The Ben Mulroney Show - All eyes were on the meeting between Mark Carney and Donald Trump

Episode Date: May 7, 2025

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Welcome to the Ben Mulrooney Show. Thank you so much for listening on CFPL in London or here on 640 in Toronto. You may be listening to us on the iHeartRadio app or at some point during the day, you may say to yourself, hey, I've got nothing to do. Why don't I listen to some segments that they've put up on the podcast networks.

Wherever you find us, however you find us, we're here and we love that you join us each and every day. So if you've listened to this show, you know that I get super excited on Wednesdays for a number of reasons. There's the Dilemma Panel, which is a lot of fun. We've got two great guests joining us today. We're also going to tackle one of my own dilemmas. But also, this is the day we talk to Craig Barrett of Canadian History X, because I love exploring all of the Canadian history that I am unfamiliar with and that we should all be more familiar with.

So that all the more reason I was excited for what I did yesterday after work, I got invited down to the Norton Rose Fulbright offices and Norton Rose Fulbright is one of Canada's premier law firms. I actually did a summer internship at their law firm in Quebec City before they became Norton Rose when they were Ogilvy-Reno, and that was my dad's law firm. And I got invited by the Historica Society. This is the group that does the Canadian Heritage Minutes, you know, the Dr. Penfield, I smell burnt toast. Well, they were celebrating their newest heritage minute. And this one was again about someone I didn't know,

Boor Alaskan, who was Canada's first Jewish Supreme Court Justice, Chief Justice rather, I'm sorry. And starring as Boor Alaskan was Victor Garber, the great Canadian actor, who himself is of Eastern European and Jewish extraction. And so this meant a great deal to him. But there are so many great people at this event from Tony Wilson Smith, who is the CEO of Historica,

as well as Walid Solomon, who's a global chair of the law firm. And he told his own personal story of becoming a lawyer. And, you know, his family came over from Egypt and Boralaskin was an idol of his. He looked to him as someone to emulate, as being the first of his religion to exceed the highest levels of the law.

He believed that he could do that himself. And of course he has. He's a wonderful man, a great friend, a tremendous lawyer. And a number of other great friends were there. I met Tom Harrington for the first time. He was formerly of CBC, who currently just retired. So congratulations to Tom on a great career and hopefully a great retirement.

And let's see, who else was there? Oh, yes, Aaron O'Toole, the former leader of the Conservative Party, who will be joining us at the end of the show today. You see how it all comes together? I always say, Toronto's a big city, but a small town. Anyway, so that's what happened with me yesterday. And by the way, if you're remotely interested,

go research the history of Boor Alaskan. He's a tremendous Canadian who we should all know. Yesterday was the day that we've been waiting for, for months and months and months. Finally, a prime minister with a mandate and probably some respect from, and some high approval ratings here in Canada going down to Washington. Mark Carney sat down for his first bilateral, his first face to face

with Donald Trump. And we've got a lot of ways we're going to unpack this today. But let's just go chronologically. At first, there's it started with a lot of flattery, right? Let's listen to Donald Trump and what he says, one of the first things he said to Mark Carney. Thank you very much, everybody. It's a great honor to have Prime Minister Mark Carney with us. As you know, just a few days ago, he won a very big election in Canada. And I think I was probably the greatest thing that happened to him, but I can't take a vote for that. His party was losing by a lot, and he ended up winning, so I really want to congratulate

him. Probably one of the greatest comebacks in the history of politics. Maybe even greater than mine. Let's continue with the Lovefest. Look, I have a lot of respect for this man, and I watched him come up, in a sense, through the ranks, when he wasn't given much of a chance. And he did it. He ran a really great campaign.

He did a really great debate. I think that debate was very helpful. I was going to raise my hand. I don't know if that's going to be it. I shouldn't say that. But that might hurt you. But no, he ran a really great election, I thought. And yeah, something could happen.

