Front Burner

During the presidential debate this week, Donald Trump once again talked about how he didn’t lose the 2020 election. It’s a false claim that many Americans believe. And some of those believers are getting ready to fight following what they think could be another stolen election in November. ProPublica’s Joshua Kaplan has been reporting on the American Patriots Three Percent, or AP3, and one of the...

This week, the Trudeau government announced they’ve brought in a new “special advisor” on economic growth: famed former central banker Mark Carney. The appointment has kicked the rumour mill into gear, because Carney’s name has often been floated as a potential successor to Justin Trudeau, if the beleaguered Liberal leader ever steps down. Whether or not there’s any grounding to that speculation,...

Before tonight, U.S. presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris had never met in real life. But they took the stage in Philadelphia, Penn., last night for their first — and possibly only — televised debate of the campaign. Keith Boag, a former longtime Washington correspondent for CBC News, breaks down the biggest moments of the debate and what it could mean for the candidates' campaig...

A group of former international students with soon-to-be expired work permits in Brampton, Ontario are protesting a series of measures by the Canadian government meant to curb the number of temporary residents entering and staying in the country. We hear their stories and also from Syed Hussan, executive director of Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, talks about how growing anti-immigrant sentim...

The U.S. Department of Justice has accused Tenet Media of being financed and influenced by a state-backed Russian news network. Two Russian employees of RT – the state broadcaster – are alleged of spending $10-million to secretly pay the company to spread pro-Russia propaganda. According to the indictment, the company never made it clear to its crew of commentators, some of whom are Canadian, abou...

 Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the street in Israel, demanding a return of all remaining hostages in the custody of Hamas. The demonstrations are the largest seen in the country since the start of the Israel-Gaza war.  We take a closer look at the changing nature of public opinion currently driving these protests in Israel, and why calls for a ceasefire are complicat...

Since 2022, Jagmeet Singh's New Democrats have backed Justin Trudeau's minority Liberal government with a confidence and supply agreement where the NDP would support the Liberals on confidence votes in exchange for the Liberals passing some of the NDP's policy priorities, like dental care and paid sick leave. That deal came to an end on Wednesday with an announcement from Singh, leaving the Libera...

As part of Premier Danielle Smith’s plan to dismantle the provincial health authority, Alberta Health Services, the first of four new replacement agencies began operating this week. Last month, Smith also talked about transferring some hospitals away from AHS to third-party health services. And with a government grant, a private company is developing a business case for a health services “campus”...

The B.C. United Party has suspended its election campaign and encouraged supporters to join forces with the Conservative Party of B.C., with the aim of bringing together the right-of-centre vote ahead of next month's provincial election. This is a dramatic turn of events given that the two parties' leaders – Kevin Falcon of B.C. United, and John Rustad of the B.C. Conservative Party – were bitter...

If you’ve ever been to Newfoundland, you know it’s a place where fog can envelop you so deeply, you don’t know where you’re going or where you came from. When two men, born in the same rural Newfoundland hospital on the same day, discover an unbelievable 52-year-old secret, it changes the way they see themselves forever. But this isn’t the end of the story. Because it turns out these men are not a...

It's hard to overstate just how big a global phenomenon Oasis were at their peak in the mid '90s, but it wasn't just the music that made them compelling — it was the rock star antics and dramatic love-hate relationship between Liam and Noel Gallagher, the brothers who fronted the band and wrote the songs, respectively. After years of mini-breakups and potshots at each other in the press (and fistf...

On Wednesday, Telegram founder Pavel Durov was charged in France with a wide range of crimes related to illicit activity on the app. His detainment is part of an ongoing investigation by French authorities into the social media app.  Telegram, with its more than 900 million users, often offers a window into what’s happening on the ground in countries where state censorship is rampant. At the...

Robert Land Academy is a “military-style” school in Wellandport, Ontario. Since it opened in the 1970s, it’s used military-like structure and uniforms in a bid to mould struggling boys into confident, capable citizens. But last week, The Walrus contributing writer Rachel Browne published a piece with former students' allegations that they experienced violence, sexual abuse and racism at the school...

