Smith needs a lesson on the Constitution
By Lethbridge Herald on March 4, 2025.
Editor,
Our premier appears to be conceptually challenged when it comes to the location of sovereignty in Canada (as recent letters by the Crisfields and Peter Haney have made clear). Because the Constitution of 1982 and the British North America Act of 1867 before it were so laden with language distributing legislative powers and authority between provinces and the federal government, it might appear that her confusion has some basis. But that would not be true.
First, the national Constitution is “the supreme law of the land” (Art. VII.52), suggesting national sovereignty. Secondly, only the national government can award citizenship. When I became a Canadian citizen in the 1980s, I clearly became a Canadian. There was no mention of provincial citizenship. In fact, Canadians are merely residents of the provinces in which they reside and are free to move among the various provinces. Legal residency in a province is largely based on having a dwelling or legal address or other mundane factors proving you are living there. Finally, although the King remains our sovereign in emblematic but not affective ways, real sovereignty, that is, where ultimate authority resides, is made clear through the federal government’s exclusive authority to send representatives (ambassadors, etc.) to foreign countries, form treaties with other countries, and make war or peace. Provinces can send trade commissions, and premiers can go do their special pleading abroad, but they are skating on thin ice when seeking agreements with another country or state that look too much like treaties.
Our premier yearns to have it another way. I hope the rest of us do not. Her recent “discussions” with the United States regarding oil and gas tariffs, and her less than full cooperation with the federal government and other provinces in their attempt to establish a united front are just the latest proofs. Of course, if the current residents of Alberta share her desire for independence and sovereignty, they can likely succeed through supporting a plebiscite to leave Canada. The collective effect would be to make Alberta subject to much more economic manipulation and subjugation by the outer world (especially the United States) than exists now, and we would be vastly more impoverished socially and culturally.
James Tagg
Lethbridge
7-6
The UCP and Danielle Smith need a lesson on many things. She is the worst premier in Alberta’s history.
We knew she would be but these idiots wouldn’t listen to us and they were all seniors who should have been a lot smarter but aren’t. Too dumb to understand the “Horrific Mess” as Lougheed called it that they have created for future generations.
a very good entry, but, my vote for worst still is klein.
Sad to see the discredit Smith gets. Our useless clown prince in Ottawa did nothing meaningful to help Canada. Smith did. 25 % on most exports . 10% on energy / oil. We have a clown that is sold our sovereignty by his immigration policies .
Maybe we can get you your own custom Danielle Smith crying towel
You really are an ill informed , repetitive, meandering and clueless excuse for a member of the human race. You clearly missed or chose to ignore Trudeau’s speech yesterday, standing up to the real “clown” exercising his despotic tendencies to his (partially) adoring genuflecting acolytes in Washington.
Once again proving how stupid you are. How do you explain why lawyers and oil executives are pointing out what a hero Trudeau has been to Albertans by pouring billions of dollars into this province? Does it make feel good believing the lies these Reformers feed you because you aren’t smart enough to think for yourself? Being a fool is what you do best, isn’t it?
My senior friends and I have found over the years that it’s mainly easily fooled, easily tricked seniors who are the morons blindly supporting these Reformers, too dumb to understand the damage they are creating. Young Albertans aren’t that stupid.
You mean your NDP run SACPA misinformation gang!
So explain why every Lawyer, accountant, economist, oilmen, banker and former Conservative MLA we have talked to has nothing but praise for what Notley was doing?
But it was okay when NDP Premier Notley and her Ministers travelled back and forth to Washington? Perhaps you need a lesson on how the Consitution is applied and what rights Alberta actually does have!
I would get out of the cloud of cannabis once in a while and see what’s going on outside your cave!
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A new survey (2024) reveals Alberta’s Premier is one of the most popular provincial leaders in Canada.
The Angus Reid Institue has released its latest Premier Approval survey for September 2024.