Something could happen. Okay, so that's the love coming from One Direction. Let's hear the love and flattery that left Mark Carney's lips and arrived at Donald Trump's ears. Thank you for your hospitality and above all for your leadership. You're a transformational president, the focus on the economy with a relentless focus on the American worker, securing your borders, ending the scourge of fentanyl and other opioids, and securing the world. And I've been elected

with my colleagues here, with the help of my colleagues here, I'm going to spread the credit, to transform Canada with a similar focus on the economy, securing our borders, again on fentanyl, much greater focus on defense and security, securing the Arctic and developing the Arctic. And the history of Canada and the US is we're stronger when we work together and there's many opportunities to work together and I look forward to addressing some of those issues that we have but also finding those areas of mutual cooperation. Alright so that's that's that those were the positive moments where they were

really they were really up in each other's grills in a in a it was a bromance forming I don't know what else was to call it. But then, as things typically do, they took a turn, they took a left turn into 51st state talk, and Mark Carney had something very definitive to say on that front. As you know from real estate, there are some places that are never for sale. That's true. We're sitting in one right now, you know, Buckingham Palace that you visited as well. That's true. And having met with the owners of Canada sale. We're sitting in one right now, you know Buckingham Palace that you visited as well. And having met with the owners of Canada over the course of the campaign last several months,

it's not for sale, won't be for sale ever. But the opportunity is in the partnership and what we can build together. We have done that in the past and part of that as the president just said is with respect to our own security And my government is committed for a step change in our investment in Canadian security and our partnership I must say Canada is stepping up the military Participation because Mark knew you know they were low and now they're stepping it up and that's a very important thing. But never say never, never say never. Look, first of all, I just want to editorialize for a split second here. That line, whoever wrote that line for Mark Carney about, you know, there are certain

places in real estate that are just not for sale, case in point, the White House, and having just visited with the owners of Canada, they agree with me. That brilliant line and a flawlessly delivered credit where credit is due, because you could see it resonated with the man, but not enough to change his mind. And I think Mark Carney had to had to double down on Canada's view on the 51st state. Let's listen to this one. This is not necessarily a one day deal. This is over a period of time. They have to make that decision.

Yes, go ahead. Yeah, if I may. Well, respectfully, Canadians' view on this is not going to change on the 51st day. Secondly, we are the largest client of the United States in the totality of all the goods. So we are the largest client of the United States. We have a tremendous auto sector between the two of us and the changes that may have been helpful.

You know, 50% of a car that comes from Canada is American. That's not like anywhere else in the world. And to your question about is there one thing, no, this is a bigger discussion. There are much bigger forces involved. And, and this will take some time and some discussions and that's why we're here. I appreciate the level set that he gave there. This is going to take a long time and so to me that's all good. That's all good. He did not get embarrassed. He did not get Zelinsky'd and he started a conversation that will take a while to get us to a place where we have a deal that that that Donald Trump can live with even though he he's the one who wrote the last deal and signed the last deal. So we've got much much more to get to in the next break. We're

going to take your calls later because there is one issue that I take with this entire meeting. And we're going to break that down and then take your calls after the break right here on the Ben Mulroney show. Hi, I'm Donna Friesen from Global National. Life moves fast these days and we want to make it even easier for you to get the news you need. That's why you can now get Global National every day as a podcast. The biggest stories of the day with analysis

from award-winning global news journalists. New episodes drop every day, so take this as your personal invitation to join us on the Global National podcast. You can find it on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you find your favorite podcasts. Well, no bad blood between Mark Carney and Donald Trump in their first face-to-face in the White House yesterday.

By and large, it was, I think, what Mark Carney set out to accomplish, which was to normalize relationships, the relationship between Ottawa and Washington. And I think the simple fact that he's not Justin Trudeau accomplished a great much of that. Like, that got him 90% of the way there. He even said as much. He didn't like Governor Trudeau, and now he likes Mark Carney. So there you go.

Didn't have to do much to do that. But before we take your calls, I want to play two pieces of audio for you. I want you to cast your eyes and your ears back to the election campaign. And I want you to listen to the world that Mark Carney pitched himself in as the leader that we needed because this was the reality before us. Pay very close attention. And remember, this was just a few short weeks ago and this was being drummed into our heads every day. The world economy is fundamentally changed. The relationship, the relationship we had with the Americans, these guys weren't wrong. They want us to be the 50 first state.

