The Conservative advance team certainly got the symbolism right when they had party leader Pierre Poilievre deliver his hope-and-unity message of renewed federalism in Calgary at the downtown Legion branch. So did the speechwriters. Surrounded by national memorabilia and photographs of heroic Albertans who fought for Canada, his call for Albertans to build alliances across the country rather than chase the siren song of independence seemed like the walls were talking.It was vintage Poilievre: urgent, articulate, and rooted in a clear diagnosis of what ails us.“Listen carefully to the concerns of those saying that they want to leave,” he told the crowd of more than 300. “And you will find that they do not have a problem with fellow Canadians or even with Canada. They have a problem with the federal government.”Amen. He ticked off the familiar grievances: blocked pipeline developments, firearms restrictions, criminal justice failures, punitive taxes, eroded provincial autonomy, and anti-development laws like Bills C-69 and C-48. His prescription? Provincial alliances — with Saskatchewan and Newfoundland on energy, with indigenous hunters and rural Canadians on guns, and even with Quebec on greater constitutional control over immigration and provincial affairs.“We do not need a different country, Alberta. We need different government policies in Ottawa,” he declared. “We have to ensure that Albertans are able, just like Quebecers, to be masters in their own house.”Amen again. It’s hard to argue with the passion. In Alberta, this message lands with force. It was a strong defence of unity through strength: unleashing Alberta’s energy to benefit all of Canada, selling to Europe and Asia, and recognizing the maverick culture that built this province..Yet for all the rhetorical power — and Poilievre’s undeniable ability to connect — the deeper problem remains. Canadians elsewhere, particularly in eastern Canada, keep voting for the very governments and policies that continue to frustrate Albertans. Four consecutive federal elections have returned administrations that doubled down on the very measures Poilievre rightly criticizes: resource-killing regulations, ever-expanding Ottawa control, and an equalization system that continues to transfer wealth westward while plucking the feathers of the golden goose that produces it.Is sweet reason enough to change that?Passion wasn’t. During the ’90s, the passion of the Reform Party to insert not just Alberta but the entire western part of the country into government — the West wants in! — got as far as the Ontario border with Manitoba, dribbled across into a few ridings and … to give itself anything of an electoral chance, watered down its wine by embracing the semi-Tories of central and Atlantic Canada.Was it worth it?We did get ten years of good government from Stephen Harper.But then in 2015, central and eastern Canadians chose the single most unsuitable — and unworthy — man for high office that they could have found. And they kept voting for him. Why would be substance for another column. But there is a brain rot in central Canada, the equivalent of which, if discovered in a human being, would tell a physician that the patient didn’t have long to live..What can Poilievre say that will resonate among people who have repeatedly chosen people who are good at politics but terrible at government?Notably, here among people who have repeatedly chosen his party and now him, Poilievre made no mention of reforming that equalization structure — a central grievance for the independence movement. Nor did he flesh out specifics on representation by population in the House or meaningful Senate reform. These aren’t minor details; they go to the heart of whether Confederation can be made to work for the West again..UPDATED: Poilievre pitches stronger Alberta within united Canada in Calgary .The Western Standard account of the event, from the reliable pen of my friend and colleague David Wiechnik, quotes one of the audience who captured the skepticism in the room: “Pierre’s doing his best, and God bless him. He's a good man. [Staying in] Canada should be the way, but I think the last election was really the last straw.”There have been a lot of last straws. And notwithstanding the energy of Alberta’s independence movement, there will likely be more. The Liberal government needs Alberta to pay for its incompetence. It cannot afford to let the golden goose leave, taking with it its golden eggs. Anybody who thinks that independence will be a bureaucratic transfer of power defined by the Clarity Act lacks clarity.Remember that mendacious Liberal attack ad from 2006? "Stephen Harper actually announced he wants to increase military presence in our cities. Canadian cities. Soldiers with guns. In our cities. In Canada. We did not make this up."It was a Liberal fantasy once. Could it be a Liberal reality one day?But bless Poilievre anyway. The political barbecue season is about to start, and the audience is gathering. Neighbours will gather, beer in hand, and the conversation will inevitably turn to Ottawa’s latest assault on Alberta’s economy and autonomy. Poilievre’s call to “listen, understand, persuade” rather than demonize those flirting with independence is wise counsel. Those Albertans are not enemies, he will say; they are family, friends, and neighbours who have simply lost hope.We wish Pierre all the luck in the world with his message. Notwithstanding Reform’s ultimately unsuccessful effort, we should never write off this approach before it’s even been tried. Building a common cause across provinces to repeal anti-energy laws, restore autonomy, and unlock prosperity ought to appeal across the country.The real question is whether the rest of Canada still has ears to hear. The next few years could go a lot easier for a lot more people if they did.
