It was quite a feat, to be honest — a televised address from the premier just ahead of a bleak provincial budget. Yet, the next day’s headlines were about a completely different issue.

If the announcements about immigration and the related (and unrelated) referendums were intended to serve as a distraction from other issues — including, but not limited to, the budget — then the initial returns on that strategy are quite promising.

For all we heard from the premier in her Thursday televised address and Friday news conference, there was one glaring omission — any hint of responsibility or accountability.

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For all the legitimate critiques that can be offered of federal immigration policy or even Canada’s constitutional order, these are not the sole causes of Alberta’s problems.

The premier would have us believe her government is entitled to credit for everything that’s going well in Alberta, but the rest is all Ottawa’s fault. There’s a reason she put herself in charge of the Albert Next panel, and there’s a reason the next eight........

© Calgary Herald