They want to break us. They want to break us so they can own us. They want, they want our resources. They want our water. They want our land. They want our country. Okay, so square that with this. Thank you for your hospitality and above all for your leadership. You're a transformational president, the focus on the economy with a relentless focus on the American worker, securing your borders, providing ending the scourge of fentanyl and other opioids and, and securing the world.

All right, so I want to hear from you at 416-870-6400 or 1-888-225. Talk, what's your reaction to how Mark Carney acquitted himself with Donald Trump? Did he leave you feeling more optimistic about our future relationship? Or, actually two things can be true at once. Are you upset that he campaigned on the imminent threat of annexation, of having a belligerent relationship with a threatening president? And then he goes down and heaps praise on the president calling him a transformational leader. And thank you for everything that you're doing to for the American worker and to get rid of the scourge of fentanyl and and I mean you know give me your sense because look the

reason Mark Carney is in that chair is because I in my humble opinion he scared enough people that this relationship was over it was over But thank goodness Mark Carney was here because he was going to go down there and he was going to defend us in a way that nobody else could. And what I saw yesterday was somebody kissing the ring, flattering the king. Right? And everybody does that. What Mark Carney did yesterday was great. I think it was better than what Trudeau would have done but was

Was mark Carney the only guy who could do that? I don't think so I think Pierre poliev would have pulled off a very similar move, but that's not the bill of goods that mark Carney sold us Mark Carney sold us on his unique ability to do something down there that nobody else could. And you'll also remember he was very pointed in his criticism of Pierre Poliev. He's gonna bend the knee. He's gonna kiss the ring. Tell me what you did yesterday, Mark Carney, wasn't that? You see what I'm getting at here? He's...

He pulled a bait and switch. That's... It's the bait and switch. It's as simple as that. Now that does not take away from what I think was a successful meeting. But with the context of the election that was just a few short days ago, my head's spinning. I'm getting whiplash over the tale of two carnies

and the tale of two relationships. I thought they wanted to own us. And meanwhile, you're like, no, no, I mean, you gotta pick a lane. And I think you're trying to have it both ways. And so I'm giving it to you both ways. I'm giving you successful meeting, but I don't like how you got there, man.

Let's welcome David to the Ben Mulroney show. I gotta admit, I thought in the beginning he did a little bit better. He came out and he said his little piece about some real estate's not for sale. Yeah, that was a great line. Which is a nice line, but we're not talking about a single building here.

We're talking about a merger of countries, which is completely different. Well, it wouldn't be a merger, it'd be a takeover. Well, in essence too, but I mean, if we're economically distraught and we're held over the barrel economically distraught and we're, we're held over the barrel economically, that's going to be the outcome. But what I thought was more pressing was the second half of the second, two thirds of the entire interview.

Yeah. It was totally controlled by Trump. Yeah. And which, which it's okay. He's got the home and court advantage. He's in the Oval Office, but Carney kept sitting there like a kid, like trying to get up, please, like he's got putting his hand up quick. Yeah. Wouldn't raise his voice. He's in the office but Carney kept sitting there like a kid like trying to get please sir Like he's got putting his hand up. Great. Yeah, wouldn't raise his voice Trump controlled that thing right from like that

Absolutely. And look like I said, I don't know that anybody else would have done it any other way Like that's you play it safe in that moment and I get that however we That's not how it was framed by the victor of this election. We were told that the other guy was gonna go down and do just this. Don't elect Pierre Poliev because he's gonna go down and flatter the man and tell him what he wants to hear and he's gonna he's gonna kiss the ring and bow at his feet. Well that's with all due respect, that's what Mark Carney did yesterday and there's nothing wrong due respect. That's what Mark Carney did yesterday. And

there's nothing wrong with that. Of course you got to do that with him. But that's not what you sold us. You're in that chair because you said you were going to do it differently. And I might be nitpicking. I don't think I am, but let's, let's see what others have to say. Joe, welcome to the show. Am I, am I off base here? No, I agree with you a thousand percent. I mean, this really says a lot about Canadians. It doesn't say a lot about Trump. I mean, we have 80% of our commerce going to the states. That relationship was never going to change at all. It's all about the narrative. It's, you know, the fairy tale that a lot of Canadians bought into. I think any competent leader

would do exactly what Carney did. And that's what Poliev said that he was going to do. You're not going to antagonize Trudeau. But you know this whole narrative of the orange ogre coming up from the South to invade us was misleading Canadians and a lot of Canadians bought into that. Yeah and thank you for saying that. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who recognizes it was a positive meeting, but the reason you're in that chair, sir,

is because you said you were gonna do it differently than that, and I think that needs to be called out. So let's welcome Don to the show. Don, welcome to the show. Hey, how are you doing today? I'm well, thank you. So what did you think of yesterday? We sent Carney in there to put a leash on a rabid dog.

