Front Burner

Canadian pride reached a fever pitch after the NHL 4 Nations Cup last month and it hasn’t showed any signs of slowing down since. Sales of the Canadian flags are up. American liquor and beer have been pulled off the shelves in stores throughout the country. “Elbows Up”, a war cry and tribute to Gordie Howe’s signature defensive move, has been trending on social media.  But in a country that,...

On August 9th and 10th of 1969, a series of brutal murders took place in Los Angeles. Seven people were killed, including actress Sharon Tate, who was married to director Roman Polanski. Members of the Manson family, a kind of cult, were found guilty for the crimes. Manson and four of his followers were convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to death. The prosecutor at the time said that M...

The Trump administration is continuing to expand its mass deportation of immigrants, and more and more people are getting caught up in its dragnet — from green card holders to Canadians, and even U.S. citizens. Court orders to block many of these actions are mounting, but the Trump administration is pushing back hard — going so far as pushing for the impeachment of a judge involved in one case. To...

Last week Jayme had the opportunity to interview Nobel Prize winning economist, and former staffer and advisor to Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, Joseph Stiglitz. Stiglitz also worked as the chief economist at the world bank, is a bestselling author many times over and remains one of the towering economic thinkers of our time.  He has long been a sharp critic of neoliberalism, and t...

On Friday, Mark Carney was sworn in as Canada’s 24th prime minister. He wasted no time in appointing a new cabinet, getting rid of the carbon tax, and heading off on a diplomatic trip to Europe. Today, Rosemary Barton, CBC’s chief political correspondent, joins us to talk about what Carney’s first days in office indicate about his political priorities, how the Conservatives are responding, and whe...

On October 25th, 2023, after weeks of Israeli bombardment on Gaza, Canadian novelist and journalist Omar El Akkad posted this on X: "One day, when it's safe, when there's no personal downside to calling a thing what it is, when it's too late to hold anyone accountable, everyone will have always been against this." Israel had declared war on Hamas after the Oct 7 attack. On top of the bombardm...

There's been a flurry of news and uncertainty around tariffs and Canada-U.S. relations lately so we thought we'd open the floor to you in case you have any burning questions. Turns out a lot of you do! So, we took some of your questions to five incredible experts: Economist Armine Yalnizyan, CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton, CBC Washington correspondent Alex Panetta, energy econom...

By the end of Tuesday, day eight of the Canada-U.S. trade war, Ontario Premier Doug Ford had backed down on a 25 per cent surcharge on electricity going to the U.S. that was supposed to go into effect that day.  It came after a "productive conversation" between Ford and U.S. commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, who agreed to meet Ford on Thursday.  Lutnick has been making the rou...

As Canadians grapple with the ongoing threat of American tariffs, south of the U.S., Mexicans are dealing with the same thing. Today we look at the similarities and differences in the situations both countries are facing, the different ways our leaders are dealing with Trump, and the surprising impacts the tariff threat may be having in Mexico’s war on drugs. Elías Camhaji, a reporter with the new...

After a two-month race, the Liberal Party of Canada chose Mark Carney as its new leader on Sunday night. It was an overwhelming win – Carney won with 86 per cent of the vote. The Prime Minister-Designate is expected to be sworn in, in the coming days. Paul Wells has written about Canadian politics for decades. He also has a substack under his own name. He looks ahead to the challenges facing Carne...

Donald Trump’s first four years in office were met with protest and obstruction — a popular movement which came to be known as ‘The Resistance.’ It featured a coalition that included members of the media, establishment Republicans, figures on the left, celebrities and business leaders.  Forty days into his second term, many are wondering: what happened to ‘The Resistance.’  Franklin Foer...

Two days after U.S. tariffs were imposed on Canada and Mexico, the trade war rages on. While an exemption has been made for three major automakers, President Trump and Prime Minister Trudeau still appear to be at an impasse. As Ottawa imposes counter-tariffs and the provinces announce further retaliatory measures, what are levers can Canada pull on to get the Americans to walk back? Some of the bi...

