Smith’s pretzel logic confuses

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith had both sides of her mouth working overtime on Aug. 30, when she spoke at an event in Calgary to commemorate Alberta Day, the annual celebration of the province’s entry into Confederation in 1905 (officially Sept. 1, it was celebrated on the weekend).

Smith’s comments — and the things she did not say — revealed a lot about the political tightrope the premier is trying to walk over the challenges currently faced by her province. At the top of that list of challenges is a persistent campaign to separate Alberta from the aforementioned Confederation. A campaign that Smith appears to both support and oppose, depending on which day of the week it is.

Her Alberta Day remarks were an excellent case in point.

Smith has decided that on Oct. 19, Albertans will vote on a series of non-binding propositions in a province referendum. One of those questions will ask Albertans whether they want to hold a referendum on separation, thus making this fall’s vote a “referendum on whether to hold a referendum,” as some observers have dubbed it.

The decision to hold this vote was widely seen as a sign of Smith’s tacit support for independence. So, too, her pledge to challenge the right of First Nations to veto any separation.

But then, she came out later and said that she personally would vote to stay in Canada. Thus, the premier would have us believe she supports continued membership in the federation, but also the right of Albertans to destroy that relationship.

Given her past efforts to curry favour with separatists, there was some expectation she would mention the desire of some of her citizens to go their own way. She did not even acknowledge that a faction within her province was trying to destroy the very federation Alberta Day celebrates.

In fact, if you were to read between the lines, you might think Smith was defending the idea of Alberta remaining part of the federation.

“Despite our differences, we have far more in common than what divides us,” Smith said. “Alberta’s story is still being written. And I believe the best chapters are still ahead.”

A vague statement like that must have landed with a thud in the separatist camp. No doubt, many were expecting Smith to offer some sort of robust defence of the right of her citizens to leave the country. Certainly, separatists understood the symbolic nature of Alberta Day in the debate over separatism when they held a rally two days earlier to press their case for independence.

The “we have far more in common than what divides us” can certainly be interpreted as either a pro- or anti-independence sentiment. But separatists were convinced it was the latest in a series of betrayals by the premier, who has appeared to court separatists and federalists in equal measure.

Further complicating the politics of Alberta Day, Smith’s office issued two slightly different statements on the annual celebration.

The first included an acknowledgment of the contributions of Indigenous Peoples and their treaty rights; the second (later dismissed as an error, both in composition and issuance) removed all reference to Indigenous Peoples. Other than acknowledging the latter statement was a mistake, nobody, including Smith, explained why the government would draft an Alberta Day statement without reference to Indigenous Peoples in the first place.

The duelling statements only served to make Smith’s mangled message all the more mangled.

It appears that every time Smith talks about the future of her province, she further muddies some already muddy waters.

The unpredictable Alberta premier should be careful not to confuse too many people too much before they get a chance to vote on an already confusing referendum question.

Too much confusion only aids the separatists. Which is OK, if Smith does actually want to help their cause.

Otherwise, she is tempting fate to destroy her province and the federation in one fell swoop.