And basically, I think he failed. You gotta look at the fact that Trump got to speak for over 25 minutes in that meeting and Carney spoke for less than five. Yeah. But it was a whole press conference for Donald Trump. And luckily, Carney got out of there without having a Zelinsky type meeting. Absolutely. And he left with most of the fingers on his hand.

He's resulted in a meeting that happened later on, which we have no idea what happened that luncheon. And as Carney said last time, they had a luncheon and he had a phone call and everything. That phone call was really nice. And we found out later it wasn't all that nice. And yet again, he came out with the same line on top of the consulate office and said that it was a great meeting again, but we have no idea what was said. The proof is going to be in the pudding. We will see what the fruits of these meetings and negotiations are later.

I can't comment on that. None of us can because we weren't there. We're going to find out when we find out what we were present for was a press conference that we were told our new prime minister was going to do differently because we were told this is how Pierre Poliev was going to react. That's why they didn't elect him because he was going to bow the bow to the king. And I'm sorry, that's what we saw in this meeting. Now it was the right thing to do, but that's not why your prime minister today.

But thank you very much for the call. We got time for one more right now. Let's welcome George to the show. Hey, good morning, Ben. Good morning. We said this was a switch in bait and he fooled the Canadian people. Donald Trump, if you've seen what soon as he took presidency, he's laid out two roads for anybody that goes into that office. It's the Zelinsky road or my road. And that's what people are doing. They're picking his

road. Yeah, of course. Unfortunately, Donald Trump is not a Canadian goer, so Carney can't pull the wool over his eye. This is going to be something that only time can tell. Like Tom said. Yeah, you're right. You're right. Hey, George, thank you so much.

And for everybody who is still on the line, please wait there because we're going to take more of your calls on this after the break right here on The Ben Mulroney Show. Welcome back to The Ben Mulroney Show. And we're still talking Carney. It's not Carney versus Trump. It was Carney. Carney hearts Trump and Trump hearts Carney. It was an interesting meeting.

I think there's some really great takeaways, but it has to, we have to have an honest conversation in the context of the election, right? It was a hard fought election. It was the most consequential election that we've had. It mattered, right? We were told it mattered. And we were told that this meeting was going to go a particular way because Mark Carney is different

than Pierre Poliev. However, there is no doubt in my mind that if Pierre Poliev had been in that meeting, he would have done the exact same thing, which then tells me Mark Carney is not a special breed. He recognizes that there's only one way to play Donald Trump, which tells me we were sold a bill of goods in the election and he pulled a bait and switch. That's my take. I wanna hear from you at 416-870-6400 or 1-888-225. Talk, who do we start with?

Hey David, welcome to the Ben Mulroney show. Good morning, Ben. Thanks for taking my call. Yep. I agree with you 100%. I think to me, it just reminded me of a little schoolboy sitting there in short pants waiting for his turn to talk to the teacher.

Well, no, no, and listen, David, and stick with me here. I am not suggesting it wasn't a positive meeting. I am, I'm happy it went the way it did. I think this is the beginning of a more productive and positive relationship with Donald Trump than we ever had under Justin Trudeau. What I am suggesting is in the broader context of the election that was just prosecuted,

the guy who sat there was not the guy who won the election. The guy who won the election was our leader in a crisis who was gonna do things differently. And this is not different. This is the same as anybody would have done. What do you think of that? Well, I tend to agree. I mean, there's two ways to attack a confrontation.

