Stephen Taylor

Danielle Smith endorses federal Conservative majority government

I heard this morning that Alberta Wildrose Alliance leader Danielle Smith was endorsing Stephen Harper so I wanted to confirm.

Confirmed the old-fashioned way… via SMS!

This is an interesting move for Smith. How does the political capital equation add up for this move?

Simple…

There aren’t many (if any) federal Liberals/NDPers in her camp and if there are, the trade-off is bigger. Stelmach is conflicted as Premier and his office won’t endorse a candidate because the Premier must work with the Feds no matter who is elected. But many Albertans are ardent federal Conservative supporters and view their current provincial government as a wishy-washy version of an ideal. Smith is suggesting to her fellow Albertans indirectly by her endorsement that the real conservative alternative is her as Premier and her party as government.

Canadian ads and the latest process story scandal

The Conservatives put out a new ad yesterday called “Our Country”. The Liberals rapid-response desk in their war-room put together this video to suggest common elements between the ad and one by GOP 2012 nomination hopeful Tim Pawlenty. Here’s their video comparing the two:

But the Liberals have done it too with their recent advertising. Take a look at this ad from Barack Obama. The Liberal Party ad which is similar follows after it in the video:

What follows is the most humourous derivate effort of any of these ads. And, while it’s a bit of a funny remix of the Conservative Party ad, it’s not that far off message!