Ralph Klein

Ralph Phillip Klein ( AOE; born November 1, 1942 in Calgary, Alberta, † March 29, 2013 in Edmonton, Alberta ) was a Canadian politician and prime minister, radio and television presenter, journalist and economic consultant.

After he had long been a journalist for over a decade, he was in 1980 elected mayor of his native town and held that post until 1989. After three years as Minister of Environment of Alberta, he was dated December 14, 1992 to December 14, 2006 Prime Minister of this province as well as Chairman of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta. Due to its open and direct manner, he was popular among the people, but also caused because of repeated controversy.

Life

Klein's ancestors came from Remlingen in Lower Franconia. After high school, interrupted by a one-year service in the Royal Canadian Air Force, he worked from 1963 as a PR consultant for the Alberta section of the Red Cross and for the charity United Way of Canada. From 1969 he was chief reporter and presenter of the news broadcasts of radio and television station CFCN, a local station of the CTV network.

Municipal and provincial policy

Eleven years later, Klein ran for mayor of Calgary. Although he was regarded as an outsider, he won on October 15, 1980 on surprising the mayoral elections. Twelve days later he took office. While the rest of the country had to cope with a recession, Alberta experienced a fueled by oil finds economic recovery. His most important achievements as mayor are the construction of the C -Train light rail system and the organization of the Olympic Winter Games 1988.

Klein joined the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta in and ran in March 1989 in the constituency of Calgary Elbow for a seat in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. He was elected and entered on March 21, 1989, the day after the elections, as mayor back. Four weeks later, Prime Minister Don Getty appointed him Minister of the Environment.

Prime minister

Getty was the end of 1992 his imminent resignation, fearing a defeat at the next election because of the high deficit. Klein was elected on 5 December 1992 on the new party chairman and appointed on 14 December by Vice- Governor Gordon Towers Prime Minister. He was able to distance himself from the policies of his predecessor. In the elections of June 1993, the Progressive Conservatives were again the strongest party, albeit with a significantly reduced majority.

Klein promised to make to 1997 balanced the state budget. Was to be achieved. Massive cost savings, the reduction of the state administration and the privatization of individual state enterprises On the other hand, the expansion of state-regulated gambling should generate more revenue. The project succeeded. After four years, the province wrote back in the black and Klein's party won the elections in March 1997, again more than half of the votes.

Increased revenue from the fees for the oil and gas production led to large budget surpluses, which the government debt could be reduced. The provincial government deregulated the electricity supply completely and cut taxes. However, Klein was also accused of being insensitive, unlike his two predecessors in social and environmental issues. So he rejected the Kyoto Protocol from decided, because he did not want to jeopardize the booming oil and gas industry. In March 2001, the government was nevertheless confirmed by a new absolute majority of votes.

After 2001, however, Klein's government was increasingly confronted with difficulties. A temporary drop in prices for crude oil and natural gas and loss of revenue due to a new tax system led to a short-term revenue crisis, so that in 2002, unpopular new taxes had to be raised. From 2003 to 2005 Alberta was affected by the disease BSE, which had a significant negative impact on cattle farms. So shut the United States, the largest export market for Canadian cattle, temporarily their borders to live cattle and meat products.

In the elections of November 2004, the Progressive Conservatives fell back below 50 % of the vote, as many of their constituents were no longer agree with Klein's leadership style, which appeared sometimes authoritarian and stayed away from the ballot box. As a small at the party congress in March 2006, only slightly more than half of the delegates received approval, he announced his imminent resignation. On 14 December 2006, to the day, 14 years after taking office, he handed over the official duties to his successor Ed Stelmach. A month later he also resigned from his position as deputy.

Other activities

In January 2007, the law firm Borden Ladner Gervais significant announced that they had hired as a consultant in business issues Klein, who is not a lawyer. His job is to " enable valuable insights into the needs of customers who want to invest in Alberta, Canada and North America. "

Over the years, Ralph Klein has received many awards. So he received the Olympic Order in 1988 and was appointed by the tribe of the Kainai an honorary chief in 1996. The French government took him in March 2008 in the Order of the Legion of Honour on; this ceremony had to be previously approved by the Canadian government.

Character and controversies

Ralph Klein's nickname is a number of reasons "King Ralph " His leadership style was sometimes perceived as authoritarian, his reign was longer than average at 14 years and one year before his first election as Prime Minister of the same movie was released. Klein was a politician who is very popular with voters because of its openness, directness and his humor. In 2006, he was elected in a poll by a large margin the " funniest personality Alberta over the last 100 years." But it is precisely these characteristics often triggered controversies.

During his tenure as mayor of Calgary attracted because of the economic boom, many unskilled workers in the city. Klein gained national notoriety when he complained on TV about the " prowler and sycophants " from the eastern provinces, which impacted the municipal social welfare and the police. In 1990 he worry again for attention throughout Canada as he showed an environmental activist who protested against the construction of a controversial wood processing plant in front of cameras the finger. His hometown Calgary he described as follows: " A beautiful city with too many socialists and mosquitoes. At least there against the mosquitoes a spray. " ( " A fine city with too many socialists and mosquitoes. At least you can spray the mosquitoes. " )

Half a year before his resignation as prime minister " warned " he said in an interview his potential, was not yet fixed successor: " You'll get many free meals, but over time you tired somehow, especially if you have given up drinking, and then is it no longer funny. So I do not know why anyone wants to do that. " (" You get a lot of free dinners but after did you get sort of tired, Especially When You quit drinking, and then it's no fun at all, so I do not know Why They would want to do it. " )

During a charity event in November 2006, Klein made ​​at the expense of the former Conservative MP Belinda Stronach an obscene remark made ​​in the Canadian media for large eddy: "I was not particularly surprised that she went over to the Liberals. I do not think they ever had a conservative bone in their body. Well, maybe a [ ... ] Well, while we're of Peter MacKay ... " ( " I was not surprised did she crossed over to the Liberals. I do not think she ever did have a Conservative bone in her body. Well, maybe one [ ... ] Well, speaking of Peter MacKay ... ") he referred to her former partner, the former Foreign and Defence Minister Peter MacKay today.