Manitoba’s premier quick with the quip on national stage

It was a perfect example of the “Wab being Wab” phenomenon that Manitobans know so well.

Premier Wab Kinew made headlines this week when he appeared to bait Alberta Premier Danielle Smith throughout the Western Premiers Conference, the annual gathering of the four western first ministers, along with the premiers of the Northwest Territories and the Yukon.

Those of us in the news business who have covered these events can tell you — if we’re being honest — that there is precious little in the way of legitimately hard news, but lots of great food, wine and beer. (Idyllic wineries, distilleries and craft breweries, along with five-star hotels, seem to be the standard for these events.)

This year, however, Kinew went to the WPC hosted in breathtaking Kananaskis, Alta., on a mission to nudge Smith on the prospect of provincial separatism she claims to reject but constantly appears to be stoking.

A photo op saw all six provincial and territorial leaders don Team Canada soccer jerseys brought by B.C. Premier David Eby to celebrate the fact that his province and Ontario are hosting the FIFA World Cup tournament along with Mexico and the United States.

As the leaders set up for the photo, Kinew couldn’t help himself.

“I want to tell Premier Smith she looks great in a Team Canada jersey,” he said, eliciting laughter from just about everyone.

It was clear Smith was laughing the least.

Manitobans have come to know Kinew as a master of the political quip. Whether it’s playfully taunting Ontario Premier Doug Ford for threatening to remove Manitoba-made Crown Royal rye whisky from his province’s liquor stores, or humorously challenging U.S. Donald Trump to adopt Manitoba’s “pro-respect” approach to trade, Kinew rarely misses an opportunity for a jibe both at live events and on his frequent social media posts.

Kinew’s best moment this week, however, was during Tuesday’s closing news conference after Smith made a comment about the legal concerns that have arisen around an Alberta campaign to force a referendum on whether the province should be allowed to secede from the federation.

An Alberta court ruled a petition to trigger the referendum could not proceed because the Alberta government had failed in its constitutional duty to consult with First Nations. Smith assailed the court ruling immediately after it was issued, and pledged to hold a vote as part of an omnibus referendum put to Albertans this fall.

At the news conference, Smith said her government would appeal that court decision given that the duty to consult — a legal requirement built into the Constitution — was being overstated.

“We’ll make the arguments in court (on appeal) about what the limits to duty to consult ought to be, and we’ll see how that conversation goes,” she said.

Kinew leapt at the opportunity to school the besieged Alberta first minister.

“That is not correct, a lot of what you just said there, Premier Smith,” he said. “It is not up to the petition-gatherers to fulfil the duty to consult…. It is up to you, as the Alberta government, to fulfil the duty to consult.”

Kinew also warned Smith that right now — as Alberta seeks to build new pipelines to move its oil to foreign markets — is not the right time to be entertaining any thoughts of independence. He urged Smith to do what she could to delay any vote on separation so that the western leaders could focus on nation-building economic projects.

It’s unlikely any of the other leaders would have accepted the opportunity to correct Smith on her clearly — perhaps deliberately — mangled explanation of the duty to consult. But if we’ve learned anything about Kinew, it is that he rarely passes up an opportunity to correct another leader on erroneous or fallacious comments.

That was certainly the case in July 2021, when his profile as a premier-in-waiting took a major leap when he publicly challenged a Tory cabinet minister over offensive comments about residential schools.

Shortly after taking over as the Progressive Conservative Indigenous reconciliation minister, Alan Lagimodiere said that while the operators of residential schools made many mistakes, “they really thought that they were doing the right thing.”

That comment, a hallmark of those who deny the profound impact of residential schools on Indigenous identity and culture, led Kinew to speak out.

Stepping forward, Kinew pointed an accusing finger at the new minister and reminded him that his comments were deeply offensive.

“Any right-minded person at the time should have known and would have known, and many did know and spoke up against it,” he said.

Was Kinew right to challenge Smith at a leadership summit held in the Alberta premier’s backyard? He was not unkind in his comments, and offered only the unvarnished truth about the duty to consult. Decades of constitutional jurisprudence and common sense suggest there is nothing unclear about the concept.

There may be a time when these interjections will backfire on the Manitoba premier. Politicians who live by the quip quite often die by the same tendency.

For now, Kinew is riding an impressive quip win streak and in the process, galvanizing a reputation for being a leader who does not suffer politicians who do not understand constitutional law.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca