Danielle Smith on stage with Tucker Carlson: Alberta premier steers clear of hot-button issues
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During their 16 minute chat, Smith encouraged the former Fox News personality to direct some of his anger toward federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault
Published Jan 24, 2024 • Last updated 3 hours ago • 5 minute read
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith speaks with U.S. conservative Tucker Carlson at the Telus Convention Centre in Calgary on Wednesday, January 24, 2024. Photo by Matt Scace/Postmedia
Premier Danielle Smith made energy policy the central focus of her sit-down interview with Tucker Carlson in Calgary on Wednesday — an event Smith had been criticized for participating in since it was announced.
Smith spent a brief 16 minutes on stage with the U.S. conservative news personality in front of more than 4,000 people who shared resounding agreement with several of Carlson’s comments, including several rounds of standing applause.
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While Carlson pushed Smith on a handful of hot-button topics, the Alberta premier treaded familiar ground with her answers on four men arrested at the Coutts border crossing and the federal government’s environmental policy.
Smith said she viewed the sit-down interview as an opportunity to speak with all types of media and that she doesn’t agree with the viewpoints of every outlet she speaks to — a point made by her office in November when the event was announced.
“I know that there are representatives from mainstream media here, and they’re going to ask me whether I agree with every single word you said . . . I think it’s important for me to make sure that the world knows how incredible Alberta is,” Smith said, alluding to other alternative conservative news outlets she engages with.
Carlson also noted he and Smith had dinner Tuesday night.
“First of all, we had dinner last night, and I had the best time — and thank you for letting me, a rank foreigner, ask you questions,” Carlson said.
The event took place at the Telus Convention Centre, where ultra-tight security meant guests were required to check their coats and no bags were allowed.
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Tucker Carlson appears onstage at the Telus Convention Centre in Calgary on Wednesday, January 24, 2024. Matt Scace/Postmedia
Carlson asked Smith for her thoughts on the four men arrested at the Coutts border crossing in 2022 — who were charged for conspiring to murder RCMP officers — and whether “it would send a powerful message to go visit them in jail.”
Smith said the Crown operates independently from the government and she’d leave it to the courts, and alluded to the phone call with pastor Artur Pawlowski that landed her in an ethics investigation in the middle of last year’s election.
“Some of you may know I was on a phone call with somebody in a similar position, and what I have learned is that all I can say is the Crown operates independently, prosecutors have to make sure they have a reasonable likelihood of conviction, and I guess they will have to assess whether or not that is the case,” Smith said.
“It’s part of the journey we’ve all gone on in the past year to realize just how much limitation there is.”
Smith takes aim at federal environmental policy
The remainder of the conversation shifted to Alberta’s natural resources sector and green-energy policy.
“It’s pretty cold and not always sunny half the year, so I was stunned to learn that you have solar farms here. Is that true? It can’t be real,” Carlson asked Smith.
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Smith used the remainder of the conversation to highlight several grievances with federal environmental policy and the recent cold snap that nearly sent Alberta’s grid into rolling blackouts, resulting in an emergency alert requesting residents power down.
She also encouraged Carlson to direct some of his anger toward federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, who’s become a key political target in her fight against Ottawa’s environmental policies.
“I wish you would put Steven Guilbeault in your crosshairs,” Smith said.
“Is he an engineer?” replied Carlson.
Tucker Carlson appears onstage at the Telus Convention Centre in Calgary on Wednesday, January 24, 2024. Matt Scace/Postmedia
Toward the end, Carlson mused about a doomsday scenario for Alberta’s power grid relating to renewable energy, asking Smith, “At the current trajectory, it’ll be Bolivia in terms of its power grid. Does that get better soon, does that get worse?”
Smith noted natural gas capacity that’s expected to come online later this year, which includes the 900-megawatt Cascade natural gas power plant. She added in her response that Alberta should “double down” on its oil and gas production.
Carlson has repeatedly called Canada a dictatorship, said he was ‘coming to liberate Canada’
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Carlson worked at Fox News from 2009 to 2023, gaining fame through his prime-time show Tucker Carlson Tonight, which at points was the highest-rated cable news show in the U.S.
Carlson’s Fox contract was terminated in April 2023. Several news reports linked the firing to his coverage of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, private messages in which he criticized Fox management and texts that expressed racist views.
Carlson posted a video to Instagram on Monday showing him calling the federal government media line and saying, “We are coming to liberate Canada, and we’ll be there soon.”
Last year Carlson produced a documentary-style film asking whether the United States should liberate Canada, which was shelved after he was axed by Fox News. Its trailer revolved around Canada’s response to COVID-19, which Carlson interpreted as “tyranny,” and Carlson has previously called Canada a dictatorship.
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Since his ouster, Carlson has launched a show on X, where he has espoused far-right talking points that include challenging the murder of George Floyd, defending Vladimir Putin and dabbling in the “great replacement” theory, a white-nationalist conspiracy theory that alleges white Americans are being replaced through immigration.
Several of Carlson’s leading focuses, such as blaming immigration for Canada’s health care and housing struggles, were discussed earlier in the event between Carlson and Canadian psychologist and conservative media personality Jordan Peterson, moderated by Brett Wilson.
Smith previously defended decision to appear with Carlson
Several Alberta politicians, current and former, have publicly opposed the discussion between Carlson and Smith. Following Tuesday’s violent incident at Edmonton City Hall in which shots were fired and a molotov cocktail was thrown inside the building, former Alberta cabinet minister Thomas Lukaszuk called on Smith to cancel the event.
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.@ABDanielleSmith Today was a tragic day in Edmonton. Thankfully, the incident at city hall ended peacefully.
Political tensions are high. Alberta is more divided than ever.
I implore that you cancel your spectacle with Tucker Carlson and not inflame anger and division.#ableg
— Thomas A. Lukaszuk (@LukaszukAB) January 23, 2024
Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley in November said Carlson is “not a credible figure.”
“The fact that our premier believes it’s appropriate to normalize the things this person would say by appearing on a stage with him demonstrates a profound lack of judgment on her part.”
Smith’s office defended her decision to participate in the event when it was announced, saying she aims “to share Alberta’s message with as many people as possible, whether they’re from Alberta, Canada or around the world,” wrote press secretary Sam Blackett.
“The premier participates in a variety of public and private events and does interviews with dozens of reporters, broadcasters and podcasters from across the political spectrum,” he wrote. “Obviously, she does not subscribe to every view of every interviewer or reporter she speaks with, whether that’s the CBC, the Toronto Star or Tucker Carlson.”
mscace@postmedia.comX: @mattscace67
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