Premier Danielle Smith recently sat down with longtime TVO broadcaster Steve Paikin for an interview touching on a number of topics.

During the discussion, the two touched on issues of bias against conservatives, Alberta's culture and separatism and how her working relationship differs with Prime Minister Mark Carney compared to his predecessor, Justin Trudeau.

On Monday's Rebel Roundup livestream, hosts Sheila Gunn Reid and David Menzies shared their reactions to Premier Smith's statements from the interview.

With Premier Smith highlighting the case of CBC host Travis Dhanraj, who accused the state broadcaster of lacking diverse opinions and editorial independence, Sheila said the premier was “100% right” to suggest Canada's public institutions have a bias against conservatives.

Smith, a former broadcaster herself, “left Corus because she wanted to talk a little bit more about lockdowns and the harm it was having.” With the stifling of conservative voices, David ridiculed the company's stock price, adding it's “why they need taxpayer welfare to turn the lights on.”

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Looking at comments from Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, who suggested Alberta was lacking in a culture of its own, the Alberta premier invited the separatist federal politician to attend the Calgary Stampede and experience the province's rich heritage.

The “audacity” of the Bloc leader was “off the charts,” David said, adding Blanchet was “burning with envy” over the spirit of separatism in Western Canada.

“They won't develop their own gas resources, but they're happy to take transfer payments from our gas resources while vilifying our gas resources,” Sheila said of Quebec. “Albertans are more separatist than Quebecers are right now, and we have more will to unchain ourselves from confederation.”

Addressing her relationship with separatist parties in Alberta and Ottawa's federal government, Smith said she told separatists to give her a chance to negotiate — something she said was impossible to do during negotiations with the Trudeau government.

But with Mark Carney succeeding Trudeau as prime minister, she told Paikin the new PM should be concerned with Albertans legitimate concerns and desire for independence, and that hopefully Carney will work to fix the issue.

Separatism doesn't need a political party backing it, Sheila said, noting that could fuel needless tribalism.

“What we're just trying to do right now is deal with the issue at hand. That's not a party thing, it doesn't need a political leader, it's a populist movement,” she said, touching on the Alberta Prosperity Project's efforts to push for a referendum.

With Premier Smith lowering the threshold required for a citizen-led referendum, it's expected a vote could be held on the matter in 2026.