Thread by @joececiyyc

In advance of @jkenney's 6 p.m. press conference about his botched pandemic response, let's take stock of his disastrous record.

Spoiler: from the start, his entire approach to #COVID19AB has been defined by cruelty and incompetence. #ableg THREAD 🧵 1/24 macleans.ca/opinion/what-j…

He began by laying off 20,000+ education workers.

Seriously. One of his first actions was ensuring that an additional 20,000+ Albertans had to worry about paying rent, putting food on the table, buying clothes for their kids, etc., etc.

Cruel #ableg 2/24 calgaryherald.com/opinion/braid-…

Then he gave himself and his Ministers sweeping new powers with Bill 10 (and then subverted a review of that decision). #ableg 3/24 calgaryherald.com/opinion/corbel…

He stepped in to end a plan to house homeless people in hotels during the first wave. This was a chance for vulnerable people to be safe, have a hot shower, isolate with dignity, but @jkenney wouldn't have that. More cruelty. #ableg 4/24 calgaryherald.com/news/local-new…

Astonishingly, he clawed back CERB money from AISH recipients.

Why was it necessary to claw back money from some of the most vulnerable people in our province?

Yet more cruelty. #ableg 5/24 calgary.ctvnews.ca/coleman-couple…

And then threatened to cut AISH and narrow the eligibility requirements. He was only persuaded not to do this by a massive public outcry. If he had his choice, he would make AISH recipients poorer.

Are you noticing the pattern of cruelty? #ableg 6/24 calgaryherald.com/news/politics/…

He introduced a support benefit that excluded as many people as possible. He even admitted that "was not set up to cope with the demands it faced". Why not? Isn't it your job to support Albertans, Premier? #ableg 7/24 edmontonjournal.com/news/local-new…

A recent review found that many Albertans were unfairly denied support through this Alberta Emergency Support Benefit. #ableg 8/24 edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/…

Unbelievably, he laid off 11,000 healthcare workers. In the middle of a global pandemic. Workers who had fought to get the rest of us through this impossible time. Other provinces raised their wages; @jkenney laid them off. #ableg 9/24 cbc.ca/news/canada/ed…

He tried to cut nurses' salaries by 3%. You know, the people who worked endlessly during the pandemic to keep Albertans safe, who stood at the bedsides of dying people and gave them comfort. He wanted to cut their salaries. A cruel Premier. #ableg 10/24 globalnews.ca/news/8010582/a…

And even though he has walked back the 3% demand, the UCP are still demanding cuts. For nurses. During a pandemic. It's not just cruel, it's incompetent. #ableg 11/24 cbc.ca/news/canada/ed…

Jason Kenney has also used the pandemic as an excuse to scrap environmental reporting rules. There was no excuse for this. #ableg 12/24 edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/…

As the second wave began, he ignored pleas from desperate healthcare workers and businesses to take the pandemic seriously and introduce measures that would get the numbers under control. #ableg 13/24 cbc.ca/news/canada/ca…

In fact, he went missing completely for 10 days during the second wave, during which time 73 Albertans died after contracting #COVID19.

#WhereIsKenney trended for days. #ableg 14/24 cbc.ca/news/canada/ed…

During the holidays, UCP MLAs & staff traveled internationally at a time when their own rules banned it and Albertans were making huge sacrifices.

@jkenney tried to brush it under the carpet. He thinks he's above the rules he imposes on others. 15/24 edmonton.ctvnews.ca/premier-kenney…

And that wasn't a one-off incident. In June, photos showed @jkenney and several cabinet ministers (the Liquor Cabinet) again violating the rules they impose on Albertans. 16/24 #ableg edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/…

Shortly after that photo, he declared Alberta "Open for Summer", while mocking and demonizing anyone who raised concerns about a possible 4th wave. 17/24 #ableg globalnews.ca/video/7963040/…

He was so confident that in July he tried to declare the pandemic was over, just weeks before the 4th wave crashed into Alberta.

Then he jetted off on vacation for 23 days while healthcare workers and Albertans dealt with the consequences of his failure. 18/24 #ableg #COVID19AB

Unforgivably, he tried to remove all testing, tracing and isolation requirements. Again, seriously. This is not fictional. He wanted to do that. Weeks before the fourth wave. Albertans had to protest daily to stop him. 19/24 #ableg cbc.ca/news/canada/ca…

And that incompetent plan to remove all restrictions has done real damage to our economy. 20/24 #ableg calgary.ctvnews.ca/surge-in-covid…

His pattern of ignoring expert advice continued during the the third wave and now during the fourth wave too. He consistently ignores calls to take action. And Albertans pay the cost. #ableg 21/24 660citynews.com/2021/09/14/alb…

His pattern of going missing continued too. As the fourth wave crashed into Alberta, Jason Kenney went missing for 23 days. 23 days.

When the going gets tough, this Premier hides. #ableg 22/24 cbc.ca/news/canada/ca…

Now he is failing to take action to protect our healthcare system, even as Albertans die and ICUs fill up.

In fact, he is raising money off his failure to bring in a proven method of increasing vaccination rates: vaccine passports. 23/24 #ableg cbc.ca/news/canada/ed…

This is a devastating record by any standard, one that will mark Jason Kenney as the cruelest, most incompetent Premier in Alberta's history. 🧵 24/24 END