You either go in there with a lot of bravado, like the Trump era kind of thing, or you go in there and you just sit and listen to his rant, and then you come out with your plans and everything else after and make them look silly. I did take umbrage though, if that's the proper term, with his phrase, I talked to the owners of Canada and they say it's not for sale. Now, I know a lot of conspiracy theorists that are going to say, well, that's the people who actually own it, all the oligarchs that have it. No, no, that's a Brie David. No, it was a cute turn of phrase to play off of the sort of Canada's not for sale and the off of the the the sort of Canada's not

for sale and the owners of Canada are the people of Canada. And he just exactly and that's exactly what I said to my other half is that she you know and I said what are you talking about? It's the people of Canada. It was a great line. It was a great line. I was I was happy that our prime minister. Look I said there's a and thank you for the call David.

There's a lot to like in this meeting. I am not sitting here saying that Mark Carney didn't do a great job because he did. I'm just suggesting that given the broader context of the election that we just had, that's not what we were promised. And that's not what got him elected. Let's welcome Melissa to the show.

Hi, Ben. Hi. How you doing today? I am pretty wild up. I am so riled up over this. Tell me why. First of all, we were told that our relationship with the Americans was over. Right, I know. It was completely over. Why can't Trump come to Canada, Ben? Well, no, no, listen. He's a felon. He can't cross the border. So it's to his advantage that our government counterparts go to him and he sends his crony government counterparts to us. But he can't cross the border. So it's to his advantage that I'm in those things.

No, well, he can't cross. They're going to let him come. He's going to come to the G7 summit in Cananascis, Alberta. That's happening. Well, I mean, it's to his advantage that Carney went to his house, quote unquote. Carney presents himself as a humble man, as someone who's going to show that respect. But my other point is how many times that conversation stated also, how many times did Trump say that he talked to Carney before the elections?

Multiple times. We were only privy to one conversation. I didn't catch that. They said they talked multiple times. Yeah, Trump said it. All right, Melissa, thank you. I didn't catch that. That they said they talked multiple. I didn't catch it. Well, thank you. All right, Melissa. Thank you. Before the election, we will dig into that a little bit later. Thank you for highlighting that for us. Let's who do we who do we have next?

We've got Edward. Edward, welcome to the show. Hey, thanks for taking my call. I would concur with you, Ben. I thought Carney said all the right things. Kissed the ring. Yep. But what I would say is that you're not going to be able to do that.

You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. You're not going to be able to do that. I concur with you, Ben. I thought Carney said all the right things, kissed the ring. Yep. But what, and the liberals are the master of the spin. The only topic was us becoming the 51st state and Trump and tariffs.

Nothing was talked about besides that. Yeah, well, I think, well, I mean, listen, to his credit, I mean, Donald Trump said that we are we have been we have been taking our national defense more seriously. And and that is that is, I mean, it's about time. That's not I don't think that's a feather in anybody's cap, because it's a blemish on our national character that we have been derelict in that duty for so long. But he posited it as a positive thing.

But yeah, I mean, that's, and look, that was the public facing part of the meeting. We don't know what happened behind closed doors. I'm sure they rolled up their sleeves and they had some more, I have to assume that they had some really honest conversations behind closed doors. But in that moment, you got to give Donald Trump his what he wants, which is the spotlight

and let him talk, maybe tuck her himself out a little bit so that you can then jump into the sort of more meaty conversations behind closed doors. But thank you so much for that call. Hey, Ben, welcome to the Ben Mulroney show. Good morning. That entire meeting that you know, million dollars spent to fly down there and put on the circus can be summed up by that one last question by the reporter, which

was, Mr. President, will you remove the tariffs on Canada? Yeah, you know, yeah. And he answered with a big fat no. So so the if this is like a an abusive relationship, the amount of gaslighting that the liberals and Carney do, they say one thing, they accuse other things, and then they do the opposite. It's unbelievable. Yeah, we already knew that none of none of this would make a difference. Trump's gonna do what he's gonna do.

Trump's gonna do we can do it regardless of who was in office. And therefore that the fact that Mark Carney was supposed to be some special guy who's going to come in and do things in a way that nobody else could. I mean, that doesn't hold water for me. And is he responsible? Is he smart? Is he good in negotiations? I'm sure he is, but no more so than what anybody else would be. And it's not like he got any concessions that somebody else would have been unable to get. So to me, there's, yeah, there's a lot of, there was a lot of spin and there was a lot of

convincing people of a reality that didn't actually exist in the election campaign. But look, it's early days, I could be proven wrong. We'll have to see. Frank, welcome to the show. You think he did a great job. I think he did a fine job. And I think, Ben, what he was doing was playing to the American population, you know, high visibility. You know, you get in the empathy from the Americans.