After months of back-and-forth, will-he-or-won’t-he, it’s officially on: U.S. President Donald Trump has slapped 25% tariffs on most Canadian goods, and 10% on Canadian energy. Canada has hit back with tariffs of its own — which Trump says will cause further retaliation. CBC Washington correspondent Alexander Panetta joins us for a look at what happens now. Will measures from the federal governmen...

Humiliating the president of Ukraine in the Oval Office. Admonishing European leaders about migration and free speech. Voting alongside Russia against a UN resolution to condemn the invasion of Ukraine. Withdrawing from the World Health Organization and UN Human Rights Council. They are all signs from the Trump administration that point to a massive shift in America’s foreign policy and alignment...

U.S. President Trump has been talking about wanting to gain control of Greenland, and expand American influence in the Arctic. It’s a region rich in minerals and oil. It’s also an important potential trade route being opened up by climate change.   The U.S. is reportedly in talks with Russia about possible collaboration on energy projects there. This has a lot of people in Canada – from...

As a child, Alex Kurzem faced a choice: be killed or join the killers. In the midst of the Second World War, he was separated from his family and taken in by a group of soldiers as one of their own. He was made a member of Hitler’s army – a toy soldier with his own rifle and miniature SS uniform. But what the soldiers didn’t know and what no one would know for decades: he was a Jewish boy masquera...

SUVs and pickup trucks make up more than four out of every five new cars sold in the U.S., and in Canada, they represented 86 per cent of all vehicles sold in May of last year.  Lots of these vehicles bill themselves as “safe,” but safe for who? The drivers and passengers? Or everyone else? David Zipper, a senior fellow at the MIT Mobility Initiative and a contributing writer at Vox and Bloom...

Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to end all future funding to South Africa claiming that in the country, “certain classes of people” were being treated “very badly.” Trump went on to announce a new specialized refugee program which would facilitate the entry of White South Africans — Afrikaners — into the U.S., as a result of “government sponsored race-based discrimi...

The four Liberal leadership candidates - Mark Carney, Chrystia Freeland, Karina Gould and Frank Baylis - had a chance to make their case to voters and challenge each other over two debates this week. The winner of the race will go on to be the next Prime Minister and will head directly into a tariff war with Donald Trump and an imminent federal election. But with so many points of agreement, did a...

The world marked the third anniversary of Russia’s brutal full scale invasion on Monday. This milestone in the deadliest conflict Europe has seen since World War Two comes as U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration have moved closer to the Kremlin and sidelined Europe and Ukraine.  A lot happened on Monday on multiple fronts, as rival leaders scrambled to try and shape the course o...

People in Ontario will head to the polls on Thursday, in an election that was called more than a year ahead of schedule. Doug Ford, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party is on track to win a third mandate. He says he needs the province’s confidence to deal with U.S.President Trump’s tariffs. The latest from Abacus Data puts the Conservatives at 41 per cent of the vote share. CBC Queen’s Par...

On Monday, shortly after two in the afternoon, a Delta Air Lines flight from Minneapolis was cleared to land at Toronto Pearson International Airport.  As the plane touched down, its right wing hit the ground, sparking flames. Passengers on the flight described a scene of metal scraping against cement as the wing was ripped off and the aircraft rolled, flipping onto its back and skidding befo...

It can be hard to truly understand the motivations behind Donald Trump and his administration. But when looking at some of the countries that have found themselves in his crosshairs, there’s a throughline that binds them. Canada, Greenland and Ukraine are all rich in critical mineral resources. These metals are used in everything from cell phones to EV batteries to fighter jets. As the global race...

Over just a few days, senior Trump officials declared that Ukraine should prepare to cede territory to Russia and that Europe is not likely to have a seat at the table during negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine. They then closed the week with a history-making address by U.S. Vice President JD Vance at this year’s Munich Security Conference in which he appeared to threaten the future...

U.S. President Donald Trump has made it clear that he’s serious about wanting Canada to become the 51st state, with his deputy chief of staff saying Trump has made no concessions on the topic. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that threat is “a real thing”. Trump says he’d use economic force to drag Canada under America’s boot. But he’s been less delicate about other places, saying he could use m...