Alberta NDP leadership candidate Naheed Nenshi has been going around and saying Premier Danielle Smith loves picking fights. However, Smith said in a Thursday interview with the Calgary Herald she was OK with Nenshi’s assertion. “Well, somebody who is Justin Trudeau’s choice for Alberta might say that,” said Smith. “I’m not here to be Trudeau’s choice for Alberta.”Additionally, Smith pointed out her job is to see Alberta’s interests come first. She said she was “going to keep on working to make sure I’m putting Albertans first.” Some Alberta United Conservative Party members are referring to Nenshi as Trudeau’s choice for the province. That might be how he is cast by her supporters going forward. If he manages to win the Alberta NDP leadership race, people might expect to hear the line linking him to Trudeau and the Liberals thrown around more often. After all, Alberta UCP members have said he has plenty of baggage and enough connections to the Liberals to make it stick. When Nenshi was asked if he wanted to respond to the idea he is Trudeau’s man, he said he was unbothered by it. It was a different story in the Alberta Legislature. Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley accused Smith of “declaring war against federal dollars being spent here.”“Why does she think she needs to protect Albertans from their own tax dollars?” said Notley. Smith decided to draw more connections to the Canadian government. “I feel that question could have been asked by their federal leader Jagmeet Singh,” she said. By fighting back against the Canadian government, she said she was advocating for fairness. Notley quoted the part of the interview in the Calgary Herald where Smith talked about Trudeau punching and she punching back. Other than political tantrums, she said Smith and the UCP have no achievements. “Why is she making Albertans pay the price for her failed partisan political petulant temper tantrums?” she said. Smith did not back down. Rather, she said the Alberta NDP has a defeatist attitude and take all of their orders from Singh. Earlier in the day, she admitted all she wants is the same treatment as Quebec. When a federal program is rolled out, Quebec says it is not going to abide by the rules and wants the money. “And they always get it,” said Smith.“We’re just doing what Quebec is doing.”The Alberta government introduced legislation requiring provincial entities to obtain approval before entering, amending, extending or renewing agreements between them and the Canadian government on Wednesday. READ MORE: UPDATED: Alberta government tables bill to defend provincial priorities“It is not unreasonable for Alberta to demand fairness from Ottawa,” said Smith. “They have shown time and again that they will put ideology before practicality, which hurts Alberta families and our economy.”
Alberta NDP leadership candidate Naheed Nenshi has been going around and saying Premier Danielle Smith loves picking fights. However, Smith said in a Thursday interview with the Calgary Herald she was OK with Nenshi’s assertion. “Well, somebody who is Justin Trudeau’s choice for Alberta might say that,” said Smith. “I’m not here to be Trudeau’s choice for Alberta.”Additionally, Smith pointed out her job is to see Alberta’s interests come first. She said she was “going to keep on working to make sure I’m putting Albertans first.” Some Alberta United Conservative Party members are referring to Nenshi as Trudeau’s choice for the province. That might be how he is cast by her supporters going forward. If he manages to win the Alberta NDP leadership race, people might expect to hear the line linking him to Trudeau and the Liberals thrown around more often. After all, Alberta UCP members have said he has plenty of baggage and enough connections to the Liberals to make it stick. When Nenshi was asked if he wanted to respond to the idea he is Trudeau’s man, he said he was unbothered by it. It was a different story in the Alberta Legislature. Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley accused Smith of “declaring war against federal dollars being spent here.”“Why does she think she needs to protect Albertans from their own tax dollars?” said Notley. Smith decided to draw more connections to the Canadian government. “I feel that question could have been asked by their federal leader Jagmeet Singh,” she said. By fighting back against the Canadian government, she said she was advocating for fairness. Notley quoted the part of the interview in the Calgary Herald where Smith talked about Trudeau punching and she punching back. Other than political tantrums, she said Smith and the UCP have no achievements. “Why is she making Albertans pay the price for her failed partisan political petulant temper tantrums?” she said. Smith did not back down. Rather, she said the Alberta NDP has a defeatist attitude and take all of their orders from Singh. Earlier in the day, she admitted all she wants is the same treatment as Quebec. When a federal program is rolled out, Quebec says it is not going to abide by the rules and wants the money. “And they always get it,” said Smith.“We’re just doing what Quebec is doing.”The Alberta government introduced legislation requiring provincial entities to obtain approval before entering, amending, extending or renewing agreements between them and the Canadian government on Wednesday. READ MORE: UPDATED: Alberta government tables bill to defend provincial priorities“It is not unreasonable for Alberta to demand fairness from Ottawa,” said Smith. “They have shown time and again that they will put ideology before practicality, which hurts Alberta families and our economy.”
