Juno News - Smith goes toe to toe with Trudeau and Trump

00:00:00.000 While many of the headlines this week have been dominated by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

00:00:04.400 announcing his future resignation, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has made some headlines

00:00:09.120 for her response, which was a scathing rebuke, with very strong words. Smith also had a back

00:00:14.660 and forth with President-elect Donald Trump during his ongoing tariff threats and now

00:00:19.900 annexation threats. Alberta NDP leader Nahid Nenshi will finally run for a seat in the legislature

00:00:25.900 after taking over the party last year. Alberta also plans to double its oil production and

00:00:31.360 increase exports to the United States despite the oil and gas cap which Alberta also issued

00:00:36.480 a fresh response to. All of this and more on this week's episode of the Alberta Roundup.

00:00:51.580 I'm your host Isaac Lamoureux and it's a great honour to be back on the show after

00:00:55.720 the holiday break. Let me know if you experienced any Christmas blues. I know I was in a lull

00:01:00.800 for weeks. But let's hop into that first story between Trudeau and Smith now. In a post to

00:01:07.160 X, Smith criticized the Liberals for the Prime Minister's decision to prorogue Parliament,

00:01:13.320 delaying critical discussions and leaving Canada without clear leadership during a very challenging

00:01:18.660 period. Smith said, quote,

00:01:20.900 The Liberal Party has no such mandate from Canadians and they are putting their selfish 0.99

00:01:25.860 political interests ahead of the Canadian people by paralyzing Parliament and suspending democracy

00:01:31.960 for months while they fight a divisive internal leadership contest. It is one of the most irresponsible

00:01:38.480 and selfish acts of a government in Canadian history. Smith urged every federal party and MP to

00:01:46.280 force an election as soon as possible. Alberta's Premier did an interview with Fox News where she

00:01:52.880 said the following. But with the wokeism, with the extreme environmentalism, with the punitive

00:01:58.740 approach to taking to anything from mining to all the way through to the development of oil and gas,

00:02:04.820 excessive carbon taxes, making life more unaffordable, spending like mad, seeing the increase in

00:02:11.240 inflation. I think we've had parallel experiences over the last four years and quite clearly Canadians had

00:02:17.680 enough of it. I personally think that we'd be better off going straight into an election. I would like to

00:02:22.740 see a new Prime Minister chosen so that we would have a four-year mandate. Your incoming President,

00:02:28.420 Dr. Trump, has a four-year mandate. We need to be able to have somebody who has the credibility

00:02:32.340 of a four-year mandate behind them as we get into these really difficult conversations about tariffs.

00:02:37.700 Smith also discussed the likely future Prime Minister Pierre Polyèvre's interview with Jordan Peterson,

00:02:43.280 which has now garnered more views than Canada's population, sitting at over 42.5 million on X alone.

00:02:51.680 Smith asked the Fox News host and all Americans to be patient and just wait a few months because by that

00:02:57.300 time, she said that a dramatic turn will occur in this country and a strong partner for the United States

00:03:03.520 may emerge. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who chairs the Council of the Federation, informally known as

00:03:10.100 Canada's premiers, has asked Trudeau to put 100% of his energy into addressing the pending tariff

00:03:16.500 threats, which may prove challenging given the leadership race currently taking place.

00:03:21.480 Smith said she agrees with Ford and that the federal government's singular obsession needs to be on the

00:03:27.000 tariff threat. She added that while the premiers are doing what they can, she doesn't feel that Trudeau

00:03:31.820 will be able to stop the tariffs, which is why she's calling for a federal election immediately. 0.99

00:03:37.240 Smith informed people on X that she would be in Washington during President-elect Donald Trump's

00:03:42.960 upcoming inauguration. While this has been known for some time, I previously reported in an exclusive

00:03:48.780 that Smith would be attending the inauguration on Capitol Hill, despite earlier reporting suggesting

00:03:54.480 otherwise. Trump will be sworn in on January 20th. Alberta's representative office in Washington,

00:04:00.820 D.C. was given tickets to Trump's inauguration so Smith could attend in person. Smith also issued a

00:04:06.780 recent statement on Tuesday, reminding people that Canada is the ninth largest economy in the world

00:04:11.740 that buys more products and services from the U.S. than any other single nation, and more than

00:04:17.500 Germany, U.K., France, Italy, and Vietnam combined. She said, quote,

00:04:23.220 We can strengthen our partnership even further in the coming years by securing our shared border and

00:04:28.060 fighting unfair Chinese trade practices that harm workers in both of our countries.

