[bootlegga]

$1:

As the face of the campaign, Wildrose Party leader Danielle Smith is her party’s biggest asset. She is media savvy, personable and, despite her limited governance experience (one year as a trustee on the dysfunctional Calgary Board of Education), she talks about becoming Premier with more confidence than any opposition leader in a long time.

But looking beyond the high-profile face of the Wildrose Party, which polls from the first week of the campaign suggest could be poised to form government, Albertans should be asking important questions about who would serve as cabinet ministers in a Wildrose Party government? The Premier is only one person at the table. Which Wildrose candidate would serve as Minister of Justice, Minister of Education, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Health?

Ask most Albertans to name a Wildrose candidate outside their own riding, and they will probably respond with a puzzled face. The lack of “star-candidates” is likely a product of timing. The Wildrose Party began to hold its candidate nominations in 2010 during a time when the party was seen to have peaked and was sitting in the mid-teens in the polls. What the party ended up with were plenty of well meaning candidates, but not many who would be defined as “star candidates.”

The recent success of the federal NDP in Quebec provides a textbook example of why any party should take seriously the candidates it nominates to run under its banner, even if it does not look like they might form government at the time.

If the Wildrose Party are to form the next government in Alberta, an important question needs to be asked about whether their candidates are the kind of politicians that Albertans want running the show. Here is a look at some of the Wildrose candidates who could end up serving as a cabinet minister under Premier Danielle Smith:
Link Byfield Wildrose Barrhead Morinville Westlock

Link Byfield

- Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock candidate Link Byfield is the former publisher of the right-wing Alberta Report magazine. As has been noted elsewhere, Mr. Byfield was the founder of the Citizens Centre for Freedom and Democracy, which stands, among other things, “against expanding influence of the Charter of Rights.”
John Carpay Wildrose Calgary Lougheed

John Carpay

- Calgary-Lougheed candidate John Carpay penned an opinion-editorial in the National Post in 1994 which criticized Premier Ralph Klein for not invoking the Notwithstanding Clause to block the Supreme Court decision forcing Alberta to include protection of homosexuals from discrimination.

More recently, Mr. Carpay defended the University of Calgary Campus Pro-Life Club and was part of the legal team which defended anti-gay activist Bill Whatcott against charges in Saskatchewan. (Mr. Whatcott was recently detained by the police for distributing anti-gay hate literature to homes in northwest Calgary).
Ron Leech Wildrose Calgary Greenway

Ron Leech

- Calgary-Greenway Wildrose candidate and evangelical pastor Ron Leech penned an article in the Calgary Herald in 2004 which argued “to affirm homosexuality is to distort the image of God, to insult the nature and being of God.” Perhaps this fits with Ms. Smith’s ideas on conscience rights (which has angered at least one now former Wildrose supporter).

- Edmonton-South West candidate Allan Hunsperger is the self-described pioneer in the establishment of Alberta’s private schools in the late seventies and founder of Heritage Christian Schools.
Don Koziak Wildrose Edmonton Glenora

Don Koziak

- Edmonton-Glenora candidate Don Koziak‘s short-lived mayoral bid in 2010 was kicked off by a promise to halt LRT expansion, calling the public transit “enormously environmentally unfriendly.” When asked what he would do differently, Mr. Koziak trumpeted the construction of more “interchanges and wider roads.” Toronto Mayor Rob Ford would be proud.

- Edmonton-Castle Downs candidate John Oplanich, kicked off his campaign by offering to raffle a free big screen televisionto voters who would support him.
Andrew Constantinidis Wildrose Calgary-West

Andrew Constantinidis

- A number of Wildrose candidates running in Edmonton constituencies have indicated over the past year that they would re-open the acrimonious City Centre Airport debate, even though elected City Councillors have already made the decision to phase out operations of the tiny downtown airport.

- As I have already written, a few Wildrose candidates from Calgary have strong connections with controversial Conservative MP Rob Anders. This includes Calgary-West candidate Andrew Constantinidis, who served as Mr. Anders’ local constituency president and media coordinator during the 2011 federal election.

