Juno News - WE’s Long Goodbye

00:00:00.000 Welcome to Canada's Most Irreverent Talk Show.

00:00:06.700 This is The Andrew Lawton Show, brought to you by True North.

00:00:12.720 Coming up, we charities never-ending goodbye,

00:00:15.760 who's standing up for free speech,

00:00:17.460 and do Albertans deserve an independence referendum?

00:00:22.400 The Andrew Lawton Show starts right now.

00:00:25.960 Hello and welcome everyone to Canada's Most Irreverent Talk Show.

00:00:32.700 This is The Andrew Lawton Show on True North.

00:00:35.780 And you know that wee charity thing that was all the rage last year

00:00:39.640 where you had the government giving tens of millions of dollars

00:00:42.860 in an untendered contract to this charity

00:00:45.560 that was supposed to put youth back to work and do all these great things,

00:00:49.900 but then, well, we actually found out that they had been giving a lot of money

00:00:53.000 to Justin Trudeau's family members

00:00:54.820 and had these long-standing relationships.

00:00:57.000 Is this ringing any bells with anyone?

00:00:59.380 It seems like this huge story has all but disappeared,

00:01:02.720 which is exactly what Justin Trudeau wanted

00:01:05.460 when he prorogued Parliament,

00:01:07.200 effectively halting the investigation into this scandal.

00:01:11.880 And now here we are again.

00:01:14.040 Canadians have moved on.

00:01:15.320 All the talking now is about the vaccine bungling,

00:01:18.120 but we'll save that for another episode.

00:01:21.080 Weed charity was not an insignificant thing.

00:01:23.540 And in a lot of ways, this is showing how Trudeau has managed to really just be Teflon Trudeau,

00:01:28.720 not letting any scandal hold him back.

00:01:31.320 Now, SNC-Lavalin, wee, blackface, doesn't matter. 1.00

00:01:34.500 He gets through it all.

00:01:35.760 But the wee one, I think, was interesting

00:01:37.700 because it involved so many of the usual suspects of Canadian politics

00:01:41.620 who all had these ties.

00:01:43.240 Remember, I mean, Bill Morneau was the one who ultimately fell on his sword,

00:01:46.460 and now he doesn't even get the benefit of that soft landing

00:01:49.820 as Secretary General of the OECD.

00:01:52.740 I mean, I'm so sorry.

00:01:53.640 My condolences to Mr. Morneau on the death of his global political ambitions.

00:01:58.760 But wee charity was supposed to have been a casualty of this scandal as well. 0.99

00:02:03.840 You may remember in September,

00:02:05.020 we said that it was going to be folding its Canadian operations.

00:02:09.420 And they said it was going to take some time

00:02:11.080 because they had all of these different things,

00:02:12.640 but they were going to be shutting down.

00:02:14.180 And a lot of people were saying, okay, good riddance.

00:02:16.200 They didn't think it was doing all that much

00:02:17.860 apart from hosting these big glitzy parties.

00:02:20.480 And the Kielberger brothers,

00:02:21.580 who were rather indignant when they did testify before the finance committee,

00:02:26.300 were at first unrepentant.

00:02:28.080 And then eventually they were conceding that,

00:02:31.320 you know what, it was time to say farewell.

00:02:33.520 But this has been a very long farewell.

00:02:36.080 The wee charity goodbye is looking like the never-ending share farewell tour,

00:02:40.100 which I think started in like 1894

00:02:41.940 and is still continuing to this day.

00:02:44.520 Because wee was doing this weird sit-down on the Fifth Estate

00:02:48.580 in which they were trying to, it seemed like, put some spin on what happened.

00:02:55.100 They conceded in this that the whole controversy left them political roadkill,

00:02:59.500 that the government wasn't there for them,

00:03:01.560 but they were also somewhat contrite.

00:03:03.660 They said, well, you know what,

00:03:04.760 we should have known that this was a problem.

00:03:07.260 We didn't have any idea.

00:03:08.700 They even at one point said that we were just, you know, political neophytes.

00:03:13.140 We had no idea that this would even be a problem.

00:03:16.240 We should have known, but we didn't know.

00:03:18.000 Take a look at this clip.

00:03:19.160 Why did you pay Margaret Trudeau?

00:03:20.460 Oh, we didn't have to on the wee day stage.

00:03:23.020 Specifically, though, what we did need her help for

00:03:25.260 is other events,

00:03:27.720 for example, friend raisers or fundraisers,

00:03:30.640 or events that we did for educators or others in the community,

00:03:33.760 that we needed a speaker, just like a university lecture series,

00:03:37.580 or some celebrity comes to a golf tournament with fundraising.

00:03:41.320 That's why she was engaged with us,

00:03:43.540 and she was one of dozens of people who did this.

00:03:45.860 We had sponsors specifically for that,

00:03:48.200 and that's why she was engaged. 0.51

00:03:51.380 And fortunately, the message got very convoluted,

00:03:55.780 and also, and listen, I get it.

00:03:59.000 To an ordinary Canadian,

00:04:00.440 this makes a ton of sense.

00:04:01.640 I get this.

00:04:02.700 She earned, and what we basically paid her,

00:04:05.140 worked up to about $6,500 per event,

00:04:07.860 which I know there are a lot of Canadians that go,

00:04:09.280 that's a crazy amount of money.

00:04:11.220 I understand that.

00:04:12.980 But in reality, compare that to other speaking fees,

00:04:17.140 what we gained as a charity

00:04:19.260 and what people pledged as donations for those events

00:04:22.920 was a multiple of a multiple of a multiple of that.

00:04:26.660 It worked out well for us,

00:04:28.300 and that's why Chris Hadfield was there,

00:04:29.920 and that's why Chantal Pettyclerc was there,

00:04:31.580 and yes, that's why Margaret Trudeau was there. 0.54

00:04:33.600 But I think the average Canadian saw this differently.

00:04:36.020 I think what they saw is that

00:04:37.500 you were paying for access to the Trudeaus.

00:04:40.860 You were paying for favours.

00:04:43.180 You were paying for something

00:04:44.640 that would help you in the long run,

00:04:46.200 like getting a sole-sourced contract

00:04:49.000 from the federal government.

00:04:50.440 And that was a brutal perception

00:04:54.080 to a children's charity.

00:04:55.700 I get that.

00:04:56.520 I understand that.

00:04:57.320 And we were politically blind

00:05:00.620 in understanding that issue.

00:05:02.120 I will own that.

00:05:03.380 We started with Margaret Trudeau

00:05:04.620 before Justin Trudeau was even prime minister.

00:05:08.920 This is a long-standing relationship.

00:05:10.480 It was never a decade of thinking

00:05:13.860 that somehow down the line

00:05:15.360 this would ever lead to anything

00:05:16.440 and that someday a pandemic would strike

00:05:18.140 and there would be an opportunity

00:05:19.060 to gain a national contract.

00:05:20.560 We are certainly not that forward-thinking.

00:05:24.540 But I understand that

00:05:25.720 from an optics point of view,

00:05:27.800 I get it.

00:05:28.680 I do.

00:05:29.360 And I understand why

00:05:30.420 we did not do a good enough job

00:05:32.200 of explaining that.

00:05:33.160 And I own that.

00:05:34.660 So again, they say

00:05:35.320 they're politically blind

00:05:36.520 and, well, I mean,

00:05:37.000 they didn't actually spend

00:05:38.080 that much money on Margaret Trudeau.

00:05:40.160 But they also talk about

00:05:42.140 how she was used for fundraising.

00:05:44.780 And that seems to be very odd

00:05:46.540 that in the span of just under two minutes,

00:05:48.800 they seem to be conceding

00:05:50.140 that this woman was bringing in huge money. 1.00

00:05:52.220 Donors wanted to be involved

00:05:54.080 in what she was doing with Wee.

00:05:55.760 And why is that?

00:05:57.140 No offense to Margaret Trudeau.

00:05:58.460 I'm sure she's a perfectly lovely woman. 1.00

00:06:00.240 But why would a bunch of these

00:06:01.400 heavy hitter donors

00:06:02.380 want to be paying

00:06:03.740 to get access to Wee charity

00:06:05.380 and access to a woman 0.99

00:06:06.920 with the name of Trudeau

00:06:07.980 when Justin Trudeau

00:06:09.520 is the prime minister of Canada?

00:06:11.420 So the idea that these guys

00:06:13.200 who have spent their whole lives

00:06:14.920 building Wee charity

00:06:15.980 to be this global brand,

00:06:18.180 to be hobnobbing with celebrities,

00:06:19.880 to be getting contracts

00:06:21.340 where they get to be responsible

00:06:22.600 for dispensing a billion dollars,

00:06:24.600 why would we believe

00:06:26.240 that they just didn't know

00:06:27.380 what they were doing?

