An Edmonton Member Expresses Displeasure with the Party to the Campaigns

Date: Sat, 11 Jul 2009 07:07:34 -0700
Subject: Leadership Race
To: info@wildrosealliance.ca
CC: media@wildrosealliance.ca; membership@markdyrholm.ca; info@daniellesmith.ca

Hello,

My name is Matt and I am a current member of the Wildrose Alliance. I am becoming more and more frustrated with the opperations of the party and especially with the way the party presents themselves.

My father currently owns 3 oilfield construction companies, one based in Red Deer, the other in Saskatoon, and the third in the N.W.T. Working closly with his company I came to notice what changes the royalties review made to our business. (Remember this I will bring it up later). When I moved to Edmonton I joined the Edmonton-Strathcona EDA for the conservative party, and became involved in politics.

The main purpose of this email is to express my concerns with the current SERIOUS DOWNFALLS with the Wildrose Alliance. The first downfall is the EXCESSIVE over-use of the royalties reform policy. Most of the blue collar companies are not concerned with the oil royalties. From experience, when the new royalty rates were introduced, my fathers company experienced some drop in business, but shortly after contracts came in booking his entire production into 2013. I have talked to dozens of other blue collar oilfield companies, and they too are well booked into the future. One gentleman I recently met, told me his company has had more work after the royalty rates than they did before. So you see where the problem lies? The white collar oilfield workers, those who have never lifted a hammer are the ones complaining about the royalty rates. I assume that these white collar companies are donating money to the party, and that is why you bring it up so often. Yes, taxes=bad, royalty hikes=bad, I agree, Just stop bringing it up!

The Wildrose Alliance has become a political lobby group. Whenever the Wildrose is in the news, it is some bitching about oilfield royalties, yet there is a couple pages of well received policies that are never spoken about. Even in the leadership race this lobby group mentality became evident to me. If this party wants to make gains in Alberta, they have to promote the policies that voters care about, such as health care, education, property rights, ect. Once you get elected on this platform, then you can bring out your royalties policy. By continually talking about the royalties you are only set to lose support when over 90% of the province supports it or does not care.

The last point I wish to make today is about the universality of the party. At the moment the Wildrose is a Calgary oil Party. Sure there may be some northern directors making the party look universal, but we all know that is a lie. Growing up in Red Deer I developed a type of mentality that Red Deer was the Center of the world and I could care less about anything outside the city limits. And that Calgary-Centered mentality is exactly what the Wildrose Alliance is radiating. If the party wants to make any serious gains in Alberta, they have to push out into rural areas, talk to farmers and ranchers, and promote the policies to the regular people. Open up a northern office, with a staff dedicated to party opperations and fundraising. With the legislature being located in Edmonton, and all other provincial parties holding an office here, it only makes sense that the Wildrose should try to promote themselves in the political capitol.

This party needs some serious reform if we ever wish to get elected, and this bitching and complaining about oil royalties is only making us sound like a broken record. I would like to see a Wildrose Government in the future, but with the parties current priorities, I can not see us winning any seats.

Some words for thought.

Regards,

Matt

Leadership Race Highlights a Tory Schism in Alberta?

Last Thursday Kevin Libin wrote an article Wildrose party sets sights on Alberta conservatives that was published in the National Post. The author correctly points out that the party's leadership race has been attracting support from many federal Conservatives in the province. Even the Conservative Prime Minister's old mentor, Tom Flanagan, took out a Wildrose Alliance membership at the party's AGM last month. Unlike here in Edmonton, Premier Stelmach has never been very popular in Calgary even before the New Royalty Framework came into place. And the fact that it was supporters of Wildrose Alliance leadership candidates who clearly visible at the Stampede BBQ with the Prime Minister Harper, and not Stelmach's PC entourage, further emphasizes the Edmonton-area premier's unpopularity in Calgary.

The article cites a growing "Tory vs. Tory schism in the heartland of Canadian conservatism." However, there has always been a division between federal Conservatives who tend to be those who are more conservative and provincial Progressive Conservatives who tend to be much less so. The only reason this division has never been so visible until now is because there was no alternative provincial party that federal Conservatives could support. What's less known is the potential schisms between the Wildrose Leadership candidates themselves that the PC Party might try to exploit. There is already some evidence that Stelmach supporters may try to capitalize on his old rivalries by painting Danielle Smith as "the Jim Dinning of the Wildrose Alliance" and Mark Dyrholm as "the Ted Morton of the Wildrose Alliance".

I suggest reading Kevin Libin's article in its entirety. It's a great read:

http://www.nationalpost.com/most-popular/story.html?id=1775504