Hypocrisy? Why Did Danielle Smith’s Restaurant Enforce All COVID Restrictions?

Back before the UCP leadership race and Jason Kenney’s leadership review Danielle Smith was pushing UCP MLAs and cabinet ministers to stand up to Premier Jason Kenney over his draconian lockdown policy, actions that likely would have resulted in expulsion from the party, like what happened with Drew Barnes and Todd Loewen.

At the same time, Smith and her husband David Moretta’s restaurant was unquestioningly enforcing mask mandates and passport requirements, which frankly seems extremely hypocritical.

The Dining Car at High River Station, on its own website, had stated that they were following all the PPE requirements, and COVID-19 screening in order to simply take food out of the restaurant. 

The site’s health policy stated:

From food preparation to customer service, The Dining Car at High River Station will observe all enhanced sanitization, proper PPE use, health screening, and social distancing regulations that are required to guarantee a safe, enjoyable takeout experience for all of our customers. 

There is even a photo from Christmas 2021 proving the restaurant was abiding by the foolish mask theatre, by making customers who are standing up wear them, but not those who are sitting. 

Nobody should actually have an issue with restaurant owners, or any business owners, following the foolish government restrictions. They need to stay open and try to make money the best they can.

Some restaurant owners like Chris Scott (owner of the Whistle Stop Cafe) resisted the restrictions and put themselves and their businesses at legal risk, and they were both right and brave to do so. 

Depending on an individual’s situation, following or not following the restrictions is a completely understandable course of action, unless like Danielle Smith you are pushing UCP MLAs and Cabinet Ministers to put their own careers at risk, and cheering on businesses who resist the restrictions while blindly enforcing the rules at your own restaurant.  

Smith has tried to use the fact she left her radio host job at Corus Radio’s CHQR 770 in January of 2021 as evidence she had made sacrifices for her pro-freedom stances, but did she really?

In an ironic quote from the article where she announced the reason for her departure, Smith stated that:

It will be no surprise to you that I am gravely troubled by how easily most in our society have chosen to give up on freedom. Free enterprise, freedom of religion and conscience, free assembly, freedom of movement, freedom of the press. Freedom of speech, in particular, is in a dire state. My entire adult life and career has been spent questioning authority and institutions and conventional wisdom.

Well apparently she wasn’t “gravely troubled” about requiring mask wearing and health screening if people wanted to buy a patty melt from her, but she is troubled over how easily other members of society gave up their freedom.

On top of all that, what did she really lose by voluntarily leaving the radio? Well, she kept writing articles for several publications and got a podcast/radio show with the Western Standard. The radio show itself would have become a hindrance to her while organizing her coming UCP leadership campaign, so working for independent media was a must in order to gain more flexibility.

At the end of the day, Danielle Smith talks a lot and dictates to government officials about how they should have gotten punted from their jobs to stand for freedom, while she never actually put anything on the line herself, enforced strict COVID-19 measures at her restaurant, and only gained popularity from her grandstanding. It’s a blatant example of hypocrisy.

And now, when people like MLA Pat Rehn and former Justice Minister Kaycee Madu endorse her, Smith suddenly has no criticisms of Rehn’s lockdown shenanigans or Madu’s tough enforcement of restrictions and mandates. Almost like the metric for whether people are good or bad in Smith’s mind revolves around whether or not they personally support her…

As the person writing this article, I also pushed for the government to dump the nonsensical and draconian restrictions, and helped successful make changes at times, but I never demanded others sacrifice their jobs (unless they were incompetent) or harm themselves financially while I have far less than them to lose. It’s easy to be a naysayer sitting along the margins, it is much harder to stand up when your job is on the line, especially when standing up may result in no positive change. 

Danielle Smith has risked very little for a massive popularity payout.