What would Machiavelli say about Notley and her top adviser?

Five centuries ago, the Renaissance Italian philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli wrote of how advisers were of “no small importance.”

In The Prince, a how-to guide for rulers who wished to keep their thrones, Machiavelli mused that such advice givers — secretaries as they were called then — mattered: Lousy or disloyal advisers could cost a ruler not only his power, but his head.

But advisers were not absolute: Machiavelli thought their influence depended on the type of brain ensconced in a ruler’s skull.

A prince with first-rate grey matter, a brain “that understands by itself,” grasps the basic truths about human nature and the affairs of state. That ruler sees people for who they really are. She or he is also clear about where they want to take their state.

With such princes, advisers might be useful on some technical matter, but the leader is ultimately far seeing, consequential and in charge: think the first Queen Elizabeth, Russia’s Catherine the Great and Winston Churchill as examples.

For Machiavelli, two other rulers’ brains exist and these give advisers more power.

The second princely brain “discerns what others understand.” This ruler might not fathom every issue or see every motive. They are yet wise enough to perceive when others have an important insight — then act accordingly.

As for the third rulers’ brain, it “understands neither by itself nor through others.”

I remembered this Machiavellian distinction recently and because of an adviser that mat- ters to Albertans, though most people won’t know his name: Brian Topp.

Topp is a former federal NDP leadership candidate who lost to Tom Mulcair in the 2012 race.

I’ve never met Topp, but we debated a few years back. He wrote a column critical of western provinces shipping “raw unprocessed resources to Texas and to China.” He instead wanted government “action” on such matters, which is always a veiled call for protectionism and interventionism.

I wrote a response column pointing out that free trade in resources, as with any good or service, lifts many economic boats, while protectionism wrecks entire economies.

Besides, artificial government diversification efforts that accompany such protectionist nonsense are predictably costly failures.

Thus, Alberta’s previous “diversification” efforts in the 1980s and early 1990s were exorbitant experiments: A $2.3-billion loss for taxpayers when government loans and loan guarantees to multiple businesses failed.

My position in regard to Topp was that smarter, evidence-based policy points to a low business tax rate and neutrality between individual corporations and sectors as preferable and effective, if one cares about economic growth and employment.

That was the Ralph Klein government’s approach, and Alberta did just fine on those two criteria; the province was also more diversified when Klein left government than when he entered it.

In response, Topp characterized my position — tax relief for all and special deals for none — “as real corporate welfare boondoggles.” He equated tax relief with “paying” businesses money, as if cash is the property of government first and not of businesses and individual taxpayers.

It was an amusing exchange and I expected as much from a rampant interventionist.

Back to Machiavelli and advisers: Topp has been chief of staff to Premier Rachel Notley since last year’s provincial election.

Given Topp’s protectionist shtick, his improper means (corporate welfare) to a desirable end (diversification) — big surprise, Alberta is back in the business of subsidizing local business. That includes everything from subsidies for alternative energy projects, to directing more tax dollars into government agencies to pick “winners.”

Such policies reflect Topp’s views with precision.

This means one of two things about Notley: Either her brain is of the second variety and she sees Topp’s ideas and trusts him; or Notley has a tier-one brain, where her advisers ultimately reflect her priorities.

Either way, when the expensive corporate welfare bills come rolling in, that means the buck will stop at Notley’s office.