The Alberta NDP is melting down.
MLA Janis Irwin filmed herself — posted to X Thursday — dancing in the snow to protest Premier Danielle Smith’s diplomatic trip to Florida, where Smith spoke alongside conservative commentator Ben Shapiro at a PragerU event.
With Alberta facing serious issues — tariffs, an economic slowdown, and federal overreach among them — questions arise about Irwin’s suitability for office. Someone in the NDP communications team might need to step in — for her sake and for the sake of Albertans.
The text in Irwin’s video reads: “When it’s fifth winter in Alberta, you’re once again questioning your life choices and lots of things are awful, but at least you’re on Team Canada and not Alberta’s premier who’s in Florida hanging out with fascists.”
Irwin’s remark targets Shapiro, a figure widely reviled by the political left. He’s been labelled a racist, Islamophobe, and more.
Her dance capped days of NDP outrage. The party has hurled insults at Smith, including “traitor,” while offering no clear plan on tariffs other than calling for a "Team Canada" approach.
The NDP even hung a large Canadian flag from windows of a government building, singing the national anthem as if to shame Smith and cast themselves as the real patriots.
Smith’s trip, on March 27, aimed to oppose U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods amid a trade dispute with the United States under President Donald Trump. She called it part of her “quiet diplomacy” to sway American influencers and decision-makers, tapping Shapiro’s large audience.
Smith and her supporters called the trip a success for raising awareness of tariffs’ harm to both Canadian and U.S. economies. Shapiro later devoted a podcast episode to slamming U.S. tariffs, echoing Smith’s view that they hurt American consumers by hiking prices on oil and cars.
On her Saturday radio show, Your Province, Your Premier, Smith said it was “exactly what we wanted to accomplish.” The event also raised money for PragerU.
In the meantime, Irwin should stick to what she's good at — supporting her community and holding the UCP's feet to the fire over serious issues unrelated to hurt feelings and wokeism.
And, she must stop making videos.