00:06:28.360 They want us to believe

00:06:29.380 that they're just

00:06:29.900 the Keystone Keelburgers, 0.97

00:06:31.200 just like going around

00:06:32.040 and they don't really know

00:06:32.800 what they're up to.

00:06:33.540 But they're a lot more shrewd than that.

00:06:36.100 And even this interview

00:06:37.120 seems to be an exercise

00:06:38.840 in that shrewdness,

00:06:40.640 trying to just be

00:06:41.520 all aw shucks about it.

00:06:44.440 And I wonder if Wee

00:06:45.840 is actually going away.

00:06:48.240 Now, this is, again,

00:06:49.540 admittedly not a huge smoking gun,

00:06:52.340 but it's something

00:06:52.900 that is interesting nonetheless.

00:06:54.400 Jesse Brown of Canada Land,

00:06:56.300 who, whatever you think

00:06:57.020 about him or Canada Land,

00:06:58.120 has been very solid

00:06:59.000 on keeping at the Wee scandal

00:07:01.500 very doggedly,

00:07:02.880 uncovered this job posting

00:07:05.100 that was posted by a woman

00:07:06.980 who is the head

00:07:07.740 of marketing partnerships

00:07:08.940 and programs for Wee Charity,

00:07:11.840 hiring for someone

00:07:13.300 to do a live streaming show

00:07:15.540 for kids,

00:07:16.820 a, quote,

00:07:17.400 future opportunity, unquote,

00:07:19.860 a scripted live show

00:07:21.360 with a hosted format

00:07:22.540 streamed to a closed network.

00:07:24.380 And they want it

00:07:25.460 to start immediately.

00:07:26.900 But what was interesting

00:07:27.820 is that she said

00:07:28.480 it's a short term

00:07:29.240 and small project

00:07:30.080 with future opportunity.

00:07:31.840 And the question

00:07:33.500 that Jesse Brown raised,

00:07:34.980 is this a weird job

00:07:37.000 for an organization

00:07:37.820 that is supposedly

00:07:38.760 in the process

00:07:39.640 of winding down

00:07:41.200 and is supposed to be

00:07:42.120 winding down this year

00:07:43.360 in, what,

00:07:44.560 five months,

00:07:45.260 six months?

00:07:46.200 So there is, I think,

00:07:47.460 a big question about that.

00:07:48.560 And even the Kielbergers 1.00

00:07:49.660 doing this interview,

00:07:50.860 what is it they hope

00:07:52.060 to gain from this?

00:07:52.980 Why are they sitting down?

00:07:53.920 If Wee is going away,

00:07:55.680 which is what we were told,

00:07:57.080 why on earth

00:07:58.320 are they doing

00:07:59.100 all of these things

00:08:00.000 that look like

00:08:00.640 an organization poised

00:08:01.820 for a rebrand

00:08:02.860 or a comeback?

00:08:04.300 And at this point,

00:08:05.100 it's just a question,

00:08:06.100 but I think it's

00:08:06.700 a very valid question.

00:08:08.480 And as much as I raise

00:08:10.240 issue with how we behaved,

00:08:12.780 don't forget that

00:08:13.920 they are not the bad guy here.

00:08:15.900 And one of the things

00:08:16.640 that Justin Trudeau

00:08:17.380 has managed to do

00:08:18.400 to allow himself

00:08:19.860 to skirt through

00:08:20.660 all of these controversies

00:08:21.960 is by making someone else

00:08:24.000 take the fall.

00:08:25.260 When S&C Labelin happened,

00:08:27.060 who was it?

00:08:27.580 It was Gerald Butts

00:08:28.440 that stepped down

00:08:29.240 and it was Michael Wernick.

00:08:30.640 The clerk of the Privy Council.

00:08:32.120 When blackface happened, 1.00

00:08:33.500 it was society's fault.

00:08:34.740 It was all the learning lessons

00:08:35.880 that society needed to embrace.

00:08:38.360 When Wee happened,

00:08:39.560 it was Bill Morneau

00:08:40.680 that went and took the fall.

00:08:42.320 And in a lot of ways,

00:08:43.260 Wee was thrown under the bus.

00:08:44.440 And I think they may have

00:08:45.260 deserved to be there

00:08:46.120 in some ways,

00:08:47.220 but Trudeau has always

00:08:48.760 managed to make it

00:08:49.760 so that someone else

00:08:50.960 is to blame

00:08:51.600 or society collectively

00:08:53.620 just needs to do better.

00:08:56.500 I'm a firm believer

00:08:57.680 when we talk about

00:08:58.520 conflict of interest violations

00:08:59.980 that the real bad guy

00:09:01.280 in these dynamics

00:09:02.080 is not the person

00:09:03.140 who's trying to buy access

00:09:04.220 to the politician,

00:09:05.300 but it's any politician

00:09:06.460 who sells access.

00:09:08.060 And that's just

00:09:08.680 a general observation.

00:09:10.560 My issue with Wee 1.00

00:09:11.720 is not that they took

00:09:12.600 this big, huge contract

00:09:13.680 because if you're in the business

00:09:15.500 of doing this

00:09:16.220 and someone gives you

00:09:16.880 that much money,

00:09:17.720 you say thank you

00:09:18.560 and you pocket it

00:09:19.260 before anyone calls you on it.

00:09:21.340 My issue is with the government

00:09:22.840 that was just so ham-fistedly

00:09:24.880 eager to give up that money.

00:09:27.620 And when we saw the emails

00:09:28.920 that were released

00:09:29.700 through the Wee committee

00:09:30.480 before it was shut down,

00:09:31.920 we saw this,

00:09:32.760 that this wasn't just something

00:09:33.760 that was actually plopped

00:09:34.920 on the prime minister's desk.

00:09:36.520 This was something

00:09:37.260 that his office

00:09:37.920 was very eagerly involved with

00:09:40.200 and shepherded along

00:09:41.620 and actually made happen.

00:09:44.720 So don't let Wee take the fall

00:09:47.100 for the prime minister's office

00:09:48.980 and for the prime minister,

00:09:50.540 but similarly,

00:09:51.740 don't let anyone forget

00:09:53.140 that Wee was complicit in this

00:09:55.200 and Wee was involved in this

00:09:57.060 and Wee has tried to pretend

00:09:58.640 that it had no idea

00:10:00.020 that there were any issues with this

00:10:01.380 when anyone would see

00:10:03.120 that there were.

00:10:05.040 And one thing

00:10:05.900 that Craig Kielberger

00:10:06.900 mentioned in that interview

00:10:07.840 is, well, you know,

00:10:08.580 I see how the average person

00:10:09.900 would look at this

00:10:10.520 and think it was a problem.

00:10:12.440 Well, if he can see that,

00:10:13.540 I mean, at what point

00:10:14.420 did he realize that?

00:10:15.440 At what point

00:10:15.940 did he reach that conclusion?

00:10:18.300 Perhaps only after

00:10:19.580 everyone else did.

00:10:21.520 But the idea that this

00:10:22.840 little contrite

00:10:23.940 mea culpa-esque interview

00:10:25.420 is coming after months

00:10:26.600 of Wee at first denying

00:10:28.500 that they gave the politicians,

00:10:30.440 family members any money

00:10:31.640 and then later on saying that,

00:10:33.720 oh, well, okay, no, no, no.

00:10:34.620 It was actually from

00:10:35.160 we paid from this organization,

00:10:36.760 not this organization.

00:10:38.000 Wink, wink.

00:10:38.840 And I mean,

00:10:39.300 the whole point is

00:10:40.100 they've had so many opportunities

00:10:41.340 in which they could make

00:10:42.280 this right and haven't.

00:10:43.880 So doing it now

00:10:44.580 makes you ask why now?

00:10:46.320 And more importantly,

00:10:47.540 don't let them forget

00:10:48.380 what's happened up

00:10:49.220 until this point.

00:10:50.180 We've got to take a break.

00:10:51.140 When we return more

00:10:52.200 of The Andrew Lawton Show

00:10:53.300 here on True North.

00:10:55.780 You're tuned in

00:10:56.980 to The Andrew Lawton Show.

00:11:01.320 Welcome back

00:11:02.220 to The Andrew Lawton Show.

00:11:03.860 I've been covering

00:11:04.620 the last few shows,

00:11:06.240 this forthcoming legislation

00:11:07.720 that Heritage Minister

00:11:08.820 Stephen Gilbeau

00:11:09.620 has promised

00:11:10.200 to regulate online speech.

00:11:13.240 And the reason

00:11:13.800 I'm talking about it again

00:11:14.960 is because no one else is.

