The Candice Malcolm Show - Is Carney REALLY better than Trudeau？ I asked Danielle Smith.

00:00:00.000 Hi, I'm Candace Malcolm, and this is The Candace Malcolm Show. We have a very special episode

00:00:06.400 for you today, folks. We are joined by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. Danielle, thank you so

00:00:11.120 much for your time. Thanks for doing this. My pleasure. So it looks like you've had an

00:00:15.000 incredibly busy week. You were in Saskatoon earlier this week for the first ministers meeting,

00:00:20.620 and then it looks like you went straight to Washington, D.C. to do more negotiations. So

00:00:24.100 let's start with the first ministers meeting. I have to admit, I was a little surprised when I

00:00:30.000 from Rick Bell saying, Smith vows to work with Kearney, says he is way better than Justin

00:00:35.100 Trudeau. So can you sort of walk us through the meeting, what it was like? And it seems like you

00:00:40.360 were quite happy with the prime minister and what came out of that meeting. Well, I think that the

00:00:45.360 liberals almost faced annihilation in December. Six months ago, we were talking about them not

00:00:51.040 existing at all, and they had to do a major pivot and rethink of their positions and what had brought

00:00:55.480 them there. And clearly it was all of the anti-development, extreme environmental policy

00:01:00.440 that was hurting people and preventing projects from getting billed. So I think we saw an immediate

00:01:04.860 pivot with the cancellation of the hated carbon tax on retail users. And now we have nine bad pieces

00:01:11.760 of legislation that are related to that, that also have to be repealed or substantially revised if we're

00:01:17.580 going to improve the investment climate for business. What I'm encouraged by is that the prime

00:01:23.200 minister is talking about a national projects list, identifying projects of national priority that

00:01:29.600 will have a fast track to approval as we're working through trying to change the legislative framework.

00:01:34.980 And so I'm, you know, I'm prepared to work with him on that. We have a major project we'd like to see

00:01:38.900 built. We'd like to see a bitumen pipeline to the Northwest BC coast, probably Prince Rupert,

00:01:43.680 coupled with the Pathways project, which is the big oil sands project that would decarbonize their

00:01:49.580 production. And if we can get those two things together, I think that'll be a real

00:01:52.780 demonstration that we do have a change of direction with this prime minister. So we're

00:01:57.120 going to test it out and I'll work with him until it becomes apparent one way or the other,

00:02:03.000 whether it is a true change of direction or not.

00:02:05.920 Well, it seems like it's great to see your optimism. And I think we're all very hopeful

00:02:10.140 that we can see major projects like this being built. Just today, Friday, the Carney government

00:02:15.080 did introduce new legislation that would cut internal trade barriers and try to advance these

00:02:20.500 nation building projects. I had a little chuckle when I read what this was because they're basically

00:02:24.840 creating a new government department to try to fast track internal trade and internal pipelines.

00:02:29.380 It just seems like such a typical liberal thing to do. Like we're going to try to streamline things

00:02:34.120 by creating more bureaucracy and more government. So I'm wondering if I could get your quick

00:02:38.160 reaction to this new proposed legislation.

00:02:41.480 Well, there's no question that they are creating a new process because of all of the bottlenecks

00:02:46.640 and a drag that they have on all of their other bureaucratic processes. But that being said,

00:02:51.420 they may be borrowing from what they're seeing in the United States with this Energy Security

00:02:56.060 Council headed up by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. He's got everyone at the table who has the

00:03:01.740 potential to block any major projects so that he can find a fast track for them. And so if we're

00:03:07.540 replicating that process, I think that's good. But in the end, if we're going to get private

00:03:12.020 proponents, we can't just continue to maintain the laws that are suppressing private sector

00:03:19.040 investment. We've got to repeal or replace them. And so if it means that we can get projects

00:03:24.600 identified that will get exemptions so that they can go forward, and through that process

00:03:29.420 we learn what we need to change in the others, then it may end up working out. I'm just encouraged

00:03:35.240 by the fact that we're now talking about mining again in all of the provinces. Gold mines in

00:03:40.420 Manitoba, the Golden Triangle in British Columbia, more potash and uranium in Saskatchewan,

00:03:49.660 and yes, bitumen out of Alberta. The fact that we're talking this way and talking about how all of

00:03:54.180 us can work together to get our projects built and get our product to new markets, I think it's

00:03:59.000 an absolute sea change in the conversation. And I think if the federal government is able to support

00:04:04.840 us in those efforts, I think it's going to be good for all of Canada.

00:04:08.480 Well, I want to ask you about specifically the Alberta Accord, and then you reemphasize the sort

00:04:12.440 of nine terrible laws. And I believe you sent a letter to Prime Minister Carney this week,

00:04:16.980 sort of outlining it, the one that you just mentioned, guaranteeing Alberta gets full access

00:04:22.180 to unfettered oil and gas corridors to the north, including that pipeline that you mentioned. But then

00:04:26.700 we also heard this week from British Columbia Premier David Eby saying that they won't be changing

00:04:31.800 their mind on another BC pipeline. And of course, we've heard Mark Carney in the past saying that

00:04:37.240 they will not impose a project on a province, that they need to build the consensus. So do you feel

00:04:42.880 like we're heading in the right direction? Do you think that a pipeline can be built under these

00:04:47.620 circumstances?

