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Former Alberta premier Jason Kenney is blaming a right-wing media “ecosystem” for the anger directed at him, going so far as to accuse Rebel News of raising money from American donors to put up billboards calling him a dictator.

Kenney, who is now co-chairing a business campaign against Alberta separation with former NDP premier Rachel Notley, told his audience at the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday that outlets from Fox News to “alt-right web platforms” need to keep people in a heightened register of anger to drive subscriptions and sell merchandise.

“Ezra Levant was raising money,” Kenney said. “He was getting, I’m sure, Southern Baptist grandmas in Alabama to give him 10 bucks off their MasterCard to put up billboards in Alberta saying that dictator Kenney had arrested more pastors than the Chinese Communist Party.”

On Friday’s Rebel Roundup livestream, Ezra Levant — who clarified that he has neither been to nor knows anyone from Alabama — offered a simpler explanation for the backlash.

“I think people were mad at him for locking up pastors because he was locking up pastors,” he said. “I don’t think they were mad at him for locking up pastors because I had a secret fundraising trip to Alabama.”

He named Grace Life Church near Edmonton, Pastor Artur Pavlovsky of Calgary, Pastor Tim Stevens and Derek Reimer as clergy who were arrested during COVID, something that he noted Kenney did not dispute in the clip.

Ezra said he once knew Kenney as a strong advocate for persecuted Christians abroad, which made the pastor arrests harder to understand. He acknowledged that Rebel News did crowdfund legal help for several of the churches through The Democracy Fund.

“Albertans crowdfunded our campaign to fight for freedom," he said. "Rebel News crowdfunded through the Democracy Fund lawyers for a ton of churches.”

On Kenney’s exit as premier, Ezra pointed out that Kenney left after a close confidence vote among his own caucus and party members, not a vote by outsiders.

“Those were not Alabamians," he said. "You’re not allowed to come to Alberta, join the UCP party and vote against the leader, Jason Kenney, if you’re from Alabama.”

Ezra also speculated that Kenney is angling for a federal appointment from Prime Minister Mark Carney, whom he said Kenney regularly cheers on online. He closed by speculating about who lines Kenney's pockets these days.

“I’m not going to be ridiculous and say that Southern Baptists from Alabama are paying him because that’s absurd. But I want to know who is.”