Liberal ministers are hunkered down in Halifax right now for their annual end-of-summer cabinet retreat. It’s a chance for the party to get together and set the agenda ahead of the fall session of parliament. But this year, a shadow hangs over the retreat, as the party contends with dismal polling numbers, calls for leader Justin Trudeau to step down, and the looming reality of a general election...

Earlier this month, Ottawa mayor Mark Sutcliffe warned the provincial and federal governments that his city was facing a public transit funding crisis. He says that at this rate, the city won’t have enough money to run the light rail lines currently under construction. From Metro Vancouver to Toronto, we’re seeing similar issues in major cities across Canada. These cities are dealing with what pla...

Just one month ago, the Democrats were a deeply divided party, caught in a tailspin after President Joe Biden's disastrous performance in the first presidential debate. But in the wake of him dropping out and endorsing his vice president Kamala Harris, the party has found new optimism about its chances in the next election. All that excitement came to a head in Chicago this week at the Democratic...

In politics, a “third rail” is an issue that’s so volatile, so dangerous, that politicians are afraid to touch it.  The firm Abacus Data has just come out with a new poll that looks at the “third rails” of Canadian politics — the issues that would make people vote for or against a political party who promised that idea. And some of their findings — and the way they cut across the political sp...

 A new federal political party, the Canadian Future Party, is pitching itself as a centrist alternative for voters disillusioned with the Conservatives and Liberals. It’s already announced candidates for two upcoming byelections. Front Burner host Jayme Poisson spoke with the party’s interim leader, Dominic Cardy, about why he believes voters are so dissatisfied with the major parties, how he...

After the events of Sept. 11, sweeping changes were made to U.S intelligence and counterrorism practices as part of the American-led 'war on terror'. Agencies like the CIA started focusing less on traditional forms of espionage, and became more of an organization centred on assassination and hunting non-state actors. As part of that broader effort, a plan was born: what if the CIA were able to con...

Two and half years after Russia first invaded, Ukraine has launched what might be its boldest counterattack yet: a push into the Kursk region. It's the first military incursion across Russian borders since the Second World War, drawing Russian troops away from key battle zones in eastern Ukraine. Tim Mak, a Kyiv-based journalist who publishes the newsletter The Counteroffensive, explains why Ukrai...

Over the last two weeks, Liberal Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault has said he's considering tightening Canada's temporary foreign worker program. This is amid criticism of its growing use and the conditions facing those who are in it. Since the Liberals first loosened the rules in response to the pandemic in 2021, the program has played a bigger part in our labour market, including with staf...

Israeli prisons have been making headlines in recent weeks, after far-right protesters stormed the gates of the notorious Sde Teiman detention facility to protest the arrest of nine soldiers accused of sexually assaulting a Palestinian prisoner. The incident reportedly left the man in life-threatening condition, and it has led to a furious debate within Israeli society, with some defending the use...

The arrest of a father and son north of Toronto accused of being in the late stages of planning an attack for the benefit of the Islamic State. A canceled stop in Vienna on Taylor Swift’s Eras tour after the threat of an attack with the main suspect allegedly inspired by ISIS. A deadly attack in March on a Moscow theatre leaving over 100 dead, allegedly committed by members of an ISIS affiliate.&n...

It’s been a year since Meta banned Canadian news on platforms including Facebook and Instagram, punching a significant hole in how audiences engage with outlets online.   At the same time, the continued descent of the outlets’ revenues has meant mass layoffs and closures, and the rise of news deserts around the country.  Today, two journalists weigh in on whether Ottawa should furth...

ChatGPT took the world by storm when it launched in November of 2022, prompting massive investment in generative AI technology as tech companies rushed to capitalize on the hype. But nearly two years and billions of dollars later, the technology seems to be plateauing — and it's still not profitable. After tech stocks took a hit in early August, concerns are growing in both the tech press and on W...