00:04:48.560 Well, we did end up seeing two pipelines built under similar circumstances. The coastal gasoline pipeline

00:04:53.680 did get built. The Trans Mountain pipeline did get built. Both of them were more expensive than they

00:04:58.520 needed to be. The latter would have been better if it had been done by the private sector. But

00:05:03.260 unfortunately, because of the investment climate, it had to be done by government. But I think that

00:05:07.580 that's a demonstration that you can identify what the issues are and try to address them. And so I know

00:05:13.120 that there are certain issues that developed out of the previous approach with Northern Gateway.

00:05:18.460 There needs to be more robust equity ownership, I believe, by First Nations. We need to perhaps

00:05:25.220 reconsider the port so that it doesn't go through the Douglas Channel at Kitimat. Port of Prince

00:05:29.480 Rupert is really more of a direct line of sight to the open sea. And then the issue of trying to have

00:05:36.060 a lower emissions product going through it. The Pathways project would lower emissions.

00:05:40.800 They intend to be net zero by 2050 through a combination of carbon capture, nuclear and hydroelectric

00:05:47.460 power, and direct air capture. So I've been supportive of their approach. And if we can find

00:05:52.600 the way to identify the objections and address them, then I don't see any reason why we can't

00:05:57.700 get that consensus. Interesting. I want to ask you about this new Angus Reid poll that was just

00:06:03.060 released, showing that Canadians are rather dismissive of Alberta's grievances, from my

00:06:07.740 perspective, a little bit of Ontario. And I think that Alberta has a lot of legitimate grievances. But 0.98

00:06:11.980 it seems like my fellow Canadians in this part of the country don't agree. So when asked, do you think

00:06:16.560 Alberta has been treated fairly, or the West, sorry, has been treated fairly?

00:06:20.240 Basically, Western Canadians say, you can see the graph on the screen, that they say that no,

00:06:25.700 70% of Albertans say no, 74% of people in Saskatchewan say no. But then when you go to the

00:06:30.220 eastern part of the province, it's flipped, right? So, you know, 62% in Ontario say yes,

00:06:35.620 they're treated fairly, 77% in Quebec. And then the next question is, does Western Canada complain

00:06:40.380 too much? 66% of people in Canada say yes, they complain too much. 57% in Quebec, 53% in Ontario.

00:06:47.700 Premier, I'm wondering what you make of the attitudes that seem to be coming from Eastern

00:06:52.800 Canada that think that Alberta is treated just fine, and that the complaints are unwarranted.

00:06:57.360 Well, I guess I think people need to understand that there's only two provinces that don't have

00:07:04.260 access to a coast, and that's Alberta and Saskatchewan. It means that we have to rely on the goodwill and

00:07:10.980 generosity of our neighbours more than any of them do. And sadly, we haven't had enough goodwill and

00:07:17.040 generosity of our neighbours. It's been a fight on everything that we've wanted to build to the point

00:07:21.040 now where if we had been able to build all of the pipelines that we wanted to, Energy East, Northern

00:07:26.380 Gateway and Keystone, we would have two and a half million barrels more per day of production, which

00:07:32.020 would generate $55 billion of additional GDP, of which we'd probably get $17 billion of additional

00:07:38.460 revenue and the federal government would get somewhere near that. So these are not inconsequential

00:07:43.400 issues. I mean, I would challenge other provinces to identify a similar amount of projects that have

00:07:51.400 been stymied or cancelled by their federal government, resulting in a similar amount of

00:07:55.840 economic damage. I don't think that there is any. So maybe we have been a little more stoic than we

00:08:01.880 should have about how unfair and unreasonable it was, but we're not being stoic and silent anymore.

00:08:06.500 We're saying this is our time. We need to get another pipeline built to Tidewater. If we're

00:08:11.940 genuinely interested in getting our markets expanded, we can't keep sending everything to

00:08:17.980 the United States. We have to build a pipeline to the East Coast of a substantial nature so that we

00:08:22.980 can continue to develop our Asian markets. Ideally, we will also get a pipeline built to Churchill so

00:08:28.020 that we would be able to, with icebreakers, move up and over and feed the East Coast refineries as well

00:08:32.760 as get to Europe. But that's what nation-building projects look like. It means we work together

00:08:37.160 for a mutual benefit. That's the spirit that I'm approaching this with, and I think it's the spirit

00:08:42.540 that the other premiers are approaching it with as well.

00:08:46.180 Well, I take your note that Alberta has been quite stoic in the past, and yet, you know, I will say the

00:08:51.700 day after the federal election, I was receiving emails and notes and messages from people in Alberta

00:08:56.440 saying, enough is enough. Now is the time to go it alone, and it's independence. I interviewed

00:09:03.180 Preston Manning on my show, and he said that he thought that Mark Carney will be the last prime

00:09:08.060 minister of a united Canada, which is a pretty strong and bold statement. I'm wondering, we saw

00:09:12.960 that you made changes to the Citizens Initiative Act to lower the threshold to trigger a referendum.

