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Updated 17/11/2023

14/02/2025

The Conservatives attempt to rewrite their playbook

For the past two years, the Conservatives drove home the message that things were "broken" in Canada and that the governing Liberals, specifically Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, was to blame. Whether it was branding the rising cost of living 'Justinflation' or blaming those costs on the Liberals' carbon price and urging Canadians to 'Axe the Tax,' the Tories' messaging was working perfectly fine. Then U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House and, with that, a new obstacle blocked Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's path to power. Trump says he's serious about annexing Canada through economic means. His threats to impose across-the-board tariffs have already caused panic in this country, and it's led to a bounce in the polls for the federal Liberals. Though the Conservatives had enjoyed a 27-point lead over the Liberals for a while, a Leger poll this week seemed to confirm a new trend: a single-digit gap between both parties — and if Mark Carney led the Liberals, the possibility the Grits could win. With Trudeau's resignation, and Liberal leadership candidates pledging to axe-the-tax, those issues are now off the table. Is it Trump's return that changes the ballot question for the next Federal election? Does winning now depend on whether the Conservatives can be seen as the best defenders of Canada against an unpredictable threat coming from our southern border? In this episode of "It's Political," Pollara Chief Strategy Officer Dan Arnold and 338canada.com's editor-in-chief Philippe J. Fournier join us for a deep dive on what the numbers really signal. Then, we'll explore the current challenges facing Pierre Poilievre and the Conservative party with Toronto Star Ottawa reporters Raisa Patel and Ryan Tumilty, along with Radio-Canada's Christian Noël. In this episode: Pollara Strategic Insight's Chief Strategy Officer Dan Arnold, 338canada.com Editor-in-Chief and Politico Contributor Philippe J. Fournier; Toronto Star Ottawa Bureau reporter Raisa Patel; Toronto Star Ottawa Bureau reporter Ryan Tumilty; and Radio-Canada parliamentary bureau journalist Christian Noël. Hosted by Althia Raj. Some of the clips this week were sourced from CPAC, Fox News, CBC, CTV, Radio-Canada, Global News, CP24, Toronto Sun, the X accounts of Pierre Poilievre, Chrystia Freeland, and Mark Carney, and Poilievre's YouTube account. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Althia Raj and Julia De Laurentiis Johnston. Matt Hearn is our sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel.

14/02/2025

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42 min
31/01/2025

No traitors but many concerns: Foreign Interference Commission wraps up

Two years ago bombshell allegations emerged suggesting foreign actors were succeeding in influencing Canadian electoral contests and Canadian parliamentarians. Media reports suggested the Liberal government hadn't done enough to warn the public or even MPs about the matter, and a political debate emerged about how best to get to the bottom of it. After a series of false starts, it was Quebec Court of Appeal Justice Marie-Josée Hogue who was appointed to investigate and weigh in with findings and recommendations. Tuesday, Hogue issued her final report. While Hogue left some questions answered, she came to a very different finding on a key matter involving foreign interference and parliamentarians. This week on "It's Political," we unpack what we learned from Hogue's report and what it says about where foreign interference threats now lie. Then NDP MP Charlie Angus joins us to discuss what he see as the next and most concerning phase of foreign interference. Hint: it's at your fingertips. In this episode: The Center for International Governance Innovation's senior fellow Wesley Wark, Timmins—James Bay NDP MP Charlie Angus, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Public Safety Minister David McGuinty. Hosted by Althia Raj. Some of the clips this week were sourced from CPAC, CBC, Global, ABC and CTV. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Althia Raj and Kevin Sexton. Matt Hearn is our sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel.

31/01/2025

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42 min
13/06/2025

Our Defence Minister on threats, bigger budgets, and Canada's new relationship with the U.S.

Canada's Minister of National Defence David McGuinty joins Althia to discuss increases to the country's defense budget and what the relationship looks like with the U.S. going forward. Their conversation follows Prime Minister Mark Carney's announcement this week that Canada will greatly increase military spending to 2 per cent of GDP just as NATO allies get together later this month to discuss raising the bar to 5 per cent. We also speak to industry experts about just how integrated the Canadian and American militaries are, and what it would mean to become less reliant on the U.S. In this episode: Minister of National Defence David McGuinty; Centre for International Governance Innovation's visiting executive and former National Defence director general Raquel Garbers, University of Ottawa associate professor and former bureaucrat Peter Jones; Canadian Global Affairs Institute President and CEO David Perry. Hosted by Althia Raj. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Kevin Sexton and Althia Raj. Matt Hearn is our sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel. Some of the audio clips this week were sourced from CPAC, CBC, Canadian Press Gallery, C-SPAN, CNN, CTV, CBS, BBC and NATO News.

13/06/2025

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55 min
11/04/2025

Our "recovering partisans" on rallies and the press on the campaign trail

Pierre Poilievre held massive rallies in Alberta this week and received an endorsement from former Prime Minister Stephen Harper. But why is he spending precious campaign time in a province with solid Conservative support? We've also seen members of the media increasingly speaking out against the Conservative campaign for exerting too much control over the press. Our "recovering partisans" compare the parties' media strategies, weigh in on what the leaders' movements can tell us about the campaign, and look ahead to next week's debates. In this episode: David Christopherson, the former NDP MP for Hamilton Centre; Kristina Michaud, the outgoing Bloc Quebecois MP for Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia; Karen Vecchio, the outgoing Conservative MP for Elgin—Middlesex—London; and Senator Rodger Cuzner, the former Liberal MP for Cape Breton—Canso. Hosted by Althia Raj. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Althia Raj and Kevin Sexton. Matt Hearn is our sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel. Some of the audio clips this week were sourced from CPAC and CBC.

