Braid: Kenney faces a test to regain trust of public and his party

Kenney has given too much comfort to those who flout the rules. They simply scorn his frequent scolding

Unchecked, a truly alarming protest movement has sprung up, aspiring almost to insurrection. It’s hard to miss the similarity, at least in language, with what happened at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

Author of the article :Don Braid • Calgary Herald
Publishing date:May 04, 2021 • 

A few hundred anti-mask protesters came out to rally against the tighter restrictions by Premier Jason Kenney at the McDougall Centre in Calgary on Tuesday, May 4, 2021. PHOTO BY DARREN MAKOWICHUK/POSTMEDIA

The Kenney government is taking the province back to the hard regimen of last spring — patios, gyms, hair salons and personal services to close; K-6 schooling will go online; outdoor gatherings limited to five people; and much more.

This will be enormously painful to many businesses, families and individuals.

But for the next few weeks, there’s really no other way.

The UCP’s special cabinet committee debated for hours Tuesday before coming out with rules that will infuriate many in Premier Jason Kenney’s uneasy caucus.

As we’ve seen in Alberta, rules don’t work without public compliance and enforcement. Both have slipped badly, along with public faith in frequent promises that the crisis will end quickly.

A new poll from Marc Henry’s ThinkHQ shows that 44 per cent of Albertans feel COVID-19 problems will extend into 2022.

A small number think we’ll return to something like normal life by the end of summer, or maybe October.

In total, just 46 per cent believe the ordeal will be over at any point this year.



A month ago, on April 6, Kenney said effusively: “If we just stick to our guns for a few more weeks, we’ll head into what I truly believe will be the best summer in Alberta’s history.”

At that point, the variant strains didn’t dominate. Vaccination was starting to push down deaths. Kenney had some cause for optimism, although many medical experts said he was wrong.

Then the third wave took over, increasing hospitalizations and giving Alberta the highest infection rate in all of Canada.

Saskatchewan and B.C. had similar challenges but are doing much better.

Alberta’s plight is stark and obvious. We are the new epicentre of COVID-19 in Canada. We’re far behind in medical and economic recovery.

This has finally snapped trust in the mantra that if we just do everything right for a little while longer, it will soon end.

The crazy thing is that the UCP line could finally be close to the truth. Vaccine is flooding into the provinces. That will surely push the infection numbers down and ease pressure on the hospitals.

But it won’t be easy for the UCP to win back public confidence.

Kenney has given too much comfort to those who flout the rules. They simply scorn his frequent scolding.

The resistance has spread right into his own caucus, with MLAs who themselves spread ideas that can prolong the pandemic in Alberta.

Marc Henry says, “Kenney has been trying to ride two horses at once. It doesn’t work.” Except in the rodeo.

Unchecked, a truly alarming protest movement has sprung up, aspiring almost to insurrection. It’s hard to miss the similarity, at least in language, with what happened at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.