00:09:17.980 Do you think that this is a legitimate cause, and how do you see that movement playing out?

00:09:23.800 There have already been two questions that have been filed on the new referenda thresholds,

00:09:30.060 and both of them are related to issues of sovereignty. One saying, let's stay in Canada,

00:09:36.400 and the other one saying, let's go it alone. So I'll watch and see which petition campaign gets

00:09:40.880 the most signatures, and if either of them get enough to be able to be put to a vote. But my job

00:09:45.580 is to see this very legitimate concern that Albertans have, that Canada is just not working for Alberta.

00:09:52.360 We are on Team Canada, but Team Canada is not on Team Alberta. And the way that we can address that

00:09:58.720 is by having these big nation-building projects that benefit everyone go ahead in a way that has

00:10:04.800 not been possible or easy in previous years. So I want to work with the prime minister. I want to

00:10:11.320 take him at his word that he wants to be an energy superpower on both conventional and new energy.

00:10:16.200 We have the ability to develop both out. I know that all of the other premiers are putting forward

00:10:21.000 really interesting mining projects that might not have been considered six months ago, but are

00:10:25.900 actively being considered now. I think we've realized what happens if you have incredible

00:10:30.780 resource wealth, whether it's critical minerals or uranium or gold or bitumen, and you leave it in

00:10:36.580 the ground. You end up impoverishing your people. You end up not being able to see your standard of

00:10:40.580 living and quality of life go up. You end up falling behind every single country in the OECD.

00:10:45.140 And the only way to change that is to change behavior. And we've got to start developing the

00:10:49.980 resources the world wants, do it in an environmentally responsible way with Indigenous partners.

00:10:55.540 And I think we can develop a new era of incredible prosperity for everyone. That's what I'm hopeful

00:11:00.640 for. I think that's what the premiers are hopeful for. Maybe it's taking some of the people that Angus

00:11:04.940 Reid pulls a little longer to catch up, but I think that's where the Canadian sentiment is.

00:11:09.760 Well, I do love the optimism there, Premier. I wanted to ask you about your trip to Washington,

00:11:14.200 D.C. The headlines were saying that you saw a breakthrough in your discussions with the

00:11:19.880 Americans. You mentioned Doug Burgum earlier in the discussion. So can you walk us through

00:11:23.460 what's happening with that? There are a number of projects that are being proposed to get more

00:11:28.580 pipeline access into the United States. And I think the race is on for which one is going to

00:11:35.360 emerge as the initial proponent and the initial approved project. And the Americans are very keen

00:11:41.720 to fast track, as I mentioned with that Energy Council. But I think that that's something that

00:11:46.560 Canadians have to be mindful of. What does it say to Alberta if it's easier for us to trade with the

00:11:51.140 United States than to trade with each other? What does it say to Albertans if we continue to have

00:11:55.800 provinces block our projects while Americans embrace them? I think that that would be moving in the

00:12:00.320 wrong direction. What I hear and what my lesson from the or my takeaway from the last election

00:12:05.660 was that people want a more moderate government that is going to be supportive of these economic

00:12:10.480 interests. And so I as I say, I think the race is on because there are a number of projects that

00:12:15.160 could potentially be approved and go ahead in the United States. My priority, though, would be getting

00:12:19.680 that that new pipeline to the northwest B.C. coast, because I think that would do so much to not only

00:12:24.360 improve the wealth of Canadians, but it also would ensure that we get new markets, which is

00:12:28.880 is absolutely essential to ensure that we don't continue to be reliant on the United States.

00:12:35.360 Well, forget about politics for a moment. I think all of Canada is definitely behind Edmonton right

00:12:40.500 now with the Oilers heading into the finals. I think it's game two tonight. I know you're from

00:12:45.180 southern Alberta, Premier. So can you can you confirm? Will you be cheering for the Oilers? And what do you

00:12:49.940 think is going to happen? Always. I was I grew up in an Oilers family. And so my you know, my my

00:12:55.100 brother hates it when I say it, but he cried when Wayne Gretzky was traded. And then I I was also

00:12:59.720 after that a Flames fan because we took it to the Cup in 89. I'm one of these true I call it a unicorn

00:13:05.980 that I'm an Albertan who really does vote root for both teams. So it just so happens that the team

00:13:12.340 that's making it the furthest is the is the Oilers this year for the second time. And we're all very

00:13:16.400 hopeful that they're going to bring the Cup home and make it and make all Canadians proud.

00:13:19.940 Excellent. Well, Premier Smith, thank you so much for your time and your insight. We really

00:13:23.320 appreciate you joining the show today. You bet. Thanks again.

00:13:25.900 All right. Thanks so much, folks. We'll see you back on Monday. I'm Candace Malcolm's

00:13:29.280 Candace Malcolm Show. Thank you and God bless.

The Candice Malcolm Show - June 09, 2025

Is Carney REALLY better than Trudeau？ I asked Danielle Smith.

Episode Stats

Summary

Transcript