This is a nice guy. And you know, in spite of the fact that Trump got negatives, there are some positives. As a leader and towards his base, he's an effective leader. I don't see any issue or problem with Carney having raised those points for the purposes of number one, establishing a relationship with Trump, because Trump has this uncanny ability to go against and retaliate against anyone that criticizes him. So he's building some basis for a relationship. And I think you raised that great point.

Behind the scenes, the dynamics and how the negotiations take place will probably be a different approach altogether. And this is where we hope Carney's background in economics kind of forces issues. Yeah, exactly. And like I said, we all want him to succeed here. You don't have to be a liberal to want Mark Carney to succeed in building a positive relationship with Donald Trump. His success in those negotiations is everyone's success.

And I want that. I just can't get away from everything that was said on the election campaign that led him to becoming prime minister. We chose him over the other guy for very specific reasons. And I don't want us to forget those reasons because accountability matters. And what you say in an election, you want to hold people to what they say. You want them to be honest and honest brokers and you want them to get elected based on, you know, true factual things. And I just at first blush, I someone's gonna have to convince me that what we saw in that

meeting was what was promised to us on the election campaign. Who do we have next? We've got Mike, Mike, welcome to the show. Hey, Ben, thanks. I think you're currently wrong. And I think this conversation is a little too early to be had. Okay. And just for the straight fact in business and anything which this is a business negotiation, you always feel out who you're going to be sitting across from, what the business is about and

anything else. Yep. Right. We all know what Trump's going to do and say depending how you react. So they're feeling each other out. Nobody's going to show their cards in a room full of people in press. That's 100% certain. When they asked Trump straight out, are you going to drop tariffs? No. What we thought he was going to say, yeah, that changes the dynamic and gives Carney the leverage. It's way too early.

Now two, three meetings from now, it starts to go sideways. It's not what was advertised during the campaign. That's a different story, but both of those guys are feeling each other out, seeing what they're gonna say, pull things across from it. Just like all the round tables on US media yesterday were picking at things Carney said, things that Trump said. Does that mean he's gonna bend this way? Does that mean he's gonna bend that way? That's what it's all about. It's way too early to have this conversation. Well, as far as I'm concerned, it's never too early to have any conversation.

But Mike, I appreciate your insight. I appreciate your perspective. And thanks to everybody. Welcome back to the Ben Mulry show. I want to talk about what a new survey suggesting is the real problem in the affordability crisis and the issues with home ownership. There are over one third of Canadians say that the actual down payment in when they buy a house is what's blocking their dream of home ownership. And just for context, if

the purchase price of your home is 500 K or less, then the minimum amount of the down payment has to be 5% of the purchase price. Who's buying a house for half a million bucks? They practically don't exist. And if they do, hey, like, what are they looking like? I've watched those videos of, do you want to buy a castle in Europe? Or what can you get for a price? What can you get for the price of a castle in Europe in Canada? And the conversion is stark. OK, so 500,000 means 5% of the purchase price. Between 500,000 and 1.5 million, that's 5% of the first 500,000.

And then 10% for the portion above 500,000. And in anything over one and a half million is 20% of the purchase price. But here's the problem. The problem is rent is so high as well that people are preferring rentals over buying a house because at least it gives them flexibility and they don't feel the onus and the burden of the heavy handedness of these high down payments.

And so what you have then, the people who can afford these are speculators and people who can buy multiple homes. So we're keeping people out of the market who should be getting into the market, which then leads to the question I wanna pose to you at 416-870-6400 or 1-888-225-TALK, is it time to lower the threshold again for down payments? People are paying, like I said, people are paying rents that are the same as mortgages.

