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EDMONTON — As the New Democrats forge ahead with their dream of a shiny new future, the deposed Progressive Conservatives continue to impale themselves on the tarnished old past.

The singular diversion of throne speech day was interim PC Leader Ric McIver’s opposition to the new bill banning all corporate and union donations to political parties.

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Premier Rachel Notley’s law will “tilt the playing field” in favour of the new government, McIver said — thereby acknowledging that corporate money tilted it in the PCs’ favour for nearly 44 years.

He even claimed that confining donations to individuals will be “less transparent” than the old system of high-limit corporate and union contributions. Companies will just find ways around the ban, he said.

Then McIver denied implying they’d do anything improper to circumvent this law he hadn’t even seen yet.

There was more gasp-inducing incoherence, but Liberal Leader David Swann disposed of the matter crisply when he was asked about McIver’s statements.