00:11:17.560 For example,

00:11:18.740 Stephen Gilbeau mentioned,

00:11:19.960 and this is what I said

00:11:20.960 on Tuesday's show,

00:11:22.100 that the online hate definition

00:11:24.040 will be based on

00:11:25.020 a Supreme Court decision

00:11:26.180 that actually took

00:11:27.560 a very non-inclusive view of,

00:11:31.020 and I don't mean inclusive

00:11:31.900 in the like

00:11:32.540 Justin Trudeau diversity

00:11:33.620 is our strength sense,

00:11:34.560 but I mean inclusive

00:11:35.260 in the sense of what is legal

00:11:37.560 and what is acceptable.

00:11:38.840 A very non-inclusive view

00:11:40.680 of free speech

00:11:41.500 by focusing more on harms

00:11:43.180 and by saying that,

00:11:44.300 you know what,

00:11:44.600 even speech that's true

00:11:45.660 could conceivably be hateful.

00:11:48.520 And the reason

00:11:49.460 this is so important

00:11:50.420 is because that story

00:11:51.660 got a little bit of coverage

00:11:53.160 in French media,

00:11:54.420 La Presse.

00:11:55.160 No English media

00:11:56.320 covered it,

00:11:57.240 except for True North.

00:11:58.200 No English media

00:11:59.020 picked up that story.

00:12:00.480 And similarly,

00:12:01.440 when he's been

00:12:02.240 in an ongoing basis

00:12:03.400 talking about this,

00:12:05.020 almost no one

00:12:05.840 has asked the questions

00:12:06.900 through the lens

00:12:07.540 of free speech,

00:12:08.540 what are you actually

00:12:09.980 going to do?

00:12:10.660 What is this legislation

00:12:11.620 actually going to be about?

00:12:13.620 When we talk about

00:12:14.900 free speech

00:12:15.720 and all of the aspects

00:12:17.620 of society

00:12:18.380 that are connected to it,

00:12:19.820 it's astonishing

00:12:20.940 how few advocates

00:12:22.400 there are for it.

00:12:24.760 And this is something

00:12:26.080 that used to be

00:12:27.340 a lot more unanimous

00:12:28.960 than it is now.

00:12:30.340 For example,

00:12:31.400 when the Canadian

00:12:32.200 Human Rights Commission

00:12:33.060 had its Section 13,

00:12:34.540 which was the online

00:12:35.520 hate speech provision

00:12:36.540 that it was taken away,

00:12:38.280 it was rescinded

00:12:39.740 by the Conservatives,

00:12:40.620 there were a lot of people

00:12:42.160 on the left and the right,

00:12:43.760 your old school liberals,

00:12:45.160 that said,

00:12:46.180 you know what,

00:12:46.480 this is wrong.

00:12:48.020 People in the mainstream media,

00:12:49.460 journalists,

00:12:49.980 that said,

00:12:50.420 you know what,

00:12:50.720 this is actually

00:12:51.340 pretty chilling

00:12:52.080 to free speech

00:12:53.140 and stood up

00:12:53.700 and opposed it on principle.

00:12:55.200 When Ezra Levant

00:12:56.300 and Mark Stein

00:12:57.140 were fighting

00:12:57.760 these commissions,

00:12:58.980 they were actually

00:12:59.940 getting support

00:13:00.660 from people

00:13:01.160 who were their

00:13:01.860 political opponents

00:13:03.540 because everyone realized

00:13:04.980 or enough people realized,

00:13:06.300 you know what,

00:13:06.600 we can't have

00:13:07.220 these institutions

00:13:08.380 that have mandates

00:13:09.200 to censor.

00:13:10.620 Well, now what's happening,

00:13:11.700 the liberals are bringing back

00:13:12.960 Section 13 with a vengeance.

00:13:14.640 They're bringing back

00:13:15.300 a much more powerful

00:13:16.340 and supercharged version of it,

00:13:18.560 which is still aiming

00:13:19.840 to enforce a definition

00:13:21.440 of hate speech

00:13:22.400 that is distinct

00:13:23.520 from the definition

00:13:24.540 that exists in the criminal code

00:13:26.140 and the definition

00:13:27.120 that actually exists

00:13:28.020 in Canadian laws.

00:13:28.920 They're creating

00:13:29.640 a new definition

00:13:30.880 which only serves

00:13:32.700 to restrict

00:13:33.480 and hinder free speech.

00:13:35.980 And who's standing up?

00:13:38.240 Who is standing up for it?

00:13:39.720 Where's Amnesty?

00:13:40.780 Where's Penn Canada?

00:13:41.880 Where's Canadian journalists

00:13:43.180 for free expression?

00:13:44.680 In a lot of ways,

00:13:45.580 I have to ask,

00:13:46.080 where are the conservatives?

00:13:47.740 I asked Conservative leader

00:13:48.980 Aaron O'Toole

00:13:49.540 at a press conference

00:13:50.520 about this

00:13:51.380 and I want you to take

00:13:52.560 a listen to his answer.

00:13:54.000 Good morning, Mr. O'Toole.

00:13:55.280 The heritage minister

00:13:56.480 has said that the government

00:13:57.760 will imminently be

00:13:58.740 introducing legislation

00:14:00.100 to tackle what it says

00:14:01.440 is online hate

00:14:02.660 and Minister Gilbeau

00:14:03.920 has said that

00:14:04.680 the definition

00:14:05.800 will be based on

00:14:06.880 the Watcott Supreme Court decision

00:14:08.640 which was one that

00:14:09.680 had focused more on harm

00:14:11.620 than free speech

00:14:12.420 and actually at one point

00:14:13.760 had said

00:14:14.240 that something could be truthful

00:14:16.320 but still qualify

00:14:17.760 as hate speech.

00:14:19.480 And I'm curious for you

00:14:20.860 as the leader of a party

00:14:21.920 that repealed Section 13

00:14:23.560 of the Human Rights Act

00:14:24.620 and someone who stood up

00:14:25.600 for free speech

00:14:26.280 in the leadership,

00:14:27.340 what your thoughts are

00:14:28.260 on this forthcoming legislation?

00:14:31.620 I've stood up

00:14:32.600 for free speech

00:14:33.240 in this parliamentary session

00:14:34.600 when the Prime Minister,

00:14:35.840 Mr. Trudeau,

00:14:36.860 suggested it wasn't a priority

00:14:39.140 when it's a fundamental pillar.

00:14:41.200 We saw President Macron

00:14:42.280 call Prime Minister Legault

00:14:44.700 or Premier Legault

00:14:45.720 before he called

00:14:46.580 Prime Minister Trudeau.

00:14:49.000 This week, Andrew,

00:14:50.180 we've actually been focused

00:14:51.480 on the MindGeek Pornhub situation

00:14:54.000 where we have to protect

00:14:55.480 our most vulnerable online.

00:14:57.220 Some of the testimony

00:14:58.540 we've heard

00:14:59.340 is literally heartbreaking

00:15:01.620 and the fact that

00:15:03.020 a company that was originated

00:15:05.280 in Canada

00:15:06.460 and had that presence,

00:15:10.480 the fact that

00:15:10.980 we're not shutting down

00:15:12.360 these ability

00:15:14.480 for the vulnerable

00:15:15.400 to be exploited online

00:15:16.480 is a travesty.

00:15:17.580 So we'll see

00:15:18.120 what the government

00:15:18.580 brings forward

00:15:19.240 but we want to make sure

00:15:20.620 that the most vulnerable

00:15:21.800 with online exploitation

00:15:23.460 is an immediate priority.

00:15:25.580 You know,

00:15:25.880 I think the MindGeek

00:15:27.260 Pornhub issue

00:15:28.360 is a very important one.

00:15:29.520 I think protecting

00:15:30.100 the vulnerable

00:15:30.680 from online harm

00:15:31.800 is a very important issue.

00:15:33.060 I don't think

00:15:33.580 it has anything to do

00:15:34.420 with the question

00:15:34.960 that I asked.

00:15:35.960 And apart from that

00:15:36.820 very tacit endorsement

00:15:38.580 of free speech

00:15:39.260 in a general sense

00:15:40.340 at the beginning,

00:15:41.440 there was nothing to do

00:15:42.760 with free speech

00:15:43.780 in his answer.

00:15:45.220 Now, I didn't ask that

00:15:46.280 as a softball

00:15:47.460 but I am fully aware

00:15:49.000 that asking a conservative

00:15:50.940 to stand up

00:15:51.760 for free speech

00:15:52.480 is probably one of

00:15:53.640 the easiest things

00:15:54.640 you can do.

