O ye, of little faith.

The prime minister is in town Tuesday. It’s your scribbler’s turn to ask a question.

Distroscale

Trudeau is friendly. He’s always friendly to yours truly. I tell him I don’t want to have to write he didn’t tell us anything new about the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion to the west coast.

I want a few crumbs. A morsel or two beyond the usual tiresome talking points. You know, the pipeline will be built just doesn’t cut it after you’ve heard the line a hundred times.

There’s only a couple of weeks left on the calendar until May 31 when Kinder Morgan, the pipeline company, could walk away from their project

What can the PM say to reassure both his supporters and those who don’t think he’s doing enough?

Trudeau has a few words for the critics, many who live right here in Alberta.

“Let’s be honest about these things, Rick. I don’t think there is anything I can say that would reassure some of my critics who have such little faith in my government getting anything done for Alberta.

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“I don’t think there’s any magic phrase I can say that’ll have critics and skeptics sort of put down their criticism: Oh, you know what, the prime minister reassured me today.

“So I’m not speaking to them.”

Somewhere nearby, somebody keeps shouting the word: “Traitor!” Others chant “Build that pipe!”

Trudeau says he is speaking to the rest of Alberta. He attacks the Harper Conservatives who he says didn’t deliver on pipelines while serving up a “tremendous amount of boosterism for Alberta” and “an oil sector-first mentality.”

“I understand folks here are not super-enthused about words.”

At last month’s sitdown with Notley and B.C. Premier Horgan , Trudeau talked about bringing in an Ottawa-is-boss pipeline law making it clear B.C. doesn’t control the pipeline.

In Calgary, Trudeau says everything is on the table. It must be a big table.

As for turning off the oilpatch taps to B.C., the PM says he wants to make sure we’re not “exacerbating the polarization” among Canadians.

He adds his people are working very hard and the Trudeau government will do everything necessary to get the pipeline built. He talks some more but you’ve heard it all before.

My wish didn’t come true. He didn’t tell us anything new.

Jason Kenney, the United Conservative leader, points out Trudeau is in Calgary talking about the same Green Line LRT cash committed by the former federal government and announced by … you got it … Kenney.

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As for Trudeau’s performance on pipelines, Kenney’s review is withering.

“He doesn’t support pipelines. He doesn’t believe in this project. If he did, he wouldn’t mouth empty platitudes and cliches. He allows a provincial government to thumb their nose at the Constitution while doing the square root of nothing to respond.”

It’s clear Kenney doesn’t think Trudeau has much on the ball.

“The guy was my critic in opposition for three years. I don’t think he has the foggiest idea what’s going on.

“I know Justin. He doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing. This guy is an empty trust-fund millionaire who has the political depth of a finger bowl.

“He can’t read a briefing note longer than a cocktail napkin, O.K.”

Kenney feels Trudeau’s political convictions are just “poses” and his public pro-pipeline stance is one example.

“Meanwhile, they’re doing everything they can to hammer nails into the coffin of our energy industry.”

As the PM exits, Trudeau gets a helping hand from Mayor Nenshi.

Nenshi isn’t fussed. He’s confident what we’re hearing from Trudeau, and Notley for that matter, is true.

He believes they are “absolutely committed” to the pipeline and “will use every tool in the toolbox to make it happen.”

Nenshi admits he’s “super-impatient,” but every time someone says something more needs to be done, the mayor has questions about what people specifically want done.

“What exactly? What are you looking for? Is throwing Elizabeth May in jail enough for you?”

May is the federal Green party leader arrested at a pipeline protest.

Nenshi says Trudeau and Notley are using “unequivocal language” on the pipeline getting built.

“There’s no waffling. For me, I take a lot of comfort in that.”

Others count the days going by and do not feel the same contentment.