Thomas Lukaszuk’s $20,000 taxpayer scandal suggests he has all the political sense of a Polish dill pickle. But don’t sell him short; he can cause even more serious problems.The former PC deputy premier of Alberta popped up again in 2023 like Balzac’s Billy, well before Premier Danielle Smith lowered the threshold for a referendum. Lukaszuk was suddenly stumping for the NDP and had abandoned any pretense of conservatism. He cast a long shadow over Smith’s UCP, promising years of political shenanigans, especially against anyone or anything supporting the Alberta independence movement.Lukaszuk’s most sober attempt at it thus far appealed to the citizens of Alberta. He collected over 438,000 verified signatures supporting the question, "Do you agree that Alberta should remain within Canada?" Fair enough. Direct democracy is something that Smith and the UCP have also promoted, albeit through legislation. It’s something that the independence movement is not afraid to embrace.But then, Lukaszuk indicated he didn’t actually want to trigger a referendum through his petition. What he really wanted was for Smith to quash the whole question of Alberta independence.Fat chance.In the meantime, his rhetoric has steadily escalated, month by month.At first, his words were tempered..“She has practically painted herself into a corner,” Lukaszuk said of Smith in October 2025. “The government may regret it and try to withdraw or rescind the act they passed, but they are going to have a problem with their ultra-far-right wingers who believe in free democracy, and they won’t let them rescind the legislation.”Then his accusations ramped up.In November 2025, Lukaszuk derided the Premier for what he called “anti-Palestinian messaging” when Smith praised a group for painting over a Palestinian flag with a Canadian flag. This was confusing coming from Lukaszuk, considering how much national pride he claims to have.That smear wasn’t effective enough for him to rest on. Support for Palestine is split along party lines, and thus Lukaszuk’s criticism wouldn’t convince many UCP voters that Smith was trouble. So, in December 2025, he took things a step further. He accused the independence movement of being fueled by foreign interference and Smith of making it worse, as reported by Jackson Loy:“We know the pro-separatist movement is being fuelled by foreign interference and other agendas,” said Lukaszuk on Babcock's podcast. He went on to say that Premier Danielle Smith “… has to respond to my petition and is taking unusual, un-Canadian measures to push for separation.”That was inflammatory to say the least. But now things are coming to a head..In February 2026, Lukaszuk sank to the grandaddy of all identity politicking, comparing the tactics used by Smith to those used by the Nazis:"Immigrants are not Alberta’s problem […] But there is a pattern. Populist governments need a scapegoat, a culprit, an 'out-group.' For Hitler, it was Jews; for Trump, it’s Latinos. In Rwanda, it was the Tutsis. It’s an un-Canadian and deplorable political strategy."In the comments sections to articles about Lukaszuk’s claims here at Western Standard, I was reassured to see that, firstly, none of the readers were buying his nonsense. Secondly, astute readers were able to identify that this kind of name-calling is a very dangerous tactic used by the radical Left to target individuals for violence (we’ll discuss this in a moment, although I don’t believe that Lukaszuk has any such malicious intent.)But I did notice some viewers were baffled as to why a guy like Lukaszuk was leading the charge against Danielle Smith and Alberta independence. After all, if he’s going to stump for the NDP and openly rejects the UCP, who on the Right are going to listen to him?This is where puzzle pieces begin to fall into place. .Lukaszuk is not quite the intellectual vegetable I alluded to in the first paragraph; in fact, he’s paying attention to what people are saying. A recent survey conducted by Research Co. confirms a decisive split within the UCP over the Alberta independence movement, as reported by Will Vasseur:“The poll showed something seen following the UCP AGM in December: party supporters are split on whether they support Alberta independence.”“NDP supporters are more united on this issue: 85% of respondents who voted for the party in the 2023 election do not support Alberta becoming an independent country.”There it is. The anti-independence movement needs someone who can further split UCP voters (Jason Kenney is another optimal choice). NDP voters have largely already made up their collective mind to support federalism. Lukaszuk and his Red Tory roots are an appeal to moderate votes within the UCP. Lukaszuk is aiming to appeal to moderates using divisive and escalating propaganda, which has so far peaked at implying Smith and members of the UCP are Nazis.The problems associated with these underhanded measures should be clear. For those who remain unsure, I refer you to the recent intimidation and death threats against Alberta Prosperity Project CEO Mitch Sylvestre, a criminal act committed at his Bonnyville sporting goods store against his employees. Stoking this kind of extremism begins with language, which Lukaszuk must know.It’s not enough to say that comparing Smith, the UCP, and independence supporters to Nazis is a lie. It is. But when someone who is very well known, as Thomas Lukaszuk is, and has a very engaged audience, as his 2025 petition reveals he does, uses this type of propaganda, it’s only a matter of time before it snaps the mind of some radical into violence.Before then, smarten up, Thomas Lukaszuk.