00:15:55.480 That's like just

00:15:56.200 a no-brainer

00:15:57.060 for people on the right

00:15:57.960 to say,

00:15:58.320 well, yes,

00:15:58.740 you know,

00:15:58.920 free speech is great

00:15:59.680 and this is terrible

00:16:00.640 and here's why.

00:16:02.280 And it was

00:16:03.040 Brian Storseth,

00:16:04.180 a conservative MP

00:16:05.100 who led the charge

00:16:06.040 to rescind

00:16:06.760 Section 13.

00:16:08.560 It was conservative MPs

00:16:10.040 on the Justice Committee

00:16:10.940 even last year

00:16:12.040 that were actually

00:16:13.400 doing their work

00:16:14.360 or it might have been

00:16:14.860 2019 rather

00:16:15.760 that were doing

00:16:16.640 their work

00:16:17.180 to push back

00:16:18.260 against some

00:16:18.840 of the discussions

00:16:19.500 in committee

00:16:20.640 that led to

00:16:21.520 this legislation

00:16:22.520 indirectly.

00:16:24.360 But Aaron O'Toole

00:16:24.960 was asked a very

00:16:25.700 clear question,

00:16:26.420 could not give an answer

00:16:27.440 that was standing up

00:16:28.780 against this

00:16:29.500 with the exception

00:16:30.160 of, well,

00:16:30.600 we'll see what

00:16:31.140 the government does.

00:16:32.060 Well, we already know.

00:16:33.320 We already know

00:16:34.460 what the government

00:16:35.420 is putting out here

00:16:36.920 because they've told us.

00:16:39.340 Now, I would like

00:16:40.480 to actually testify

00:16:41.540 when this goes

00:16:42.280 before committee,

00:16:43.080 I would like to testify

00:16:44.280 before committee on this

00:16:45.520 and I am going to tell you

00:16:46.980 if you have a conservative MP

00:16:48.380 and you're riding,

00:16:49.540 let them know,

00:16:50.280 especially if they're sitting

00:16:51.080 on that committee,

00:16:51.720 I want to be there

00:16:52.480 because we need

00:16:53.740 free speech advocates

00:16:54.820 right now

00:16:55.560 to push back

00:16:56.600 against this.

00:16:57.300 You know,

00:16:58.120 there were enough

00:16:59.040 cultural issues,

00:17:00.180 cultural barriers

00:17:01.020 to free speech right now

00:17:02.200 in society,

00:17:03.380 from big tech,

00:17:04.220 in all of these other ways.

00:17:05.640 We don't need

00:17:06.720 a legal barrier

00:17:07.820 on top of that.

00:17:09.280 We don't need

00:17:10.080 yet another legal barrier,

00:17:11.520 a tool to allow

00:17:12.820 the government

00:17:13.380 to get in bed

00:17:14.040 with big tech

00:17:14.700 and censor people

00:17:15.860 that, again,

00:17:16.520 are guilty of something

00:17:17.680 that is very ill-defined

00:17:19.260 or are believed to be.

00:17:22.140 Because that's

00:17:22.760 the whole point of this.

00:17:23.600 This legislation

00:17:24.400 that the government

00:17:25.020 is looking at

00:17:25.940 will penalize big tech

00:17:27.960 if they do not censor.

00:17:30.240 But government

00:17:30.920 is not doing

00:17:31.700 the dirty work,

00:17:32.440 it's the tech companies

00:17:33.280 that are.

00:17:34.260 And Minister Gilbo

00:17:35.160 mentioned that,

00:17:35.860 oh, well,

00:17:36.200 you know,

00:17:36.380 we should probably

00:17:36.780 have an appeal mechanism

00:17:37.860 in place of some kind.

00:17:39.260 But I don't know

00:17:39.900 if they're going

00:17:40.320 to actually have that.

00:17:42.580 And the fact

00:17:43.140 that he's acknowledged

00:17:44.060 ramming this through

00:17:45.260 because there might

00:17:46.040 be an election

00:17:46.600 so we have to work quickly

00:17:47.840 indicates that this

00:17:49.120 won't be all

00:17:50.000 that well thought out.

00:17:51.380 So I cannot stress

00:17:52.900 how important

00:17:54.000 this legislation

00:17:55.100 is to watch

00:17:56.200 and I cannot stress

00:17:57.240 my disappointment

00:17:58.000 that no one else

00:17:59.220 is paying attention to it.

00:18:00.760 My message to you

00:18:01.500 and I know I've got

00:18:02.180 members of parliament

00:18:02.960 that listen to this show

00:18:04.020 and read my columns

00:18:05.580 and I'm very appreciative

00:18:06.500 of it,

00:18:07.140 but do not let this

00:18:08.500 get by without a fight.

00:18:10.480 We'll be back

00:18:11.140 in a moment

00:18:11.480 with more of

00:18:12.120 The Andrew Lawton Show

00:18:12.880 on True North.

00:18:13.640 Stay tuned.

00:18:14.080 You're tuned in

00:18:16.720 to The Andrew Lawton Show.

00:18:22.120 Welcome back

00:18:22.920 to The Andrew Lawton Show

00:18:24.360 here on True North.

00:18:25.480 You may recall

00:18:26.460 a few months back

00:18:27.360 when people were,

00:18:28.360 you know,

00:18:28.620 allowed to leave their homes,

00:18:30.200 I was in Alberta

00:18:31.280 speaking at the Freedom Talk,

00:18:33.140 which was a conference

00:18:34.020 put on to explore

00:18:35.200 the very question

00:18:36.360 I'm going to be exploring

00:18:37.240 in this segment,

00:18:38.060 which is Western independence

00:18:39.160 and Western alienation.

00:18:40.580 And I always try

00:18:41.220 to turn anything I am at

00:18:42.420 to an opportunity,

00:18:43.340 so I did a number

00:18:44.260 of interviews,

00:18:44.900 including with MLA Drew Barnes,

00:18:47.120 who we'll talk to in a moment,

00:18:48.640 about where things are right now.

00:18:50.680 What are the grievances

00:18:51.520 that Alberta has

00:18:52.580 with Confederation?

00:18:53.720 What are the solutions?

00:18:54.940 What are the resolutions?

00:18:56.160 What are the sticking points?

00:18:57.620 And the one thing

00:18:58.420 I found even then

00:18:59.320 is that there was

00:18:59.860 a great deal of anger

00:19:01.160 and frustration,

00:19:02.280 but it wasn't irrational.

00:19:04.260 People have very

00:19:05.140 legitimate grievances

00:19:06.480 ranging from the equalization

00:19:08.340 to the lack of autonomy

00:19:09.540 over the pension plan

00:19:10.740 to the manner in which

00:19:11.880 Alberta's number one industry

00:19:13.260 and export,

00:19:14.000 oil and gas

00:19:14.680 and energy more broadly

00:19:15.940 are continually given

00:19:17.480 the middle finger

00:19:18.180 by other parts of the country,

00:19:20.520 even those who benefit

00:19:21.720 from the equalization payments

00:19:23.560 made possible

00:19:24.240 because of Alberta's

00:19:25.240 oil and gas sector.

00:19:26.540 So all of these problems

00:19:27.620 are very real.

00:19:28.820 And with the cancellation

00:19:29.520 of Keystone XL,

00:19:31.100 with other developments

00:19:32.300 such as the precariousness

00:19:34.240 of the Line 5,

00:19:35.640 which is an Enbridge project,

00:19:37.220 these sentiments,

00:19:38.400 I fear,

00:19:38.960 are only growing

00:19:40.000 to such an extent

00:19:41.200 that Drew Barnes,

00:19:42.180 an MLA for Cypress Medicine Hat,

00:19:44.420 has called for

00:19:45.340 an independence referendum

00:19:46.820 in 2023

00:19:47.800 when Albertans go to the polls

00:19:49.680 for the next election.

00:19:51.000 This is above and beyond

00:19:52.420 the equalization referendum

00:19:54.120 that Jason Kenney

00:19:54.980 has promised,

00:19:55.940 and it's something

00:19:56.580 that would put in his mind

00:19:58.440 an ability to go

00:19:59.580 to the federal government

00:20:00.360 and say,

00:20:00.800 hey, listen, Prime Minister,

00:20:01.880 we need to renegotiate.

00:20:03.380 Look at how many people

00:20:04.320 are ready to walk away.

00:20:06.340 Conservative leader Aaron O'Toole

00:20:07.840 did a press conference

00:20:08.820 this morning,

00:20:09.440 and I'd actually asked him

00:20:10.620 about this

00:20:11.500 because he,

00:20:12.780 despite being from Ontario

00:20:14.300 and specifically the GTA,

00:20:16.380 has always been someone

00:20:17.660 who has stood up

00:20:18.820 for Western voices.