These are the highest profile stories around these candidates, the truth is that outside of Ms. Smith and the four established Wildrose MLA’s running for re-election, surprisingly little is known about the party’s candidates. And the Wildrose Party has done a superb job of focusing the media’s and voters attention on what they want, namely Ms. Smith and ensuring that she, rather than their candidates are the ones making headlines.

http://daveberta.ca/2012/04/danielle-sm ... andidates/

I know it's a blog, but he does make a good point.

[Curtman]

Why would these things be a liability in Alberta? They were great for the Reform party. I can't wait to see how the "conscience rights" platform plays out when the rednecks figure out it works both ways.. Think back to this story..

Muslim Taxi Drivers refuse to take passengers with alcohol

With such gems as:

Bodah Bodah:

I would say Western Culture trumps foreign religous beliefs, now take my bags and put them in the fucking trunk already and drive me home.

If they dont want too, fine I'll never take another cab from that company again in my life. Welcome to the west mofo now try feeding your family based on those beliefs in a foreign land.

God Bless Canada !

hwacker hwacker:

Don't worry they are not going to be able to use the airport anymore. They’ll lose their license and rightly so.


That airport is full of muslims from Somalia. Full like infested.

[ShepherdsDog]

FFS

Hwacker was banned years ago

[Curtman]

ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:

FFS

Hwacker was banned years ago

... And that's relevant how?

[ShepherdsDog]

The fact that you need the relevance of that explained to you is reason enough not to bother.

[PluggyRug]

Curtman Curtman:

Why would these things be a liability in Alberta? They were great for the Reform party. I can't wait to see how the "conscience rights" platform plays out when the rednecks figure out it works both ways.. Think back to this story..

Muslim Taxi Drivers refuse to take passengers with alcohol

With such gems as:

Bodah Bodah:

I would say Western Culture trumps foreign religous beliefs, now take my bags and put them in the fucking trunk already and drive me home.

If they dont want too, fine I'll never take another cab from that company again in my life. Welcome to the west mofo now try feeding your family based on those beliefs in a foreign land.

God Bless Canada !

hwacker hwacker:

Don't worry they are not going to be able to use the airport anymore. They’ll lose their license and rightly so.


That airport is full of muslims from Somalia. Full like infested.

And that's relevant how?

[Curtman]

PluggyRug PluggyRug:

And that's relevant how?

To a blog that implies Wildrose is full of religious bigots and homophobes?

$1:

“The Wildrose will ensure conscience rights for marriage commissioners and health professionals,” she said in response to a question asking leaders what human rights issues they would address. “This would ensure the protection of personal expression for individuals”

I'm just saying its not necessarily a liability in Alberta.

[Thanos]

$1:

Link Byfield

The inclusion of that particular last name was enough to convince me. All the Wildrose is are a stealth TeaParty movement dedicated to the lie of austerity economics and to social conservative theocracy. They've ruined the United States with their rancid atavistic demagoguery and they're going to do it to Alberta too. Fuck them all straight to Hell, I'll never vote for them ever.

[PluggyRug]

Curtman Curtman:

PluggyRug PluggyRug:

And that's relevant how?

To a blog that implies Wildrose is full of religious bigots and homophobes?

$1:

“The Wildrose will ensure conscience rights for marriage commissioners and health professionals,” she said in response to a question asking leaders what human rights issues they would address. “This would ensure the protection of personal expression for individuals”

I'm just saying its not necessarily a liability in Alberta.

Fair enough.

[andyt]

Thanos Thanos:

$1:

Link Byfield

The inclusion of that particular last name was enough to convince me. All the Wildrose is are a stealth TeaParty movement dedicated to the lie of austerity economics and to social conservative theocracy. They've ruined the United States with their rancid atavistic demagoguery and they're going to do it to Alberta too. Fuck them all straight to Hell, I'll never vote for them ever.

Yep. I saw that name and wen't oh, oh, and I don't even live there. I vaguely remember that dad (Ted?) was also active in BC, tho I could be wrong. I kinda liked him for being an iconoclast, but those guys should be nowhere near the levers of power. But hey, I bet they're good ole CPC members as well, get along real well with the Doris Stockwell Day wing. At least in Alberta they have their own party instead of trying to fly under the radar in a "mainstream" party.

