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Alberta's fall referendum will put nine questions to voters, covering topics from immigration policy to Senate reform — some of which have drawn criticism from public figures, including Alberta senator Paula Simons.

Simons, appointed to the Senate in 2018 by then-prime minister Justin Trudeau, addressed the referendum in a September 1 column for the online publication Alberta Views. She urged Albertans to vote no on all nine questions, describing them as part of what she called a "small-minded, cowardly vision" for the province.

She particularly singled out question seven as particularly objectionable. That question asks whether Alberta should work with other provinces to amend the Constitution and abolish the unelected federal Senate in favour of an elected, accountable one.

On Friday's Rebel Roundtable livestream, Sheila Gunn Reid argued that Simons' criticism is obviously self-interested. 

"What Paula Simons' whining and prattling on here is really all about is that she knows if her name were put on a ballot to keep her job, that we would never choose her," said Sheila. 

Sheila also took aim at the process by which Simons was appointed. Alberta has historically held its own Senate nominee elections, with the expectation that the sitting prime minister would appoint the province's chosen candidates. Trudeau departed from that convention when he appointed Simons and other senators without regard to Alberta's elected nominees.

"Trudeau senators, man, they're the worst," said Sheila. "So, thanks for admitting that, Paula, through your whining."