00:20:20.660 We saw this

00:20:21.220 in his leadership race

00:20:22.320 where he said,

00:20:22.880 listen,

00:20:23.400 this is not something

00:20:24.300 that we can take for granted.

00:20:25.900 And it was even

00:20:26.560 the first topic he raised

00:20:28.040 with Prime Minister

00:20:28.780 Justin Trudeau

00:20:29.600 after he became

00:20:31.060 the leader of the Conservatives.

00:20:32.540 And I'd asked him,

00:20:33.360 listen,

00:20:33.600 between the Keystone,

00:20:34.740 the Line 5,

00:20:35.600 the independence referendum,

00:20:36.700 the equalization referendum,

00:20:38.380 all of these things.

00:20:39.400 How do you,

00:20:40.020 as the Conservative leader,

00:20:41.340 and how would you,

00:20:42.240 as Prime Minister,

00:20:43.480 deal with these sentiments?

00:20:45.560 And this is what he had to say.

00:20:47.220 It's the first thing

00:20:47.820 I brought up

00:20:48.320 to the Prime Minister

00:20:49.140 in my first call with him.

00:20:51.060 Canadians are losing faith

00:20:52.580 because of the incompetence,

00:20:55.880 the ethical scandals,

00:20:57.280 and the ideological,

00:20:59.060 out-of-touch approach

00:21:00.000 of the Trudeau government.

00:21:01.760 This is why, Andrew,

00:21:02.980 we're having the committee

00:21:04.280 that we're requesting today,

00:21:06.760 the Canada-U.S. committee.

00:21:08.060 After five years,

00:21:08.920 no softwood lumber agreement.

00:21:10.760 Prime Minister Trudeau

00:21:11.600 has had Keystone cancelled twice

00:21:13.620 under two different presidents.

00:21:15.020 Line 5 is at risk.

00:21:16.700 By American protectionism,

00:21:18.860 we can't have vaccine

00:21:20.460 and PPE sharing

00:21:21.900 with our closest ally.

00:21:23.580 We need to make sure

00:21:24.900 that we rebalance trade

00:21:26.420 with the United States

00:21:28.060 for the well-being

00:21:29.140 of tens of thousands

00:21:30.360 of Canadian families

00:21:31.440 in energy and forestry

00:21:32.980 in the auto industry

00:21:34.500 in my own backyard

00:21:35.740 in my own riding.

00:21:37.880 Conservatives are bringing

00:21:38.800 this committee forward today

00:21:40.640 to focus on securing

00:21:42.500 that important economic partnership

00:21:44.320 so that thousands of families

00:21:45.740 will have the certainty of a job.

00:21:47.580 And I don't think

00:21:48.100 there's anything inherently wrong

00:21:49.920 with that answer,

00:21:50.940 but the whole point is

00:21:51.780 a lot of people in the West

00:21:53.520 are growing more and more frustrated

00:21:55.180 with what they see

00:21:56.100 as being an all-talk,

00:21:57.820 no-action response,

00:21:58.960 which is why Cypress Medicine

00:22:00.700 had MLA Drew Barnes

00:22:01.900 as saying it's time

00:22:02.720 to have a referendum

00:22:03.640 and in his mind

00:22:04.880 put the cards on the table.

00:22:06.840 Drew Barnes joins me

00:22:08.080 on the line now.

00:22:09.220 Drew, it's good to talk to you.

00:22:10.180 Thanks for coming on.

00:22:11.360 Good morning, Andrew.

00:22:12.800 So we've understood

00:22:14.360 that this is meant

00:22:15.100 to be a process of escalation

00:22:17.120 in some ways

00:22:17.880 where you have

00:22:18.540 the fair deal panel

00:22:20.200 and then you have

00:22:20.900 the equalization referendum

00:22:22.320 and then from there

00:22:23.560 you negotiate with the government

00:22:25.000 federally

00:22:26.000 and see what you can come up with.

00:22:27.500 Why are you saying

00:22:28.540 it's time to go right

00:22:29.440 to having that referendum

00:22:30.620 on independence?

00:22:32.320 Well, for a couple

00:22:34.320 of main reasons,

00:22:35.660 you know,

00:22:37.080 let's suppose

00:22:38.260 the equalization referendum

00:22:39.720 passes.

00:22:40.940 I solidly believe it will

00:22:42.820 by a large margin,

00:22:44.540 but then Ottawa

00:22:46.020 needs to be put on notice

00:22:47.380 first and foremost

00:22:48.620 that Albertans

00:22:50.240 are feeling the despair.

00:22:52.640 You know,

00:22:52.880 there's a lot of frustration

00:22:54.100 out here

00:22:54.680 and Albertans

00:22:55.700 want to take risk

00:22:56.580 and we want to be successful

00:22:58.100 and with the current situation

00:23:01.060 that's not happening.

00:23:03.060 So Ottawa needs to know

00:23:05.260 that there will be consequences

00:23:06.920 if they don't give Alberta

00:23:09.220 a fair deal,

00:23:10.580 if they don't give Alberta

00:23:11.700 equality

00:23:12.660 and if they don't give us

00:23:14.380 resource movement

00:23:15.200 and, you know,

00:23:16.540 we can come back to that.

00:23:18.180 And secondly, Andrew,

00:23:19.420 you know,

00:23:19.660 I'm grateful I had a chance

00:23:20.820 to be on the fair deal panel.

00:23:22.100 That's a year ago.

00:23:23.340 I'm grateful that I've had

00:23:24.220 the opportunity

00:23:24.960 to represent

00:23:25.660 Cypress Medicine Hat

00:23:26.720 for about 10 years now.

00:23:28.600 I'm in my third term

00:23:29.540 and Albertans

00:23:31.120 are the ones

00:23:32.080 that need to decide

00:23:33.060 if Ottawa

00:23:34.160 has given us

00:23:35.460 a fair deal

00:23:36.560 and the best way

00:23:37.640 to do that

00:23:38.260 is with an independence

00:23:39.640 referendum

00:23:40.300 about 16,

00:23:41.760 17 months

00:23:42.420 after the equalization

00:23:43.640 referendum

00:23:44.640 at the same time

00:23:46.000 as we're having

00:23:46.440 our provincial election.

00:23:48.080 You know,

00:23:48.440 Andrew,

00:23:48.860 on the fair deal panel

00:23:49.860 and I hear it every day

00:23:50.720 in coffee shops

00:23:51.680 and around Alberta

00:23:53.900 and around Medicine Hat.

00:23:55.580 What Albertans

00:23:57.440 want to push,

00:23:58.740 Albertans

00:23:59.140 are to the point

00:24:00.880 where they want

00:24:01.340 a fair deal

00:24:02.580 from our Canadian partners

00:24:04.200 from Ottawa.

00:24:05.320 Many of them

00:24:05.800 are willing

00:24:06.160 to open the Constitution

00:24:07.280 and look at Senate reform.

00:24:10.180 Equalization

00:24:10.620 is part of the Constitution

00:24:12.900 so that needs

00:24:13.780 to be open

00:24:14.280 for that to come out.

00:24:16.740 Frustrated

00:24:17.220 with the lack

00:24:17.800 of resource movement.

00:24:18.680 So the best way

00:24:20.260 to hold Ottawa

00:24:21.520 accountable,

00:24:22.320 to let Ottawa

00:24:22.860 know what the consequences

00:24:23.880 are,

00:24:24.540 is let Albertans

00:24:25.300 decide if they've

00:24:25.980 gone far enough

00:24:26.640 to make us

00:24:27.720 an equal part

00:24:28.200 of Canada.

00:24:29.100 One thing

00:24:29.820 that I've seen

00:24:30.660 just in talking

00:24:31.540 about this issue

00:24:32.280 and even being out

00:24:33.360 at those conferences,

00:24:34.540 the Freedom Talk

00:24:35.120 conferences where

00:24:35.740 I've had the chance

00:24:36.460 to speak with you,

00:24:37.500 there seems to be

00:24:38.380 a split in a lot

00:24:39.600 of people that would

00:24:40.360 fall under that banner

00:24:41.380 of experiencing

00:24:42.300 Western alienation

00:24:43.420 where some say,

00:24:44.640 listen,

00:24:45.140 you know,

00:24:45.340 the Canadian Confederation

00:24:46.480 experiment is done,

00:24:47.760 Alberta's getting

00:24:48.380 shafted,

00:24:48.980 we want out,

00:24:49.820 and other people

00:24:50.440 that say,

00:24:51.040 if we could achieve

00:24:52.300 X, Y, and Z,

00:24:53.500 we could get to a point

00:24:54.500 where this is a workable

00:24:55.860 arrangement for us,

00:24:56.880 and I would say

00:24:57.500 that everyone agrees

00:24:58.320 that the equalization

00:24:59.240 formula is broken,

00:25:00.960 but independence,

00:25:02.140 that group that says,

00:25:03.180 you know what,

00:25:03.600 we need to get out,

00:25:04.680 there's no hope,

00:25:05.400 we can't fix this,

00:25:06.240 that we can't work within,

00:25:07.500 that's a smaller subset

00:25:09.160 just naturally

00:25:10.040 than the larger one

00:25:11.600 of people that want

00:25:12.320 to work within this.

