Stelmach Delivers... uh... not much.

Earlier tonight, Premier Stelmach presented his address to the province, entitled "The Way Forward." I am really not sure what to make of it.

Its no secret that the Tories are in a precarious position. Two polls out in the last two weeks have shown what most with a solid political instinct would have guessed: support for the PCs has plummeted, while the Wildrose Alliance appears to be enjoying a period of ascendancy. Alberta's Progressive "Conservative" government is the highest spending provincial government in the country, and has made a number of questionable decisions: from the Royalty Review, to the Health Region amalgamation to giving themselves a massive raise right after the last election.

So what is a struggling government in Alberta to do? Well, if Eddie's sermon from the mount is any indication - record a video, and nothing else. The only new policy the government announced was a freeze on public sector management salaries, and it was nothing more than a 30 second passage near the very top. The entire 20 minute video became nothing more than an infomercial for the government.

Stelmach needed a game changer tonight. Instead, he continued to execute the same game plan (as much as one could say this government has one) the PC's have been playing since they were re-elected in 2008. The problem is not that the government can't communicate its message, the problem is that people hear the message and don't like it.