So who are we protecting by making the barrier of entry so high? And I know there's some people who say, well, if it weren't for that high barrier to entry, then you'd have people buying homes they can't afford. But there are people who want to get in, but they can't get in because the onus is too high. And look, I was lucky to get in to the home ownership market. I mean, I bought a condo 20 some odd years ago, right? And I'm so glad I did because I was able to move up the ladder at a way that was affordable for me. And so I want to hear from you. Are you renting? And the only thing stopping you from buying the house is the down payment. Like, what are your thoughts? Are you somebody who is itching to get into the home buyer market, but you are stymied because it's just too high of a hill to climb. Give us a call at 416-870-6400 or 1-888-225-TALK. I mean, the numbers in this are

really scary. They're saying, you know, one third of Canadians, around 32%, say the down payment is the main barrier, but other key findings, 30% of respondents, so practically the same number, highlighted mortgage payment costs as their main obstacle. So you got 32% that say the down payment's the issue, you got another 30% that say that mortgage payment costs are the main obstacle. And only 10% indicated a preference

towards the flexibility of renting compared to owning a home. It's just that they're forced into it. And this really goes to the question, like, do we have a system optimized for the reality of Canadians today? I don't know that that's true. 43% of the people surveyed highlighted the high cost of living as the number one factor challenging their finances. 14% cited paying down debt.

I mean, affordability is affecting us in so many different ways. But we all know that the idea of owning a home, it's the Canadian dream. Whether it's your Canadian dream or not, it's been the belief for generations that that is definitional to us being successful and secure. Shane, welcome to the show.

What do you think? Hey, Ben, how are you? I'm well, thanks. I think it's a great idea. I think, cause I have three children who are trying to get into the home ownership and they can't afford a down payment. But if you're gonna cut the down payments,

but it should only be for first time home buyers, not for people who already own homes, because you're gonna get those people saying, hey, now I'm gonna buy the home. I can make the down payments even cheaper. They're going to buy more homes. Well, and I think you're right. I mean, I think that's that absolutely the minimum that should be done. Because, look, like I said, I was lucky to get in 20 some odd years ago into the into the market. It would, you know, if recognizing that getting me into the market is key, because once you're in, you're more likely to stay in, right?

You'll build up equity in your home. And then if your home, if your needs change, you can take a step up that home buyers market and buy a bigger place, but you gotta get in first. So I appreciate that. Thank you so much for the call. Hey Jen, welcome to Ben Mulroney show. Hi there. Hi.

So we bought, my husband and I moved from Ontario to New Brunswick. We have two homes, one in St. John, one in Sussex. We have now our, my daughter and her partner and her lovely partner, he and his children, they're all living in the St. John home and we bought it. It was all done up as an interior designer, home to home. So it's absolutely gorgeous. And now they're paying all the expenses because they can't afford to buy a house.

Yeah, yeah. And so- And it's a gorgeous home. Yeah, so if there was a way to get them in the market by lowering that barrier to entry, that down payment, once they're in, you know, once they're in, they want to be they're going to care for the home, they're going to spend on the home, they're going to invest in the home. And then once you're in, you know, you're in more or

less, I mean, I'm not suggesting everybody who buys a home stays in that home. But thank you for the call. And let's welcome Frank to the Ben Mulroney show. Frank, where do you land on this in this debate? You there? Yes, I am. Frank, you there? Yeah, I'm here. Well, I mean, if you look at the situation, the banking situation and what our governments have implemented these obstacles to buy a homeowner a home in the last 10 years, they can make these young people homeowners. It's almost done intentionally. We have economists. We have the greatest bankers, apparently, you know the Bank of Canada is gonna be there forever. Why don't they make it the economy

so these young people can afford homes? I mean, you heard the old saying, you'll own nothing and be happy, they want you to rent everything. That, I mean, you people have to start realizing Canada is not its own country anymore. It's part of the global elite, it's part of globalism, and we're gonna follow their doctrine.

If they wanted people to own homes, they would have. Okay, it's that simple. Oh, I don't think I don't think it is that simple, Frank. But I appreciate it. Thank you for your candor on that. I don't think it is that simple. I think there's, you know, that we with the housing crisis that dominated the world economy for so long, you know, Canada weathered that storm fairly well, we took certain steps to buttress against,

you know, the speculation that led to the housing market collapse in the United States. We didn't have that here because we were, we erred on the side of being more conservative and more careful. And I think we're gun-shy. I think we're really worried that that could ever happen again. Possibly a little too worried. And now I think it might be time to course correct.