00:25:13.300 So do you feel

00:25:13.920 that there's a risk

00:25:14.680 that you could actually

00:25:15.620 reveal that this is

00:25:17.300 just a minority position

00:25:18.620 if you had a referendum

00:25:19.660 that goes right to that

00:25:20.920 final no turning back

00:25:23.020 independence question?

00:25:25.000 Yeah,

00:25:25.140 thanks for that question.

00:25:26.240 I think the risk

00:25:28.040 is those in Ottawa

00:25:29.620 and those that believe

00:25:31.740 Alberta can be a valuable

00:25:33.040 part of the Canadian

00:25:34.240 Confederation.

00:25:35.720 Andrew,

00:25:36.140 the desire for out

00:25:37.420 and out independence

00:25:38.420 has grown exponentially

00:25:41.120 here in Alberta.

00:25:42.560 it has grown tremendously

00:25:44.180 as people,

00:25:45.960 you know,

00:25:46.560 frustrated with not having

00:25:47.860 a voice in our Senate,

00:25:49.620 not having a voice

00:25:50.380 in our elections,

00:25:51.380 as people who want

00:25:52.680 to take risk

00:25:53.240 and go to work

00:25:53.900 and produce,

00:25:55.220 you know,

00:25:56.440 environmentally clean

00:25:57.460 products can't do it

00:25:59.920 and many of them

00:26:01.820 have moved

00:26:02.440 to the independence.

00:26:03.860 So I think a lot

00:26:04.500 of the risk

00:26:04.920 is on Ottawa's side.

00:26:06.900 If they don't get it right,

00:26:08.960 this movement

00:26:10.020 could grow

00:26:10.720 to the point

00:26:11.360 where you can't

00:26:12.800 put the toothpaste

00:26:14.220 back in the tube

00:26:15.160 and so that's

00:26:16.760 where I think

00:26:17.200 the real risk is.

00:26:19.780 Yes,

00:26:20.200 there's a lot

00:26:20.660 of people

00:26:21.100 that have

00:26:22.580 sentimental attachment

00:26:23.660 to see the value

00:26:24.680 in still being

00:26:25.440 part of Canada

00:26:26.600 but at least 80%

00:26:28.460 of the people

00:26:29.160 in the Fair Deal panel

00:26:30.140 and the people

00:26:30.640 I talk to

00:26:31.340 say that Alberta 0.57

00:26:33.100 is getting the short straw

00:26:34.560 and it is time

00:26:35.780 for us to push

00:26:37.100 and see if we can

00:26:38.120 get a better deal

00:26:38.800 within the Canadian

00:26:39.740 Confederation

00:26:40.480 and if not

00:26:41.940 explore all our options

00:26:43.440 and one of those

00:26:44.160 options is independence.

00:26:45.700 So when you say

00:26:46.800 independence

00:26:47.380 you're talking about

00:26:48.860 the Republic of Alberta

00:26:50.320 so to speak

00:26:50.920 not just a system

00:26:52.340 where you have

00:26:52.960 your own pension plan

00:26:54.020 your own municipal

00:26:55.140 police force

00:26:56.380 or a provincial

00:26:57.120 police force

00:26:57.760 but you're also

00:26:59.020 opening the door

00:27:00.220 to the fact

00:27:00.720 that there could

00:27:01.340 be remedies

00:27:02.440 before you get

00:27:03.400 to that point.

00:27:05.120 Yeah,

00:27:05.440 yeah.

00:27:06.400 Let's look at

00:27:07.220 Saskatchewan

00:27:07.740 right next door

00:27:08.520 Premier Moe

00:27:09.700 give or take

00:27:10.620 three months ago

00:27:11.300 appointed a Minister

00:27:12.240 of Autonomy

00:27:13.080 to explore ways

00:27:14.780 that Saskatchewan

00:27:15.680 could be more

00:27:16.240 autonomous from Ottawa

00:27:17.300 and do more things

00:27:18.220 on their own.

00:27:19.440 So,

00:27:20.600 you know,

00:27:20.900 and we're 20 years

00:27:22.040 ago

00:27:23.160 this February

00:27:24.400 that

00:27:25.120 the famous

00:27:26.080 firewall letter

00:27:27.040 of Stephen Harper

00:27:28.180 Tom Flanagan

00:27:29.080 Ken Busengall

00:27:30.040 Andy Crooks

00:27:30.700 said that

00:27:31.720 one of the things

00:27:32.720 that Alberta

00:27:33.200 and the West

00:27:33.900 needs to do

00:27:34.600 to grow

00:27:36.580 to assert

00:27:37.360 our independence

00:27:38.020 from Ottawa

00:27:38.660 so we can be stronger

00:27:40.280 is to do things

00:27:41.320 you just mentioned

00:27:42.000 our own pension

00:27:43.020 is an example.

00:27:44.240 I've seen experts

00:27:45.160 suggest that

00:27:45.940 if Alberta

00:27:46.500 had its own pension

00:27:47.440 the people of Alberta

00:27:48.760 would have a

00:27:49.320 $3 billion

00:27:50.140 annual benefit.

00:27:51.540 So whether

00:27:52.260 we gave

00:27:53.100 you know

00:27:54.060 our seniors

00:27:54.780 a larger benefit

00:27:55.920 or we gave

00:27:56.500 our employees

00:27:57.120 and our employers

00:27:57.980 less contribution

00:27:59.300 either one

00:28:00.060 would help

00:28:00.720 Albertans.