00:04:32.580 The stance against China is a thought echoed from Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has recently been

00:04:38.340 outspoken on China. His recent Fortress Amcan plan paid special attention to helping the American

00:04:44.000 economy decouple from China. Ford also recently implemented a border security framework paralleling

00:04:49.880 Alberta's recently implemented policies.

00:04:52.660 Yeah, let me know in the comments what you think about the premiers having to step up and negotiate with

00:04:57.320 Trump over the economic livelihood of Canada in Trudeau's absence and as a result of him forcibly

00:05:03.340 shutting down parliament to avoid a non-confidence vote. So for our next story here, after being bashed

00:05:09.280 by the premier and numerous ministers for refusing to run to become an MLA, Alberta NDP leader Nahid

00:05:16.160 Nenshi has finally announced that he will run for a seat. It seems that Rachel Notley's retirement

00:05:21.820 provided the opportunity, given he will run for her vacant seat. Nenshi said, quote,

00:05:27.920 This doesn't mean I'm leaving Calgary behind. While still proudly Calgary and I'm already dividing my

00:05:32.860 time between the two cities, and I'm looking forward to learning more about Edmonton.

00:05:38.020 The Edmonton-Strathcona seat was the second safest seat in the whole province in the 2023

00:05:43.560 provincial election, despite the NDP losing to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's United Conservative Party.

00:05:49.900 Notley won the seat with 79.7% of the vote share in the seat, a 62.4% higher margin of the total vote

00:05:57.180 than the UCP candidate. And despite the Alberta NDP's defeat by former Premier Jason Kenney in 2019,

00:06:03.920 the Edmonton-Strathcona seat was again the safest for the NDP, seeing a 72.3% vote share and a 55.2%

00:06:11.980 margin. Notley held the seat between 2008 and 2024. The last time a Conservative represented the riding

00:06:18.780 was Julian Kozak in 1986 with the now-defunct PC Alberta Party. The 2023 provincial election saw the

00:06:26.760 Alberta NDP win only two seats outside Edmonton and Calgary. That was in Banff, Kananaskis and

00:06:32.380 Lethbridge West. The Alberta NDP will nominate a candidate for the upcoming by-election in Edmonton-Strathcona

00:06:38.300 on January 22nd. Nenshi is currently the only candidate eligible for nomination. If no other

00:06:44.920 approved candidates seek the nomination three weeks before the meeting, he will automatically

00:06:49.520 be granted the candidacy. Nenshi became leader of the Alberta NDP following a leadership contest in

00:06:55.140 June 2024, where he won on the first ballot with 86% of the vote. In December 2023, the Alberta NDP had

00:07:02.880 16,224 members. During the leadership race that Naheed Nenshi won, the number allegedly surged to

00:07:10.200 85,144. However, Elections Alberta later cited the Alberta NDP for inflating its membership numbers.

00:07:18.460 Before Nenshi's announcement, an Alberta minister called him out for celebrating his, quote,

00:07:22.920 first legislative session. Alberta Minister of Transportation Devin Dreschen said, quote,

00:07:28.420 Nenshi never served one day in the legislature because he refuses to run in an election to become

00:07:33.820 an MLA. Smith also previously criticized Nenshi for not running in the Lethbridge West

00:07:38.600 by-election, which the NDP won. She has until June 30th to call a by-election in Edmonton-Strathcona.

