Bell Danielle Smith hits back at Justin Trudeau — again

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Prime Minister Daniel Smith says he's not looking for a fight, but if Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wants to throw down the gauntlet, he's ready to put it back.

Smith makes his point clear from the start in an exclusive interview.

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He can't stand Trudeau poking his nose into the province's business.

If Trudeau and the federal Liberal government want to bypass the provincial government and make indirect deals with cities or other local governments or Alberta's public sector organizations to advance their agenda, that won't be possible.

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It will be Alberta law that there will be no deals between the federations and these groups, including the big cities, without the province's thumbs up, and without the green light, deals won't be on paper for them. written.

“He punches us in the nose, and we just keep punching him and keep punching him until he realizes we need to be treated differently,” says Trudeau's Smith.

“He should go back and read his constitution.”

We know where this is going.

Smith says Trudeau has two choices.

One is that the Trudeau government, like Quebec, which has a similar law on the books, will “respect us and work with us” and give federal dollars to Alberta on a stand-alone basis.

“We just want to be treated like Quebec,” says Smith.

The other choice is the Trudeau government doesn't go down this road, doesn't work with the province, maybe even withholds money from Alberta, and then we're talking court battles.

Sounds like a fight.

“We'll see them at the negotiating table or we'll see them in court,” says Smith, who doesn't hold his own fire these days.

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“Well, look, we're not shy about suing them, and we've had a few wins, so if they want to go that route, I'm fine with it.”

The Prime Minister didn't say, “Go ahead, make my day,” but you get the picture.

“They use their federal spending for political purposes in violation of the spirit of the Constitution. It's just political and he's going to have to wear it.”

In Calgary last week, Trudeau said he just wanted to help.

“Ask any Albertan if they accept the federal government: Hey, we're from the federal government and we're here to help. No one believes this,” says Smith.

Alberta premier says 'there's always a corner' with Trudeau government.

“They pick the favorites. They choose winners and losers. They implement the programs unfairly.”

Smith said the Trudeau government is basing its decisions on who has the most success lobbying the prime minister, and it's leaving many places out in the cold.

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The premier says Trudeau is making Alberta worse off when it comes to housing dollars, a province that Smith estimates is ahead of federal Quebec and B.C.

Roads and other projects also don't get their fair share of federal money.

“To add insult to injury, we know we're a big contributor to the Confederacy,” says Smith, knowing that fact is difficult for many saddlers.

“The federal dollars that he's floating around, a lot of them are coming from Alberta, and then he's not even distributing them fairly.”

Smith adds that the Trudeau government sometimes duplicates what the province is doing and wastes money or they make dough for things that don't align with what the province is doing “so it's against what Albertans want.”

One thing the Premier will point out is how the feds are buying dysfunctional electric buses in Edmonton and then coming in with a lot of money for electric buses in Calgary.

Smith talks about how those dollars could be used to start building commuter rail or running trains to two major airports.

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“I don't think all these announcements are just a measure of goodwill. I think they're completely political and he knows it.”

According to the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister seems to want to be the Prime Minister as he continues to enter areas where the province is calling the shots.

“If he wants to be prime minister, he should quit his job and run for prime minister.”

Meanwhile, Trudeau defends giving cities cash because they “can change the way cities are built.”

He talks about “good zoning.”

Later this month in Calgary, Mayor Jyoti Gondek and city council will hold a public hearing on rezoning where only single-family homes are allowed.

Smith says Trudeau's job is not to “tell municipalities what their zoning should be.”

“I don't think most people think it's reasonable.”

Of course, what most people think is common sense is that in Canada, Justin Trudeau won't make it through the day without a fight.

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