00:28:01.760 Likewise

00:28:02.020 our own police force

00:28:03.360 you know

00:28:04.500 Ontario and Quebec

00:28:05.420 both have their own

00:28:06.280 provincial police force

00:28:07.440 you know

00:28:08.700 God bless

00:28:09.700 the individual

00:28:10.360 RCMP officers

00:28:11.640 for how hard

00:28:12.740 they work

00:28:13.100 and what they do

00:28:13.620 for us

00:28:14.020 but rural crime

00:28:15.180 is horrendous

00:28:16.060 here right now

00:28:16.760 and you know

00:28:17.960 as the economy

00:28:18.660 is having trouble

00:28:20.600 I mean

00:28:21.080 it's probably

00:28:21.500 only going to get worse

00:28:22.440 likewise

00:28:23.620 there's a lot

00:28:24.260 of Albertans

00:28:24.820 that think

00:28:25.120 it's time

00:28:25.500 for more control

00:28:26.740 of our immigration

00:28:27.700 we have a

00:28:30.140 pretty big

00:28:30.820 greenhouse industry

00:28:31.820 in southern Alberta

00:28:33.000 and from time

00:28:34.240 to time

00:28:34.680 these risk takers

00:28:36.080 these great producers

00:28:36.880 have trouble

00:28:37.420 getting people

00:28:38.060 so a little more

00:28:39.080 local decision making

00:28:40.140 would make that easier

00:28:41.500 so yeah

00:28:42.300 so I think

00:28:44.040 the steps are

00:28:44.880 you know

00:28:46.100 let's

00:28:46.460 make sure

00:28:48.440 that Ottawa

00:28:49.100 is 100%

00:28:50.180 unaware

00:28:50.500 of how unequal

00:28:51.580 the deal

00:28:51.960 is

00:28:52.760 Andrew

00:28:53.440 how they could

00:28:53.940 not be

00:28:54.340 after the

00:28:55.340 670 billion

00:28:56.660 dollars

00:28:57.080 that Alberta

00:28:57.600 has sent

00:28:58.020 to Ottawa

00:28:59.080 since 1960

00:29:00.180 but let's

00:29:01.500 put the cards

00:29:02.840 on the table

00:29:03.400 and let's make

00:29:04.460 Alberta

00:29:04.960 the freest

00:29:05.520 most prosperous

00:29:06.160 place

00:29:06.660 and I've said

00:29:07.440 it before

00:29:07.860 if that's

00:29:08.340 within Canada

00:29:08.980 that's great

00:29:09.620 if that's

00:29:10.300 not within

00:29:10.760 Canada

00:29:11.160 that's great

00:29:11.880 but it doesn't

00:29:12.800 seem like

00:29:13.380 the only opposition

00:29:14.440 to this

00:29:14.960 is from Ottawa

00:29:15.980 I mean

00:29:16.320 even your own

00:29:17.040 party's leader

00:29:17.880 Jason Kenney

00:29:18.640 the Premier

00:29:19.060 has said

00:29:19.880 that he expects

00:29:20.640 that UCP

00:29:21.480 MLAs

00:29:22.020 will call

00:29:22.600 for United

00:29:23.240 Canada

00:29:23.720 and a fight

00:29:24.760 within

00:29:25.120 confederation

00:29:25.960 so he's

00:29:27.060 saying that's

00:29:27.520 the commitment

00:29:28.000 that UCP

00:29:28.900 candidates

00:29:29.340 were supposed

00:29:29.800 to make

00:29:30.160 to voters

00:29:30.580 do you feel

00:29:31.380 like you have

00:29:31.880 an ally

00:29:32.420 in your Premier

00:29:33.660 on this

00:29:34.280 well I do

00:29:36.660 I believe

00:29:37.160 that Premier

00:29:37.880 Kenny wants

00:29:38.660 Alberta

00:29:39.380 to be free

00:29:39.940 and prosperous

00:29:40.500 and strong

00:29:41.240 and you

00:29:44.120 know I

00:29:44.560 have no

00:29:46.460 idea of

00:29:47.260 all the

00:29:47.860 things that

00:29:48.340 are you

00:29:48.840 know that

00:29:49.320 are happening

00:29:49.860 with him

00:29:50.600 but let's

00:29:51.360 look at

00:29:51.780 Trudeau's

00:29:53.400 reaction to

00:29:54.080 the Keystone

00:29:54.620 being cancelled

00:29:55.400 about a week

00:29:56.320 ago

00:29:56.640 you know

00:29:57.900 800 and

00:29:59.120 some thousand

00:29:59.900 barrels of oil

00:30:00.620 per day

00:30:01.060 that would

00:30:01.460 provide

00:30:01.980 lots of

00:30:03.300 jobs

00:30:03.860 lots of

00:30:04.560 taxes

00:30:05.080 lots of

00:30:05.760 for our

00:30:06.100 municipalities

00:30:06.820 for our

00:30:07.500 health care

00:30:07.960 for our

00:30:08.320 education

00:30:08.780 and Andrew

00:30:09.700 when it was

00:30:10.120 cancelled he

00:30:10.700 didn't even

00:30:11.140 raise an

00:30:11.580 eyebrow

00:30:11.960 what I'm

00:30:13.660 hearing is

00:30:14.080 the Trans

00:30:14.520 Mountain

00:30:14.740 Pipeline

00:30:15.380 you know

00:30:15.800 the twinning

00:30:16.460 where 90%

00:30:17.520 of it's in

00:30:17.980 the same

00:30:18.300 right of way

00:30:18.780 as the

00:30:19.200 existing

00:30:19.700 Trans

00:30:20.140 Mountain

00:30:20.360 Pipeline

00:30:20.840 that's

00:30:21.040 been there

00:30:21.360 since the

00:30:21.720 early 1950s

00:30:22.860 I'm hearing

00:30:23.640 that's

00:30:23.940 progressing

00:30:24.300 at a

00:30:24.940 snail's

00:30:25.840 pace

00:30:26.140 the

00:30:26.960 cancellation

00:30:27.420 of the

00:30:28.040 Northern

00:30:28.380 Gateway

00:30:28.960 the

00:30:30.880 message

00:30:32.000 has been

00:30:32.340 so clear

00:30:32.940 that

00:30:33.840 getting

00:30:34.440 Canadian

00:30:36.320 oil and

00:30:36.880 gas

00:30:37.160 to China

00:30:37.760 and India

00:30:38.240 would do

00:30:38.960 so much

00:30:39.540 to improve

00:30:40.060 the air

00:30:40.400 quality

00:30:40.820 of the

00:30:41.160 world

00:30:41.460 it would

00:30:42.260 allow us

00:30:42.880 to get

00:30:43.220 full price

00:30:43.960 for our

00:30:44.620 bitumen

00:30:45.000 instead of

00:30:45.540 the 30% 0.96

00:30:46.820 approximately

00:30:47.440 discount

00:30:48.100 we average

00:30:48.660 selling it

00:30:49.200 to the

00:30:49.500 Americans

00:30:49.920 and what

00:30:50.760 would that

00:30:51.160 do for

00:30:51.660 opportunity

00:30:52.520 for Albertans

00:30:53.580 and Canadians

00:30:54.120 what would

00:30:54.500 that do

00:30:54.900 for our

00:30:55.280 social

00:30:55.560 programs

00:30:56.040 it would

00:30:56.260 do so

00:30:56.620 much

00:30:56.940 I think

00:30:58.620 I saw

00:30:59.120 on social

00:30:59.920 media

00:31:00.180 last night

00:31:00.780 that a

00:31:01.980 conservative

00:31:02.440 member of

00:31:03.060 parliament

00:31:03.400 tried to

00:31:04.220 put in

00:31:04.960 a private

00:31:05.880 member's

00:31:06.400 motion

00:31:06.740 or bill

00:31:07.200 to end

00:31:09.040 the tanker

00:31:09.520 ban

00:31:09.780 and of

00:31:10.380 course

00:31:10.540 the NDP

00:31:11.040 and the

00:31:11.780 Liberals

00:31:12.240 voted against

00:31:12.920 that

00:31:13.220 my goodness

00:31:14.260 Andrew

00:31:14.620 they're

00:31:14.960 not treating

00:31:16.280 Alberta

00:31:16.640 fairly

00:31:17.080 they're not

00:31:17.900 giving the

00:31:18.620 best

00:31:19.120 environmental

00:31:19.740 producers

00:31:20.220 in the

00:31:20.580 world

00:31:20.860 a chance

00:31:21.800 to produce

00:31:22.740 to make

00:31:23.580 a living

00:31:24.020 to pay

00:31:24.480 taxes

00:31:24.940 and to

00:31:25.860 make the

00:31:26.420 air of

00:31:26.780 the world

00:31:27.120 cleaner

00:31:27.520 no and

00:31:28.180 I'm glad

00:31:28.500 you brought

00:31:28.900 up Keystone

00:31:29.560 because I

00:31:30.460 think

00:31:30.680 western

00:31:31.060 alienation

00:31:31.820 and western

00:31:32.620 independent

00:31:33.080 sentiments

00:31:33.580 had been

00:31:34.140 on the

00:31:34.440 rise

00:31:34.780 already

00:31:35.400 but you

00:31:36.240 take the

00:31:36.940 cancellation

00:31:37.840 of

00:31:38.240 Keystone

00:31:38.800 now line

00:31:39.740 five

00:31:40.180 is also

00:31:41.060 on thin

00:31:41.940 ice

00:31:42.200 it seems

00:31:42.900 you have

00:31:43.520 a number

00:31:43.840 of other

00:31:44.220 projects

00:31:44.760 where there's

00:31:45.320 been great

00:31:45.680 opposition

00:31:46.180 in other

00:31:46.660 provinces

00:31:47.080 in this

00:31:47.460 country

00:31:47.780 and from

00:31:48.160 the federal

00:31:48.540 government

00:31:48.980 and how

00:31:49.740 is anyone

00:31:50.240 in the

00:31:50.860 west

00:31:51.080 supposed to

