Why She Runs
It’s a half hour before dawn when Rachel Notley emerges from her hotel elevator, and I barely recognize her. She’s wearing her running clothes and a battered pair of Asics Gel running [...]
Leadership
Leadership
The Takeover
At 5:20 p.m. on October 28, 2017, minutes before the accidental, and then the official announcement of the winner of the United Conservative Party’s (UCP) first-ever leadership race, blue and [...]
Where Leaders Matter More Than Party
The summer of 2017 saw big changes in Alberta party politics. The Progressive Conservatives, which had governed the province from 1971 to 2015 and established a Canadian record for longevity, [...]
Our Surprising Premier
Alison Redford was a bit late to the party when she appeared, rainbow sash over black top, at Calgary Pride’s post-parade festival on September 2. From the stage at the downtown park, the premier [...]
A Tale of Two Leaders
Stephen Harper and Ed Stelmach emerged as government leaders in 2006. Some say the similarity ends there. If you stood them side by side—or, for that matter, if you studied them for a year—you [...]
By Fred Stenson
A Walk in the Park
Danielle Smith is ready for a brisk stroll with her dogs. At Calgary’s Nose Hill Park—a veritable dog-heaven-on-Earth—we remove our mitts and shake hands before she reaches for the back latch of [...]
By Peter Worden
Deconstructing Danielle
If Danielle Smith ever had a youthful flirtation with the left, she’s kept it well hidden. From campus to career conservative, Smith has found a comfortable home on the right side of the [...]
Party of One
Ernest C. Manning (1908–1997) was an Alberta MLA and cabinet minister for 33 years and the province’s premier for 25 years. When he first joined the provincial cabinet as provincial secretary and [...]
By Alex Rettie
The Year Alberta Stayed Home
During a summer 2007 visit to Calgary—that provincial bastion of conservatism—Liberal party leader Kevin Taft was practically swept off his feet by the reception he got from strangers on the [...]
By Darcy Henton
Constructing Morton
He is smart, he is scary. He used to be an American. He talks more than any other Alberta politician about strengthening democracy. There was a time when his family could call Dick Cheney a [...]
MOST READ
MOST READ
The Dramatic Fall of Jason Kenney
Subsequent events have cast shadows over the jubilant atmosphere at the BMO Centre in Calgary on October 28, 2017. This was a banner night for conservatism in Alberta as former federal cabinet minister and movement leader Jason Kenney rode to the stage in a signature blue pickup truck to claim the new ...
Professors Pushed to the Edge
It's a cold winter's day in Lethbridge, the sky a kind of pot-metal grey. The flags fly stiff at the university’s main entrance. In normal times my faculty colleagues and I would be in our offices. I’d be just getting back from teaching my 9:00 a.m. Canadian Society class. But nothing about the ...
Let’s Debate CanCon
When the Senate returns to work in September, one of its first orders of business will be to debate and study Bill C-11, which amends Canada’s broadcasting legislation. Our Broadcast Act hasn’t been changed in a serious way in over 30 years. Back then we watched shows on TV, listened to music on the ...