Musk Says Let Alberta Go. Ottawa Answers With $8 Billion.
The world's richest man says Alberta should leave Canada. On the very same day, Ottawa rolled into CFB Edmonton with more than $8 billion in defence money and the premier told a room full of business owners that Canada can work. Twelve days out from the referendum, nobody can pretend this vote isn't being heard.
Alberta Radio News · Jason LaFace
Wednesday, October 7, 2026
What Musk said
At about 11:40 a.m. Mountain time, Elon Musk replied to a post about Quebec premier-designate Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, who says his dream of Quebec independence "will be realized one day." Musk's answer: "Good. Quebec should separate." A minute later he added: "They would be better off. Alberta and Saskatchewan should separate too." The second post had more than 800,000 views within hours.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe quote-posted it with one word: "No." Premier Danielle Smith was not immediately available to comment on it.
Ottawa's answer
Defence Minister David McGuinty stood beside Smith at CFB Edmonton and pointed to more than $8 billion in ongoing federal defence investment in Alberta. That includes $4 billion at CFB Cold Lake for fighter capability, including a new squadron facility for the incoming F-35s, $750 million for a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear lab at CFB Suffield, and $550 million for a western base for the CC-330 Husky refuelling and transport fleet. Smith pegged the future military work at an estimated 38,000 jobs. "We're not being distracted. We're moving forward," McGuinty said.
That afternoon Smith told the Leduc, Nisku and Wetaskiwin Chamber of Commerce she has already voted to stay, urged a yes on the other nine questions, and said those who want leverage should give her a mandate there instead of on separation. "I believe Canada can work," she said.
The take
Musk's posts don't change a single rule of the Oct. 19 ballot, and Albertans don't need a tech mogul to tell them how to vote. But they do need to notice the timing. A defence-spending victory lap and a premier's unity speech, all in one afternoon, less than two weeks before the vote. When was the last time Ottawa worked this hard to court Alberta?
Smith's own pitch is the tell. She says Alberta "stood up and spoke out and refused to back down," and the rest of the country started listening. Fair enough. But Ottawa didn't start listening because Alberta asked nicely. It started listening when a real share of Albertans made clear they're prepared to leave.
Take the money. Hold the base contracts to every dollar. And remember who put this province back on Ottawa's radar. It wasn't Elon Musk. It was you.
Stay with Alberta Radio for the news and the commentary Ottawa would rather you skipped. Visit www.albertaradio.ca.
Source: Os1ris News Aggregation
