recognition from other countries

00:26:28.040 most importantly the united states and then were things to get ugly which is to say well

00:26:36.760 i know you might want to leave but you're not going anywhere you know uh you know what i mean

00:26:42.740 like, like a spouse saying one spouse says, I'm out of here. And the other one says, oh,

00:26:49.720 no, you're not. And, you know, we'll use whatever levers at our disposal to make sure you don't

00:26:56.040 leave. And by the way, you know, we'll throw you a bone here and there, like a few extra,

00:27:01.880 you know, seats and okay, you can have your pipeline. You know, I can envision something

00:27:07.880 like that where once the stark reality of an independent reality of an independent alberta

00:27:17.200 really hits these people you know like being hit with a salmon across the face

00:27:23.600 you know that all of a sudden you know their eyes are going to open up and they're going to go oh my

00:27:29.880 god this is real and we have to stop it what do you think

00:27:37.880 Well, it's too late. The courts have laid out a legal pathway. The legal pathway involves a

00:27:45.360 referendum. We're going to have a referendum in the fall. We've already had Tomic Lukasik here

00:27:50.600 with his Forever Canada. He's triggered the threshold for a referendum. The Premier acknowledged

00:27:55.440 that today at her press conference. So no matter what happens in the courts with the other Stay

00:27:59.920 Free Alberta referendum petition request, there's going to be a referendum on independence.

00:28:04.640 The courts have already laid out the pathway, if a clear majority vote yes. One pathway is through negotiation and a peaceful, amicable, mature divorce settlement. And the other is, as set out in paragraph 155 of the Supreme Court of Canada decision, it's unilateral declaration, relying on recognition by other nation states.

00:28:26.920 in October of 2025, Prime Minister Carmi did the most remarkable thing where he announced that the

00:28:32.920 government of Canada was going to recognize the state of Palestine's unilateral declaration of

00:28:38.600 independence. I fell out of my chair. He refreshed that international doctrine. So if the United

00:28:44.040 States were to recognize Alberta, I think the Trump administration would say, what are you

00:28:48.600 talking about? You just did it for Palestine. How can you complain that we're doing it 0.97

00:28:52.200 for the new country of alberta other countries would come forward 92 of our trade is with the

00:28:58.600 united states um and then if they're going to threaten things to alberta well there's a pipeline

00:29:06.520 that leaves alberta and supplies oil to sarnia the refineries that turn it into jet fuel and

00:29:12.840 gasoline and diesel that operate the ontario economy now they do get some other supplies

00:29:17.720 from the US, but the major supplier is Alberta. If they're going to do something inappropriate,

00:29:22.280 it would be open for Alberta to turn off the valve, just like Premier Lougheed promised and

00:29:27.880 committed to do back in his negotiation for the amendment of 92A. And similarly, with British

00:29:33.800 Columbia, they primarily get all of their fuel supplies from a pipeline that goes from Edmonton

00:29:40.760 to the Burnaby refinery and the analysis is that within 5 to 11 days, they would be out of fuel.

00:29:49.720 The airport would be shut down. Now, nobody wants any of those things to happen.

00:29:53.880 Albertans just want to be treated fairly. We're the economic engine of the country

00:29:59.000 and we allow free trade and movement of goods through our borders. $8 billion worth of goods

00:30:04.760 from British Columbia travel freely through Alberta on rail and truck easterly. And we just

00:30:11.240 want the right to be able to move our goods to market too. So an independent of Alberta would

00:30:16.280 have leverage with the rest of the country, very significant leverage, reasonable leverage,

00:30:20.920 and I think it would be exercised responsibly. And I think if the federal government tried to

00:30:26.120 do something irrational or irresponsible, Alberta has the ability to prevent that from happening.

00:30:34.760 uh and uh we also have uh i think friends in the united states that wouldn't want to see harm come

00:30:40.060 to to alberta right you've got a bodyguard or uh i mean i mean alberta's gonna need its own

00:30:49.340 military but i guess in the meantime you know you've got friends south of the border

00:30:56.620 the canadian government couldn't you remember the spy balloon a big huge slow moving balloon

00:31:03.760 yeah they couldn't even take it down they had to rely on the americans twice

00:31:11.440 carney uh prime minister carney uh keith has never to my knowledge said that he would recognize

00:31:19.040 an independence vote that went in the affirmative to my no i've never heard him say that have you

00:31:25.600 and no that's a great question i think he should be asked that that's a brilliant question

00:31:30.480 i would ask him that question and i hope somebody does eventually because i think

00:31:37.880 canadians and albertans would sure like an answer what does he say no

00:31:43.780 you know well and that would be an unconstitutional response because the supreme

00:31:51.640 court of canada has been clear that it's the binding law it overrides the clarity act if

00:31:56.580 If there's a conflict between the Clarity Act and the Supreme Court of Canada decision, that decision prevails over the Clarity Act.