[Thanos]

Link was in charge of Alberta Report magazine when it finally went under. It was such a disaster that the employees and staff writers never even got their final paycheques. Not that it'll matter to the bovine rubes and sammich people that've been rallying around the Wildrose but this probably isn't the sort of "successful" businessman type that should have a say in the finances of an entire province.

The Byfields are a funny lot in general. They spent about twenty-five years proclaiming their sheer hatred for the federal government from their bully pulpit at Alberta Report. And, to be fair about it, more often than not the federal government deserved it, especially in the wake of Trudeau and his NEP. The Byfields never talked too much though about how Alberta Report got off the ground in the first place with a grant/loan from the federal government courtesy of a program designed to boost small businesses. And they never talked too much either about how they never bothered to pay the loan back either. Yup, another hyper-religious family with all the moral and ethical standards that we've come to love about evangelicals who turn political, just like the poor dumb Yanks got to see first hand from the likes of Jim and Tammy Faye.

I genuinely weep for Alberta with what's going to happen when those clods get elected.

[Gunnair]

Thanos Thanos:

Link was in charge of Alberta Report magazine when it finally went under. It was such a disaster that the employees and staff writers never even got their final paycheques. Not that it'll matter to the bovine rubes and sammich people that've been rallying around the Wildrose but this probably isn't the sort of "successful" businessman type that should have a say in the finances of an entire province.

The Byfields are a funny lot in general. They spent about twenty-five years proclaiming their sheer hatred for the federal government from their bully pulpit at Alberta Report. And, to be fair about it, more often than not the federal government deserved it, especially in the wake of Trudeau and his NEP. The Byfields never talked too much though about how Alberta Report got off the ground in the first place with a grant/loan from the federal government courtesy of a program designed to boost small businesses. And they never talked too much either about how they never bothered to pay the loan back either. Yup, another hyper-religious family with all the moral and ethical standards that we've come to love about evangelicals who turn political, just like the poor dumb Yanks got to see first hand from the likes of Jim and Tammy Faye.

I genuinely weep for Alberta with what's going to happen when those clods get elected.

I don't. Frankly, they're untried and always sitting on the periphery of being given a political shot. Alberta needs to dive in and give them a go. If, four years later, all the dudes are required to wear puritan hats and all the women in Edmonton have scarlet letters on the shirts, then maybe they'll realize that moderate is not an eight letter dirty word.

[bootlegga]

Thanos Thanos:

Link was in charge of Alberta Report magazine when it finally went under. It was such a disaster that the employees and staff writers never even got their final paycheques. Not that it'll matter to the bovine rubes and sammich people that've been rallying around the Wildrose but this probably isn't the sort of "successful" businessman type that should have a say in the finances of an entire province.

The Byfields are a funny lot in general. They spent about twenty-five years proclaiming their sheer hatred for the federal government from their bully pulpit at Alberta Report. And, to be fair about it, more often than not the federal government deserved it, especially in the wake of Trudeau and his NEP. The Byfields never talked too much though about how Alberta Report got off the ground in the first place with a grant/loan from the federal government courtesy of a program designed to boost small businesses. And they never talked too much either about how they never bothered to pay the loan back either. Yup, another hyper-religious family with all the moral and ethical standards that we've come to love about evangelicals who turn political, just like the poor dumb Yanks got to see first hand from the likes of Jim and Tammy Faye.

I genuinely weep for Alberta with what's going to happen when those clods get elected.

Hey, don't forget that Byfield is also a 'Senator in Waiting', having been elected in 2004. Yeah, for a guy who loves to criticize easterners and the federal government, he sure seems eager to stick his hand in that cookie jar too.

[Bruce_E_T]

andyt andyt:

At least in Alberta they have their own party instead of trying to fly under the radar in a "mainstream" party.

True, I think. The hidden agenda/suspects thing really hurt Harper in the early years.

I would also like to thank the contributors on this thread for getting me interested in this election.