Real Talk Ryan Jespersen

As dictator Nicolás Maduro appears before a New York judge, the international community is debating American military intervention in Venezuela, and what it could mean for other countries including Canada. Former PMO senior advisor Supriya Dwivedi gives us her take (6:00) in our first feature interview of 2026, presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY RAPIDEX FINANCI...

Randy Boissonnault just endured "the worst year of (his) life". The embattled former Trudeau cabinet minister and Edmonton-Centre MP makes Real Talk his first stop on a redemption tour (3:15) following a court ruling in his favour in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY HANSEN DISTILLERY. CHECK OUT THEIR SEASONAL LIMITED RELEASES - GINGERBRE...

Real Talkers Todd and Jenny are fired up over our December 9 interview with Premier Danielle Smith, Laura takes issue with Jespo's comments on private laundry services at hospitals, Michael's frustrated with "culture wars of the week," Marion supports Skate Canada's decision to boycott Alberta, Dwight sounds the alarm on orphan well clean-up, and Brian has thoughts on being forced to pay for the C...

Before he was a Senator, Charles Adler held court as one of Canada's most prominent talk radio hosts. In this episode, the longtime purveyor of "Canadian Common Sense" gives us his take on recent federal floor crossings (3:45), Pierre Poilievre's upcoming leadership review (10:00), rumblings around a Jason Kenney Conservative leadership run (18:20), and the differences between Liberal and Conserva...

Whatever Donald Trump's doing in Venezuela, it'll have a major effect on Alberta's bottom line. We break it down in a special year-end edition of the Real Talk Round Table (6:00) with Nathan Mison (Diplomat Consulting), Michaela Frey (Alberta Counsel), Jason Hatcher (Navigator), and Shauna Feth (President and CEO, Alberta Chambers of Commerce).  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY RAPIDEX FINANCIAL, A PR...

Minister of Justice Sean Fraser has "real concerns" about provinces using the Charter's Notwithstanding Clause to circumvent Canada's courts. He talks to us about that, gun regulation (and reflections on the Bondi Beach attack), and plans for an Alberta provincial police service (2:30) in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY HANSEN DISTILLER...

Dr. Raj Sherman's been working in Emergency Rooms for more than 30 years. He's served as an MLA for two different parties, and he recently wrapped his term as chair of Health Quality Alberta. He explains why Alberta's making a big move in the wrong direction on healthcare reform in our feature interview (4:00) presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY HANSEN DISTILLER...

At least 15 people are dead and dozens more injured after gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration at Australia's famed Bondi Beach. We talk to Supriya Dwivedi (3:00) about a rise in anti-Semitism, perceived connections to the Israel-Hamas war, and tightened gun laws in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY RAPIDEX FINANCIAL, A PROUD MADE...

Real Talkers Pedro, Margaret, Alison, and Les are all fired up over our Danielle Smith interview on December 9. It's The Flamethrower presented by the DQs of Northwest Edmonton and Sherwood Park! FIRE UP YOUR FLAMETHROWER: talk@ryanjespersen.com WHEN YOU VISIT THE DQs IN PALISADES, NAMAO, NEWCASTLE, WESTMOUNT, or BASELINE ROAD, BE SURE TO TELL 'EM REAL TALK SENT YOU! FOLLOW US ON TIKTOK, X, INSTAG...

PM Mark Carney is one seat away from a majority government as Ontario MP Michael Ma crosses the floor to the Liberals. How badly does this hurt Pierre Poilievre (and the Conservatives) about six weeks out from his leadership review? We get into it with The Discourse co-hosts Cheryl Oates and Erika Barootes (2:20) in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS P...

"If there was an election today, we would win." You're about to hear from Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi (2:15), who's confident Alberta is ready for another political upheaval. We ask the Opposition Leader whether or not this is the wildest time in Alberta political history off the top, then cover debate stifled at the Legislature, his plan to recruit more doctors (without spending more), and w...

He's a farmer, a stand-up comedian, and one of Canada's most-watched YouTube creators. We shoot the shit with Quick Dick McDick (live from his calving barn) on the Alberta-Ottawa Energy Agreement (17:15), Saskatchewan separation talks (is that a thing?), the real life impact of tariffs, and this year's harvest and hunting season in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  T...

Booed at her party's AGM after signing an energy agreement with Ottawa, Premier Danielle Smith finds herself in a tough spot. Is the UCP now a "separatist party," like her political opponents say? Does she personally support Alberta remaining in Canada? That's where we begin our exclusive interview with Alberta's Premier (1:15) presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED B...

PM Mark Carney says he "wouldn't describe (Canada's) foreign policy as feminist foreign policy"...but what does that actually mean? Is it a move in the right direction, or not so much?  3:20 | Supriya Dwivedi and Sharan Kaur debate the tone (and make-up) of PM Mark Carney's inner circle in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  TELL US WHAT YOU THINK: talk @ryanjespersen...