00:07:44.720 Naheed Nenshi was formally elected as Calgary mayor in 2010 with 40% of the vote and re-elected in 2013

00:07:50.400 with 74% of the vote. In 2017, he won a third term with 51% of the vote. However, he did not seek

00:07:56.780 re-election in the 2021 election when GOT Gondek took power. The current UCP government of Alberta

00:08:02.960 is pushing back further against the war on fossil fuels by aiming to double its oil production and

00:08:08.340 increase exports to the US. A press release on Monday highlighted that Alberta is working to

00:08:13.340 expand its pipeline capacity and double crude oil production. The province has signed a letter

00:08:18.620 of intent with Enbridge, the energy behemoth headquartered in Calgary, which transports nearly

00:08:24.100 20% of the natural gas consumed in the United States and accounts for 30% of North America's

00:08:29.600 crude oil production. Enbridge transported nearly 4.4 billion barrels of oils and liquid in 2023.

00:08:36.700 Over the last decade, Enbridge has transported almost 37 billion barrels of oil. The organization

00:08:42.560 delivers around 5.8 million barrels of crude oil and liquids daily in its cross-continent pipeline

00:08:49.080 network. Enbridge and the Alberta Petroleum Marketing Commission will form a working group to

00:08:53.720 evaluate future egress, transport, storage, terminalling, and market opportunities across

00:08:59.180 the 29,000 kilometers that Enbridge operates. Smith said, quote,

00:09:04.700 The world needs more Alberta oil and gas, and we need to make sure Alberta is meeting those needs.

00:09:09.860 This will also allow us to play a role in supporting the United States in its energy security and

00:09:14.680 affordability goals. So Smith is making good on a promise she made while speaking at a Tucker Carlson

00:09:20.540 event a year ago when she vowed to double the province's oil and gas production.

00:09:26.000 Smith has gone toe-to-toe with the federal government on many occasions regarding how much

00:09:30.560 oil should be produced in the province and the country. She previously called Trudeau's oil and

00:09:35.700 gas cap a, quote, deranged vendetta targeting Alberta. She had also launched a nationwide advertising

00:09:41.980 campaign warning Canadians about the consequences of a federal cap on the oil and gas sector.

00:09:47.160 Alberta previously became the first non-U.S. state to join a United States energy pact. The province

00:09:53.160 accounts for 56% of oil imports into the United States double the amount Mexico, Saudi Arabia,

00:10:00.000 and Iraq collectively provide. Despite the possible tariffs, major Canadian oil producers have predicted

00:10:05.680 production growth for 2025. Similarly, the Canadian Association of Energy Contractors has predicted the

00:10:12.700 highest oil and gas drilling in 2025 since 2015. Alberta's energy minister, Brian Jean, previously

00:10:19.760 discussed how Alberta plans to partner with Trump's more pro-energy government in 2025 and going forward

00:10:25.520 on the Alberta Roundup. He said this.

00:10:28.260 If we're going to, you know, get this product to market that is the best product in the world, that is the most

00:10:33.620 environmentally friendly and best for human rights and jobs, then we need to get more of it out of the

00:10:38.860 ground and into pipes that go south and go east and go west and north. Alberta's environment minister,

00:10:44.760 Rebecca Schultz, issued a release on Wednesday saying that this was the federal government's last chance to

00:10:50.320 scrap the cap. She said, quote,

00:10:53.520 For too long, we have watched this federal government ignore the needs of Canadians while

00:10:57.780 attacking our economy and our energy sector. The proposed emissions cap is not just bad policy.

00:11:03.600 It's an economic wrecking ball aimed at the heart of Canada's economy. Schultz explained that a 35%

00:11:10.600 cut to emissions by 2030 is not realistic or achievable and that global emissions would increase

00:11:16.000 nonetheless. She said people across the country will lose their jobs, businesses will close,

00:11:21.220 costs will rise, and government revenues and services will be cut. She said, quote,

00:11:26.440 The federal government needs to listen to Canadian provinces, industry, workers, small businesses,

00:11:32.660 and families from coast to coast instead of creating a constitutional and economic crisis.

