Jason Markusoff's Alberta Politics Insider for April 18: Dying on every hill, Kenney's one-man Department of Micromanagement, and more
When Day One of the Kenney era came and went without the premier-designate publicly naming his transition team or chief of staff, I tweeted my curiosity about this. It was widely known, after all, that Kenney’s team had been quietly plotting for several weeks how to take power and hit the ground running. One politico replied privately: “Jason is Jason’s transition team. Jason is Jason’s executive assistant, etc.
Opening day At his first press conference since winning power, Kenney’s lectern sign read “open for business.” How Doug Ford-ish. But don’t expect him to erect hokey highway-side signs with that message. The premier-designate claimed he was on the phone with business leaders who are “deeply interested in investing more” in Alberta now that the NDP is gone.
Their election campaign full of daily outrage over various things UCP candidates said or did—some legitimately outrageous; others more dubious—ought to have taught the New Democrats that if they declare everything a disaster, the public will probably conclude that nothing is a disaster. It may prove difficult for Notley’s diminished crew to hold their fire over some issues, especially given Kenney’s own flame-breathing ways, but if they never relent the public will tune them out.
While Canada now has no female premiers for the first time in more than a decade, the legislature’s gender makeup didn’t suffer tremendously. There stands to be 26 or 27 female MLAs, just behind the record of 28 set last election—still far from parity in the 87-seat assembly. That’s all for this Jason This is the final Alberta Politics Insider newsletter. It’s been exhausting but a deep privilege to return to my daily writing roots and interpret this election, and engaging with many of you online. Thank you so much for following along and caring about this province’s endlessly fascinating politics. I’ll continue to file articles regularly to Macleans.ca—something tells me Kenney’s premiership will keep the good days coming for us in the opinion-and-analysis racket.
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