Trent and Erin have fightin' words for Quebec, Robert rips our interview with Minister Adriana LaGrange, and Kimm calls out journalists for backing down to Donald Trump. It's The Flamethrower presented by the DQs of Northwest Edmonton and Sherwood Park! FIRE UP YOUR FLAMETHROWER: talk@ryanjespersen.com WHEN YOU VISIT THE DQs IN PALISADES, NAMAO, NEWCASTLE, WESTMOUNT, or BASELINE ROAD, BE SURE TO T...

Political parties are managing members like never before. Elected representatives toe the party line or face consequences. Floor crossings swing vote results. Public abuse toward dissenting politicians is at an all-time high. In this episode, political scientists Alex Marland and Jared Wesley (4:30) take us on a deep dive into how party loyalty factors into Canadian politics.  THIS EPISODE IS PRES...

Who's the Best MLA in Alberta? How about the Best Cabinet Minister? Who's the Most Effective Opposition MLA or the Best Question Period Performer? We reveal the results of Daveberta's annual Best of Alberta Politics Survey (3:15) in our feature interview presented by Mercedes-Benz Edmonton West.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY RAPIDEX FINANCIAL, A PROUD MADE-IN-ALBERTA SOLUTION OFFERING CRYPTO YOUR...

Alberta is moving to a "dual-delivery" healthcare model, blending public and private delivery of select surgeries. Meantime, two former UCP MLAs are being sued by the party as they attempt to revive the "Progressive Conservative" brand. In this episode, we get the goods directly from Minister Adriana LaGrange (3:00) and MLAs Peter Guthrie and Scott Sinclair (45:30) in feature interviews presented...

Did P.M. Mark Carney pull the wool over Premier Danielle Smith's eyes with the Ottawa-Alberta pipeline agreement? Max Fawcett thinks so. In this episode, the lead columnist for Canada's National Observer lays out the method to Mark Carney's madness (11:10). But first... 4:45 | It's Giving Tuesday. Jespo, Johnny, and Max share which charity they're proud to support on this day for "radical generosi...

We've seen this play before. The right-wing flank of a Conservative party, feeling underrepresented and dissatisfied, breaks away from the "mainstream" movement to form its own entity. Will that be the case with separatist members of Alberta's United Conservative Party?  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY HANSEN DISTILLERY'S NORTHERN EYES SEVEN YEAR WHISKY. ORDER YOUR LIMITED EDITION BOTTLE TODAY: https...

Real Talkers Michael, Robert, Kurt, and Cal chime in on the pipeline deal, while Bryn has an important message about addiction. It's The Flamethrower presented by the DQs of Northwest Edmonton and Sherwood Park! WHEN YOU VISIT THE DQs IN PALISADES, NAMAO, NEWCASTLE, WESTMOUNT, AND BASELINE ROAD, BE SURE TO TELL 'EM REAL TALK SENT YOU! FOLLOW US ON TIKTOK, X, INSTAGRAM, and LINKEDIN: @realtalkrj &a...

Ottawa and Alberta have signed off on an agreement to build a new pipeline to northwest B.C. How long 'til shovels are in the ground? Who will pay for it? Or, could pushback from Premier Eby's office or coastal First Nations stop the project from happening?  3:30 | Dr. Tom Gunton, Dr. Heather Exner-Pirot, and Sharan Kaur give us their assessment of what's in the agreement (and what's not), the fut...

It's official: Alberta and Ottawa have jointly agreed on a path forward for a new bitumen pipeline to the B.C. coast. In this episode, Politico's Ottawa bureau chief Nick Taylor-Vaisey (4:00) lays out what happens next, and what it means for B.C., First Nations, Alberta, and Mark Carney's Liberal government.  THIS EPISODE IS PRESENTED BY HANSEN DISTILLERY'S NORTHERN EYES SEVEN YEAR WHISKY. GET YOU...

No wonder Pierre Poilievre is unhappy. Mark Carney took a page from Poilievre's playbook and axed the (carbon) tax, and now the Liberal Prime Minister's getting set for a pipeline announcement alongside Alberta's UCP Premier Danielle Smith. It's no wonder the federal Conservative leader is doing his best to discredit the deal. We open this episode with an exchange between Poilievre and Carney in t...

Just 52% of Conservatives polled believe democracy is working in Canada. That's down from nearly 90% just over a decade ago. Pollster Janet Brown and political scientist Dr. Duane Bratt dig into the downward trend in this episode (5:00), presented by our friends at Hansen Distillery. CHECK OUT HANSEN'S HOLIDAY LIQUEURS: https://hansendistillery.com/ 22:00 | In our feature interview presented by Me...