00:11:38.300 This production cap violates Canada's constitution and we are already preparing to take this fight to

00:11:43.600 the courts if these regulations ever become law. The oil and gas cap is not to be confused with the

00:11:49.920 electricity cap, which Ottawa recently shifted to a net zero power grid by 2050. The original plans

00:11:56.700 were to reach net zero by 2035. Alberta said it doesn't matter because the year doesn't affect

00:12:02.560 the constitutionality and any such advances will be challenged in court. The Alberta government

00:12:08.240 previously used the Sovereignty Act to shield the province from the mandated net zero grid by

00:12:13.200 2035. But instead of getting into the nitty gritty of the many times Alberta has and will take the

00:12:20.040 feds to court, let's hop into a quick short story. So this quick sports shout out will be for my Calgary

00:12:25.260 Flames fans. Yeah, I don't know if you heard, but the Flames versus Kings game in Los Angeles on Wednesday

00:12:31.000 got postponed due to the ongoing fires and a date for a makeup game has yet to be scheduled. Los Angeles

00:12:38.140 seems to be dealing with a similar situation that we saw in Jasper. But without diving too deep into

00:12:44.180 that and landing myself in some trouble, let's hop in to the comment roundup. The first comment comes

00:12:49.500 from at basket hound 2133 who said, quote, the majority of Canadians and Americans want cheap,

00:12:56.460 affordable gas vehicles and oil products. The green globalist policies don't work and cost us all.

00:13:04.180 Look back at the last nine years. Green means poverty. Cheap oil products and gas means prosperity.

00:13:10.640 Simple, eh? God bless you, Danielle and your team. Keep on fighting for all Canadians and build the

00:13:16.340 pipelines we want. So yeah, in case you've forgotten, the last episode of the Alberta Roundup was an

00:13:21.220 interview with Alberta's energy minister, Brian Jean. And speaking to what basket hound said, the

00:13:26.900 tides on energy seem to be shifting from anti to pro. As Canadians are realizing that cheap energy is the

00:13:33.680 fastest and easiest way to economic prosperity and the best way for Canada to be successful on the

00:13:40.040 world stage, not only economically, but in reducing emissions, in fact, worldwide, by supplying

00:13:45.860 our clean energy instead of coal from dictators. Because the world needs energy, and it really is

00:13:52.800 one or the other. The next comment comes from at Roma Eterna who said, quote, absolutely thrilled to

00:13:59.400 have uprooted my family to Alberta. Thank you, Brian. Thank you, Danielle. The constitution will save

00:14:05.160 Alberta and Canada. Follow the constitution to the letter of the law. If the province has jurisdiction

00:14:11.120 over anything, take it from the feds, period. Yeah, I've decided to highlight this comment because

00:14:16.680 this is a common theme I've seen not only on these videos, but on posts across the world wide web, which

00:14:22.340 is that freedom seeking Canadians have relocated to Alberta. But I think this has to be viewed as good

00:14:29.040 and bad in a way because Alberta is of course dealing with population and immigration issues like the rest of

00:14:35.320 the country, albeit primarily from international immigration. And also some people may be immigrating

00:14:41.680 to Alberta for its economic benefit, despite not agreeing with the morals and economic policies that

00:14:47.760 have let the province become what it is today. But speaking towards provincial jurisdiction, Alberta's

00:14:54.780 current government has done this more than any other province, which is challenge the feds at every

00:14:59.980 instance where they feel that their jurisdiction is being imposed upon. So the next comment comes from

00:15:05.680 at reboot underscore 2.0, who said, quote, Brian Jean's answers satisfied my opinions on how the Alberta

00:15:13.360 government is treating the oil and gas industry and reminds me of how the NDP single term did so much

00:15:20.000 damage to the province. Yeah, this kind of ties in with my last comment there, because New Albertans may

00:15:26.100 not be aware of the damage caused by the NDP during its governance if they did not live here during that

00:15:32.320 time. Remember, Rachel Notley's victory in 2015 ended 44 years of rule in Alberta by the progressive

00:15:39.740 conservatives. She subsequently lost the elections in 2019 and 2023 before resigning as NDP leader. So I'm

00:15:47.620 curious to ask you guys, do you think that the conservatives will hold the throne in Alberta again for four

00:15:53.640 decades or even longer? Or will the NDP or some other party be able to take over at some point in the

00:15:59.380 future? And why? That wraps up our comment roundup in this week's show. My name is Isaac Lameru, your host of

00:16:06.220 the Alberta Roundup. Have a great weekend. Thank you and God bless. May Alberta prosper strong and free.

Juno News - January 11, 2025

Smith goes toe to toe with Trudeau and Trump

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