The grandaddy of all Stampede political announcements came on July 12, 2004, when PC Premier Ralph Klein held up a sign that said: Paid In Full.

Klein declared the provincial debt dead and buried after many years of harsh cost-cutting.

Braid: Smith's big Stampede rollouts aimed at cutting separatist support Back to video

The words and the photo sped around the country and beyond. Nobody paid off all debt in those days.

Within five years, borrowing crept back into provincial finances.

But Klein’s stunner has been unmatched ever since, even though governments hold their own grandstand show during every Stampede.

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