Nicely, it seems to be as if the United Conservative Occasion’s (UCP) extremist Take Again Alberta (TBA) faction now controls all of the seats on the social gathering’s board.
Some man named Rob Smith who you’ve possible by no means heard of for those who don’t occur to reside in Olds or Didsbury is now the social gathering president.
Rick Orman, who was rumoured to be Premier Danielle Smith’s selection for the job and who had a protracted historical past in Alberta Conservative politics, will not be.
Final night time, David Parker, TBA’s founder, chief ideologist and chief govt, tweeted from the social gathering’s AGM in Calgary, “Veni, vedi, vici.”
That takes loads of Gaul, if readers will forgive me.
Really, when Julius Caesar famously made that commentary, he was speaking about some place in Turkey. However significantly, who cares? If he did say it as he claimed, in 67 BCE,* it might have appeared like this: “Weenie, Weedy, Weakie.”
By some means, this appears acceptable.
It means that what isn’t actually a really vital victory has gone to Parker’s head.
Nicely, it’s a very long time until the Ides of March, however at the very least Parker has moved on from his Napoleon advanced. I’m wondering if he whistles Hail to the Chief every time he walks right into a room?
I’m right here to inform you this isn’t as large an accomplishment as I’m certain Parker would love us to suppose.
Not as a result of the social gathering board doesn’t actually management the UCP caucus within the Legislature, though that’s true too. If the TBA cadres who now run the board attempt to push elected MLAs round, there’s certain to be friction, and a few of it might set off some entertaining sparks.
“This weekend begins a brand new age in Alberta,” Parker blustered on social media Thursday. “After this AGM, the grassroots of the UCP can be in cost. Those that don’t hearken to the grassroots or try and thwart their involvement within the determination making course of, can be faraway from energy.”
I frankly doubt there’s anybody within the UCP caucus who has the intestinal fortitude to face up towards such thuggery. So some actually nightmarish insurance policies might certainly develop into legislation, hurting many Albertans as meant, but in addition weakening the political energy of the UCP-TBA.
Nonetheless, sitting MLAs might show more durable for Parker to purge than a few of his former pals and allies in TBA.
UCP MLAs are certain to be saying the identical factor I’m – the caucus is aware of its personal hive-mind, social gathering coverage resolutions are simply ideas, yadda-yadda. Identical to they informed voters in Calgary, when it appeared just like the NDP’s assaults on Ms. Smith’s screwball pronouncements had given the Opposition social gathering a preventing likelihood to win final Might’s election, to not fear, that as quickly because the election was over Ms. Smith can be gone.
No, I imply that it’s not a lot of an accomplishment as a result of the UCP is already so debased from the times of the Progressive Conservative Occasion in Alberta that it wasn’t a really steep hill for the conservative motion’s MAGA fringe to climb.
Parker had made it clear his selection for social gathering president was Smith, though TBA cautiously didn’t formally endorse any candidates – simply in case, I assume.
However face it, whereas it might be taking some time to sink in with rural voters, the UCP had already gone fairly effectively full MAGA by the point Jason Kenney was achieved with it.
Kenney couldn’t management the demons he set free of the bottle and so they devoured him as effectively. (There’s loads of historic precedent for that phenomenon, isn’t there? I offer you Maximilien Robespierre! Thump.)
However by the point Parker and his large ego got here alongside and Smith was chosen to switch Kenney, the UCP had already gone down the rabbit gap. Outdated type conservatives had principally been run out of the social gathering. The few that remained had been having their doubts.
So election of 9 social gathering govt officers was low-hanging fruit for a gaggle like TBA.
Poor Orman – effectively, he’s something however poor, however you understand what I imply – known as his slate the “Unite the Proper Motion.”
What he forgot was that Parker and his ilk don’t need to unite the fitting, they need to purge it – of individuals like him. Too PC, because it had been.
There have been a few different candidates for the presidency, as effectively, however they’re already forgotten too.
A full listing of the board’s members is discovered right here. Belief me, you’ll by no means hear from most of them once more.
Naturally, we sit up for Parker’s reply churlish, during which he’ll clarify why thes TBA victory, and he, are very vital certainly. *Somebody’s sure to say BCE is the woke model of BC. Possibly so, however that’s simply powerful, innit? Study to reside with it. Additionally, for those who’ve ever learn Julius Caesar’s Commentaries on the Gallic Wars, you’ll know that the person was a self-publicist on a scale that makes Donald Trump appear to be a piker. And with no social media! Say what you’ll, although, bone spurs wouldn’t have saved him out of the military.
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