Bell: Danielle Smith and Justin Trudeau shadow box to the next round

The well-worn saying is probably well-worn because often it's true.

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A picture is worth a thousand words.

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On Tuesday, Premier Danielle Smith meets Prime Minister Justin Trudeau one-on-one in Ottawa.

There's the usual photo for the front page.

Trudeau puts on the big smile and sticks his hand out.

Smith extends her somewhat limp hand with little to no enthusiasm, palm down.

Trudeau grabs her hand, holds her hand, shakes it a very little bit and smiles for the pose as cameras click away.

Smith does not smile. If Smith is smiling it's time to rewrite the dictionary definition.

She has a pained expression on her face as if to say: Can we get this over with? And give me back my hand!

Let's rewind to just shy of a month ago.

Smith was ready to come down on Trudeau like a ton of bricks.

The premier sees Trudeau's yet-to-be-rolled-out just transition plan as a nasty scheme to royally screw the oilpatch, leave an industry gutted, vaporize jobs and see gas workers driving around delivering solar panels.

She tells us Trudeau is invading our territory.

The Trudeau crew insist their plans for a just transition to a greener future are not going to be anywhere near as big a deal as Smith believes.

Her stalwart supporters don't believe Trudeau. They don't believe anything the prime minister says. Many of them hate his guts.

A week later, Smith is on the phone to your scribbler saying Trudeau should back off on his just transition plans.

There is a briefing note from the Trudeau folks, speaking of "significant labour market disruptions" and "larger-scale transformations" in the energy biz and in Alberta.

Smith warns Trudeau. He is playing a dangerous game. Albertans won't be devastated by another Trudeau.

Yes, the memory of Trudeau's dad, former prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, is conjured up by Smith and, in much of Alberta, such conjuring is political gold.

For her, this Trudeau government is ideological, entirely unreasonable, an antagonistic and cruel demonizer and economic destroyer of Alberta making decisions without "a bloody phone call" to this province.

Smith said she was terrified for Albertans on this day in mid-January, thinking of what she believed Trudeau had in mind.

Trudeau's inner circle said Smith had it all wrong.

The premier's backers do not believe Trudeau or his inner circle.

Then, just over a week later nearing the end of January, Smith writes Trudeau.

She wants a sit-down with the prime minister.

She wants Trudeau to cook up a plan with Alberta, a plan NOT phasing out or reducing the size of the oilpatch, NOT creating unreasonable targets for reducing emissions, NOT called a just transition.

A plan the vast majority of Albertans would support.

Right after the letter goes out, three members of Trudeau's team say much of what Smith is on about is in line with what they’re bringing forward.

They say there will be huge opportunities for workers across the province.

The premier's crowd do not believe anyone on Trudeau's team.

Then on Tuesday, Smith and Trudeau meet.

Trudeau says it's a pleasure to "touch base" with Smith.

Smith looks like it's about as much pleasure as getting major dental surgery, without freezing.

Before they go behind closed doors, Trudeau says he's all for supporting Alberta workers who he tells us have been so very important for the success of Canada.

He waxes poetic about how the world needs Alberta know-how and Alberta energy and Alberta solutions.

But Smith's base do not believe … you get the drill.

For her part, in front of the Ottawa cameras, the Alberta premier speaks of Trudeau's just transition plans as "giving the impression the energy sector is going to be phased out."

"It's not going to be phased out," says Smith, with Trudeau shaking his head No, as if he agrees with the premier.

When the meeting ends, Smith says she asked Trudeau to work with the Alberta government on a plan to attract energy investment.

She says Trudeau "expressed a willingness to explore this strategy."

Smith will write him soon.

For Trudeau's part, he puts out a statement with a lot of sugar but little spice.

The prime minister didn't get grilled on his meeting with Smith.

This was Ottawa and the breathless newshounds were salivating over a predictable dull-as-ditchwater yarn as if it was the Super Bowl for political junkies.

You know, billions more in health-care dough from the Trudeau government to the provinces but apparently not enough billions and, being politicians, they’ll talk some more.

As for the handshake worth a thousand words, can you imagine the reaction from Smith loyalists if she’d smiled?

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