00:32:02.740 There are some things in the Clarity Act that aren't even aligning with the decision already.

00:32:08.280 So it would be, well, you know, but he's not followed the Constitution already.

00:32:16.120 His announcement after the MOU that he is giving to British Columbia a veto over the pipeline is directly inconsistent with the express provisions of Section 92 of the Constitution that give exclusive jurisdiction to the federal government to approve interprovincial pipelines.

00:32:40.840 This has been affirmed not that long ago in court cases involving the TMX pipeline, the twinning. When the previous administration in British Columbia tried to stop it, the court said no. The federal government is exclusive jurisdiction. Once it's an interventional pipeline and it's approved by the federal government, the provinces have no say. First Nations have no veto.

00:32:59.760 And then here he's ignoring the constitution and delegating that authority to the province, to the First Nations, knowing full well they were going to say no. So it's his way of playing Alberta and saying, oh, here, I'll give you an MOU so you can get a pipeline. And then he turns around and announces a mechanism so the pipeline can never happen.

00:33:19.620 And then on top of that, we have a more core problem, which is his net zero fixation and obsession.

00:33:28.120 And there can't be a pipeline, even if there's a route and even if there's no tanker ban, because a pipeline company needs commitments from oil companies to produce the oil and put the oil into their pipe and pay tolls.

00:33:40.840 And the companies aren't prepared to commit to expand production because they don't know if they'll make any money because they're paying these carbon taxes.

00:33:48.000 they're paying for they have net zero rules they have to deal with they have methane emission caps

00:33:52.940 all of and and then the pathways project all of which significantly add to the cost of production

00:33:59.480 no other country does this to their oil and gas industry as the industry leaders have said recently

00:34:05.300 finally in the oil and gas industry no customers asking for this and no customer will pay a premium

00:34:11.300 for it. So Carney's putting layered obstruction in because ideologically he sees himself as a

00:34:18.740 superhero and he's going to save the planet by turning back the clock and moving us all the way

00:34:25.340 from fossil fuels. And that's a very dangerous concept at every level. And Albertans are tired

00:34:31.520 of being held back and tired of propping up the rest of the country and tired of the ideological

00:34:39.520 direction and have great hope in what Alberta can become as an independent country.

00:34:45.640 I know we have to wrap things up, but I mean, if polling suggests, and by the way, you better

00:34:51.360 use paper ballots or however you're going to do it. 0.99

00:34:55.780 Just on that note, Danielle Smith passed a law about a year ago. 0.99

00:35:00.520 No more tabulators. 0.97

00:35:01.740 Every vote must be paper.

00:35:03.340 Yeah, exactly.

00:35:04.000 You're the only province to do that.

00:35:05.540 Municipal elections, all elections, it must be paper.

00:35:07.980 yeah they'll figure out a way to rig it if they can but if the polls suggest that your side will 0.94

00:35:14.500 win the feds are going to roll in with a convoy of brinks trucks you know packed to the brim with 0.90

00:35:20.580 cash and promises you just know it's going to happen and uh no that's not what they're going 0.98

00:35:25.600 to do they're going to they're going to try and scare everybody to death that's what they're

00:35:30.200 going to they're going to use a fear campaign that's what they're going to do they're going

00:35:34.200 to try and work they're they've already do it you know talk of independence creates investment

00:35:40.440 uncertainty yeah okay no no you guys's policy created investment uncertainty and it's quantified

00:35:48.160 now by rbc and it was a trillion dollars uh the only pathway forward to bring investment stability

00:35:56.020 is for alberta to free itself from these ideological extremists in ottawa and have control over our

00:36:02.920 policies, because we won't have carbon taxes, we won't have net zero, and we will have an

00:36:08.460 efficient, stable business environment with minimal regulation to allow the power of the

00:36:14.060 market to rise all boats.

00:36:17.240 Keith Wilson, thank you so much for coming on the show.

00:36:19.720 We hope you come back.

00:36:21.580 Thank you very much.

00:36:22.860 If you enjoyed this show, consider supporting great independent journalism by becoming a

00:36:26.920 premier member of Juno News.

00:36:29.380 Please go to junonews.com backslash straight up.

00:36:32.920 You can find the link below. It helps us do what we do here.

00:36:36.240 Thank you so much. We'll see you next time.

Juno News - April 27, 2026

Keith Wilson： “The only viable path forward is independence”

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