It shows that Manitoba’s Wab Kinew is the country’s most popular premier with an approval rating of 66 per cent.
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For those of us who live in Alberta, paid taxes in this province, and understand how important exports to the US are to pay for all our services, we applaud the Premier’s leadership!
Alberta exported $134 billion in oil and gas to America, representing over 80% of Alberta’s total exported goods.
The Liberal/NDP coalition have tried to kill the Alberta economy and told international prospects like Japan and some EU members that Canada will not supply their LNG or petroleum product needs!
When Ottawa attempts to kill our economy, we have a right to defend ourselves and it has always been our right to negotiate trade!
Go ahead and attack the UCP, while ignoring how the NDP has destroyed the province of BC and Canada with the Liberal/NDP coalition government that has put us in this bad relationship with the US! Sow more division!
We are facing tough times, the world is in turbulent times, and you want to play politics like Trudeau and divide our country further!
How about we give you an opportunity to prove ,without a doubt, in court what makes you so much smarter than us true Conservatives who aren’t dumb enough to support Reformers, and let them put our children in a horrible financial mess, would you like to try?
I know there are lawyers out there who are so disgusted with fools like you who have allowed this to happen that they are considering taking Legal Action, do you want them to try?
Perhaps people that comment here should actually realize what Danielle Smith has done before commenting? That would be rather unique, yes?
History- The Enbridge pipeline which turns into Line 5, in Superior Wisconsin travels 645-miles and carries oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) from Alberta to Sarnia Ontario. It carries 540,000 barrels of oil a day.
So if Alberta decided to throw in Oil this early as a playing card (as Trump calls it) then what would be achieved? Well first thing would be gas/oil prices would go nuts in the USA. But, why wouldn’t the US just shut the valve on Line 5 creating NO Gas and OIL catastrophe in Ontario and Quebec? Its an obvious retaliation.
So obvious in fact that if Captain Canada suddenly shuts off the power to Wisconsin, Michigan and New York, someone would reach over and shut the valve on line 5!
So did someone agree to be the Good Cop/Bad Cop? Worth thinking about instead of just condemning her!
For those that think we could rail those 540,000 barrels a day, from Winnipeg to Sarnia Refineries ponder this.
A train Oil Car holds 700 bbls., 100 train cars is 70,000bbls so 800 cars a day going one way, on a one way track carry 560,000 bbls. 800 cars long would be too long for any switching on/off the main line. Once you get the 800 cars with how ever many locomotives are needed to pull them, you have to unload….but its another day? So now we need probably 4 complete 800 car oil trains in various stages of load and unload and transit….but we have a single track with no way of switching out any other train we meet on the way.
So do you hope Trump can’t read the Lethbridge Herald and realize were facked blocking oil or not? Or do you just let the Good Cop buy us some time, time I am sure will be wasted by the Lib Tards!
So if you have not figured this out yet, Trump intends on killing the Ontario Automotive Economy first. This will create huge unemployment. Which makes the Province of Ontario and Quebec HAVE NOT Provinces. Now all the Federal Gov’s money comes from Alberta.Trump then threatens to shut off the taps…end of story unless people get off thier butts and start Depression like job creation. Force Oil lnes now or we’re done! When I say FORCE I mean expropriation with ZERO comeback. You get paid for the land expropriated but the libtards don’t get to picket and save a tree. Considering most people can’t figure out what Gender they are nowadays, I will make a prophecy……were farked! I suppose we could buy one of those little ribbons that say “we support our near nonexistant, troops”….. that will make a huge difference lol
Dennis, your voice of reason and reality as always. Let those NDPers, like hogs, wallow in their own slop!
Isn’t it fun watching you fools get your ass in a knot over the NDP because you haven’t got anyone else to bad mouth ? Even though they were only in power for 4 years and these Reformers who created this “Horrific Mess” as Lougheed called it created it over a 25 year period.It doesn’t make you look very smart does it? No wonder you are the laughing stock of conservatives.