11/04/2025

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47 min
14/06/2024

Listener questions on the year's biggest politics stories

The spring sitting on Parliament Hill is coming to a close. There's been a lot to keep track of — the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, the introduction of a pharmacare bill, a federal budget that brought big changes to taxes on capital gains — not to mention intelligence reports of foreign interference. On June 3, a report from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) revealed that some elected officials were either unwitting or witting participants in foreign interference. Naturally, all this left listeners with a lot of questions. In the season finale of "It's Political," Toronto Star journalists and David Coletto of Abacus Data join to break down questions from listeners and readers. In this episode: CEO of Abacus Data David Coletto, Toronto Star Deputy Ottawa Bureau Chief Stephanie Levitz, Toronto Star Ottawa Bureau Chief Tonda MacCharles. Hosted by Althia Raj. Clips this week were sourced from the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery, CPAC, BNN, CBC, CTV, BBC, Sky News, and City News, Nate Erskine-Smith's Uncommons podcast. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Althia Raj and Michal Stein. Kevin Sexton mixed the program. Joy SpearChief-Morris assisted with production. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel.

14/06/2024

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53 min
10/03/2025

Mark Carney won the Liberal leadership. Next up? Trump, Poilievre and a likely early election

Mark Carney, the former Bank of Canada governor, trounced the competition Sunday winning the Liberal leadership with nearly 86 per cent support. Carney will become prime minister in the days ahead. He will appoint a new cabinet. And is widely expected to call a federal election campaign next week. In this bonus episode of "It's Political," the Toronto Star's national columnist Susan Delacourt joins Althia Raj to discuss Sunday's leadership event, from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's speech to Carney's big introduction to the country, whether former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland should be in cabinet and what to watch for in the days ahead. The clips this week were sourced from CPAC and CBC. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Althia Raj and Kevin Sexton, who also served as sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel.

10/03/2025

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27 min
28/01/2022

Does money make us happy?

Guests: Natasha Knox, principal of Alaphia Financial Wellness, and Mark Anielski, chief well-being officer at Anielski Management Does money make us happy? It can bring some to deep emotion and "psychological barriers" and a place of soul searching, questioning the difference one wants to make in the world and how money will get them there. Financial matters can even cause trauma. To explore this, Responsible Investing for a Sustainable Economy host Tim Nash talks to two fantastic guests. Natasha Knox, principal of Alaphia Financial Wellness, is a financial therapist who helps people move through deep emotions that serve as barriers to taking action on their financial plan. Mark Anielski, chief well-being officer at Anielski Management and host of The Economics of Well-Being podcast, explains the concept of genuine wealth and how governments need to start measuring what actually matters. Host Tim Nash is the Founder of Good Investing and has been a leader in responsible investing, impact investing, and the green economy for more than a decade.

28/01/2022

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28 min
22/05/2025

Blue Jays centerfielder Daulton Varsho, third baseman Addison Barger, Buffalo Bisons manager Casey Candaele and more

Guests: Blue Jays centerfielder Daulton Varsho, third baseman Addison Barger, Buffalo Bisons manager Casey Candaele This week, we talk to two of the players most consequential to the Jays' recent turnaround that has seen them win eight out of 12 games going into their May 22 series finale against the San Diego Padres. Daulton Varsho leads the team with seven home runs despite only having been active since the end of April. He joins us to talk about his power prowess, his ongoing recovery from shoulder surgery and his advice to his teammates who had been struggling offensively when he arrived. Addison Barger got a chance to play every day when Andres Gimenez got hurt and been one of the Jays' best hitters since then. He talks about his time on the shuttle back and forth from Buffalo, his power potential and his record-setting day in right field back in April. Also, we get the word on the Jays' to minor-league affiliate and the players down there who are on the verge of helping the big club from Bisons skipper Casey Candaele.

22/05/2025

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1h 1m
05/06/2025

Blue Jays associate manager DeMarlo Hale, plus A's outfielder Denzel Clarke

DeMarlo Hale, Athletics/Baseball Canada outfielder Denzel Clarke This week in Deep Left Field, we sit down with DeMarlo Hale for his thoughts on the Blue Jays season so far. Hale thinks a season is best looked over after each third, so we look back at the first third and forward to what he thinks the team can accomplish over the next couple of months. We also introduce you to Denzel Clarke, a Pickering native who had his coming out party at Rogers Centre on the weekend. While the Jays were sweeping his A's in four straight games, Clarke belted his first big-league home run, had his first career multi-hit game and dazzled on defence, including going up and over the center field wall to take a home run away from Alejandro Kirk.

05/06/2025

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1 hr
21/03/2025

Jordan Romano, Jays' pitcher Nick Sandlin, plus going through Mark Shapiro's spring training media session

Guests: Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jordan Romano, Blue Jays pitcher Nick Sandlin Blue Jays President Mark Shapiro held his annual spring training session with the media and we take you through what he had to say in painstaking detail. His confidence that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. would re-sign with the Jays, despite their failure to make a deal all winter, the state of the farm system, whether players like Daulton Varsho, Andres Gimenez and Alejandro Kirk need to hit better for the Jays to succeed and much more. Also, we head over to Phillies camp to check in with "the one who they let get away." Jordan Romano is thriving in his new digs. And meet the new guy – Nick Sandlin!

21/03/2025

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56 min

The Star Podcasts are part of the Toronto Star, a multi-platform news organization that informs, connects, investigates, reports and effects change. The purpose of the Toronto Star is to keep our audience informed about what matters most to them, to help make their life, community, country and world better.