Alberta Prosperity Project: Secret U.S. Talks Ignite Controversy

CALGARY — Someone's talking to Washington about breaking up Canada, and a group of Albertans wants to know if their own government is in on it.

On January 29, 2026, a collective calling itself "Concerned Albertans" dropped a formal letter alleging that the Alberta Prosperity Project (APP) has been holding quiet conversations with U.S. government officials about "Alberta's political or constitutional future, including the prospect of separation from Canada." The money question: Did Premier Danielle Smith's office know about it? Did they help set it up? Did they sit in the room?

The group isn't mincing words. They're calling it unconstitutional and potentially illegal—a breach of federal turf covering foreign interference and national security. Their legal ammo? The Supreme Court's Reference re Secession of Quebec, the ruling that slammed the door on any province trying to freelance its way out of Confederation, especially with foreign governments holding the door open.

The Constitutional Clash

The letter lays out a roadmap of potential violations: Section 91 of the Constitution Act, 1867, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act, and the Criminal Code of Canada. The Supreme Court's secession reference made it clear decades ago—you don't negotiate Canada's breakup with anyone outside Canada. Full stop. Any separation talk has to happen through lawful, domestic, democratic channels, not backroom deals in a D.C. hotel.

The Alberta Prosperity Project, founded by Dr. Dennis Modry, is a registered Third-Party Advertiser with Elections Alberta. That means it's a legitimate political player in Alberta. What it's not supposed to be is a diplomatic back channel.

Smith's Power Play Gets Messier

This bombshell lands in the middle of Premier Smith's ongoing war with Ottawa. Throughout 2025, her government wielded the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act like a constitutional cattle prod, challenging federal laws at every turn. She's pushed for an Alberta Tribunal, floated an Alberta Pension Plan, and generally made it clear that federalism, in her view, has some negotiable terms.

Now "Concerned Albertans" wants receipts. Specifically, they want to know if any money from Budget 2025 or ministerial budgets bankrolled these alleged U.S. meetings. Follow the money, find the story.

Calling in the Feds

"Concerned Albertans" isn't waiting for provincial explanations. They're kicking this upstairs—straight to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Their argument is simple: talking to foreign governments about ripping apart Canada's territorial integrity isn't a provincial matter. It's a national security problem, and it belongs in federal hands.

They're also firing off Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) requests to the Premier's Office and relevant ministries, demanding every email, memo, and meeting note involving the Government of Alberta, APP reps, and anyone connected to the U.S. government.

What Happens Next

The ball is now in CSIS and RCMP territory. Whether any laws were actually broken is their call to make. But the political damage? That clock is already ticking. Premier Smith's office will have to answer whether they knew about these meetings, and if they didn't, why a separatist group was freelancing Canada's future without them noticing.

The FOIP requests could take months. The political fallout starts now.