00:31:51.540 feel

00:31:51.740 that anyone

00:31:52.140 else in

00:31:52.520 the country

00:31:52.860 cares about

00:31:53.540 their future

00:31:54.160 when these

00:31:54.960 things keep

00:31:55.400 happening

00:31:55.760 so I do

00:31:56.320 think to

00:31:56.620 your earlier

00:31:57.020 point

00:31:57.360 these concerns

00:31:58.700 are only

00:31:59.320 going to

00:31:59.780 grow

00:32:00.120 yeah

00:32:02.060 they're only

00:32:02.820 going to

00:32:03.180 grow

00:32:03.380 and again

00:32:04.220 I'm grateful

00:32:04.740 and fortunate

00:32:05.320 that for 10

00:32:06.020 years I've

00:32:06.480 represented

00:32:06.960 Cypress Medicine

00:32:07.720 Hat

00:32:07.940 I've been

00:32:08.240 paid to

00:32:08.640 speak on

00:32:09.000 their behalf

00:32:09.500 10 years

00:32:10.360 ago

00:32:10.580 we were

00:32:10.880 talking about

00:32:11.440 this daily

00:32:12.100 well 20

00:32:12.480 years ago

00:32:12.960 you met

00:32:13.260 the firewall

00:32:13.760 letter

00:32:14.080 I mean

00:32:14.320 this is

00:32:14.620 not a

00:32:14.940 new

00:32:15.460 problem

00:32:16.060 it's not

00:32:17.500 a new

00:32:17.720 problem

00:32:17.920 20 years

00:32:18.720 since

00:32:19.280 things were

00:32:20.360 identified

00:32:20.880 to help

00:32:21.860 make Alberta

00:32:22.620 a stronger

00:32:23.480 part of

00:32:24.100 Canada

00:32:24.520 so there

00:32:25.700 would be

00:32:25.840 more

00:32:26.020 opportunity

00:32:26.500 for all

00:32:27.340 of us

00:32:27.640 and it

00:32:28.180 just

00:32:28.480 hasn't

00:32:28.900 happened

00:32:29.220 and you

00:32:30.940 know

00:32:31.100 there's a

00:32:32.220 lot of

00:32:32.500 Albertans

00:32:32.900 now that

00:32:33.320 are starting

00:32:33.720 to believe

00:32:34.180 Andrew

00:32:34.540 that the

00:32:34.940 values

00:32:35.420 of Ottawa

00:32:36.380 are not

00:32:37.860 consistent

00:32:38.320 with the

00:32:39.120 values out

00:32:39.720 here as

00:32:40.100 well

00:32:40.340 and that's

00:32:42.060 the risk

00:32:42.440 that Ottawa

00:32:42.880 is taking

00:32:43.500 and that's

00:32:44.160 why about

00:32:45.880 a year and

00:32:46.320 a half

00:32:46.620 after the

00:32:47.260 equalization

00:32:47.980 referendum

00:32:48.540 we need

00:32:49.400 to give

00:32:49.700 Albertans

00:32:50.140 a chance

00:32:50.520 to decide

00:32:51.020 if Ottawa

00:32:51.520 has gone

00:32:51.940 far enough

00:32:52.400 to give

00:32:52.720 us a

00:32:53.000 fair deal

00:32:53.440 there's

00:32:55.160 many

00:32:55.380 grievances

00:32:55.880 out here

00:32:56.420 people that

00:32:57.380 just want

00:32:57.860 to work

00:32:58.320 hard

00:32:58.580 take risk

00:32:59.120 and pay

00:32:59.480 their taxes

00:33:00.020 raise their

00:33:00.520 families and

00:33:01.080 support their

00:33:01.540 communities

00:33:02.320 and at a

00:33:04.360 time you

00:33:05.060 know where

00:33:05.380 up until

00:33:06.440 the pandemic

00:33:07.320 the world

00:33:07.760 demand for

00:33:08.280 oil was

00:33:08.820 growing

00:33:09.240 we're seeing

00:33:10.300 the world

00:33:10.740 price for

00:33:11.380 oil start

00:33:11.920 to escalate

00:33:12.700 again while

00:33:13.340 we're at

00:33:13.960 a 30%

00:33:14.680 discount

00:33:15.240 and you

00:33:16.800 know again

00:33:17.300 I hate to

00:33:19.020 come back

00:33:19.340 to the

00:33:19.600 hardship

00:33:19.900 but there's

00:33:21.120 a lot of

00:33:21.500 hardship out

00:33:22.080 here from

00:33:22.800 young families

00:33:23.520 that just

00:33:24.060 want to

00:33:24.540 work

00:33:24.800 so just

00:33:26.040 to confirm

00:33:26.780 here you

00:33:27.180 still think

00:33:27.740 yes we need

00:33:28.300 to do the

00:33:28.620 equalization

00:33:29.260 referendum

00:33:29.880 but you

00:33:30.860 also think

00:33:31.440 that we

00:33:31.860 need to

00:33:32.140 have a

00:33:32.900 further

00:33:33.200 longer term

00:33:34.060 look at

00:33:34.440 this as

00:33:34.840 well the

00:33:35.520 independence

00:33:35.960 referendum

00:33:36.520 and leverage

00:33:37.300 both to get

00:33:37.940 a better deal

00:33:38.520 but also be

00:33:39.440 prepared to

00:33:39.940 walk away

00:33:40.460 yes absolutely

00:33:42.600 to all

00:33:43.480 three

00:33:43.760 you know

00:33:45.600 Albertans

00:33:46.480 have expressed

00:33:47.220 loud and

00:33:48.060 clear for

00:33:48.720 many years

00:33:49.580 that it's

00:33:50.560 time for

00:33:50.960 change

00:33:51.360 the number

00:33:53.740 that I saw

00:33:54.260 last was

00:33:54.740 670 billion

00:33:56.060 dollars has

00:33:56.720 left Alberta

00:33:57.300 since 1960

00:33:58.460 and gone to

00:34:00.120 the Canadian

00:34:00.600 Confederation

00:34:01.380 and we can't

00:34:03.860 even get

00:34:04.340 resource movement

00:34:05.440 in exchange

00:34:06.180 to continue

00:34:07.140 that you know

00:34:07.900 there's something

00:34:08.340 broken so

00:34:09.420 you know

00:34:10.280 Andrew nothing

00:34:10.860 moves unless

00:34:11.480 it's pushed

00:34:12.060 Albertans are 0.82

00:34:13.400 telling me

00:34:13.780 every day

00:34:14.560 that they want

00:34:15.820 a new deal

00:34:16.280 with Ottawa

00:34:16.780 and if they

00:34:17.760 can't get a

00:34:18.340 new deal

00:34:18.640 with Ottawa

00:34:19.120 as a free

00:34:21.000 sovereign people

00:34:21.840 we need to

00:34:22.360 decide our

00:34:22.940 future

00:34:23.400 Cyprus

00:34:24.000 Madison

00:34:24.460 Hat MLA

00:34:25.160 Drew Barnes

00:34:26.080 Drew thanks

00:34:26.560 again for your

00:34:27.040 time today

00:34:27.440 really appreciate

00:34:28.000 it

00:34:28.300 thank you

00:34:29.040 Andrew

00:34:29.320 appreciate it

00:34:30.180 and that does

00:34:31.260 it for me

00:34:32.080 for today

00:34:32.680 we'll be back

00:34:33.180 next week

00:34:33.620 with more of

00:34:34.260 Canada's most

00:34:35.220 irreverent talk

00:34:35.940 show but do

00:34:36.340 let me know

00:34:36.720 what you think

00:34:37.160 if you're from

00:34:37.800 the West or

00:34:38.320 even anywhere

00:34:38.760 else in Canada

00:34:39.440 you know

00:34:39.820 I think there

00:34:40.480 are a lot

00:34:40.800 of right-leaning

00:34:41.400 Canadians who

00:34:42.200 for selfish

00:34:42.880 reasons wouldn't

00:34:43.860 want Alberta 0.99

00:34:44.700 to leave

00:34:45.480 but at the same

00:34:46.500 time if you

00:34:47.160 care about them

00:34:47.880 you have to

00:34:48.280 let them go

00:34:48.800 might be the

00:34:49.340 approach that

00:34:49.820 people take

00:34:50.420 and listen

00:34:51.380 I mean I

00:34:51.760 think the

00:34:52.020 country is

00:34:52.480 better with

00:34:52.940 Alberta in

00:34:53.560 it but I

00:34:54.460 also have

00:34:54.920 been very

00:34:55.240 clear that I

00:34:55.900 don't think

00:34:56.380 any province

00:34:57.080 should have

00:34:57.460 to put up

00:34:57.980 with what

00:34:58.580 Alberta has

00:34:59.220 had to put

00:34:59.720 up with

00:35:00.100 so the

00:35:00.740 question from

00:35:01.380 there just

00:35:01.880 becomes about

00:35:02.740 how optimistic

00:35:03.580 or pessimistic

00:35:04.460 you are about

00:35:05.580 an ability for

00:35:06.660 there to be

00:35:07.140 a resolution

00:35:07.780 from the

00:35:08.580 Trudeau

00:35:08.900 government

00:35:09.280 I'd say

00:35:10.240 not likely

00:35:10.820 in any case

00:35:11.740 more of this

00:35:12.240 to come

00:35:12.580 we'll talk

00:35:12.920 to you next

00:35:13.240 week

00:35:13.460 thank you

00:35:13.900 God bless

00:35:14.520 and good

00:35:14.860 day Canada

00:35:15.400 thanks for

00:35:16.080 listening to

00:35:16.560 the Andrew

00:35:16.980 Lawton show

00:35:17.580 support the

00:35:18.320 program by

00:35:18.840 donating to

00:35:19.420 True North

00:35:19.860 at www.tnc.news

Juno News - February 04, 2021

WE’s Long Goodbye

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