The Ben Mulroney Show - Best of the Week Part 2 - Warren Kinsella, Tasha Kheiriddin, Craig Baird

Episode Date: April 19, 2025

Best of the Week Part 2 - Warren Kinsella, Tasha Kheiriddin, Craig Baird Guests: Warren Kinsella, Tasha Kheiriddin, Craig Baird, Brad Smith, Mike Drolet If you enjoyed the podcast, tell a friend! For more of the Ben Mulroney Show, subscribe to the podcast! https://globalnews.ca/national/program/the-ben-mulroney-show Follow Ben on Twitter/X at https://x.com/BenMulroney Enjoy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Okay, Martin, let's try one. Remember, big. You got it. The Ford It's a Big Deal event is on. How's that? Uh, a little bigger. The Ford It's a Big Deal event. Nice. Now the offer? Lease a 2025 Escape Active all-wheel drive from 198 bi-weekly at 1.99% APR for 36 months with $27.55 down. Wow, that's like $99 a week.

Yeah, it's a big deal. The Ford It's a Big Deal event. Visit your Toronto area Ford store or Ford.55 down. Wow, that's like $99 a week. Yeah, it's a big deal. The Ford It's a Big Deal event. Visit your Toronto area Ford store or Ford.ca today. Breaking news, a brand new game is now live at Bet365. Introducing Prize Matcher, a daily game that's never ordinary. All you have to do is match as many tiles as you can. And the more you match, the better.

We also have top table games like our incredible Super Spin Roulette, Blackjack, and a huge selection of slots. So there you have it. How more you match the better. We also have top table games like our incredible super spin roulette, blackjack and a huge selection of slots. So there you have it. How can you match that? Check out prize matcher and see why it's never ordinary at bet 365. Must be 19 year old or Ontario only please play responsibly if you are someone you know as concerns about gambling visit connexontario.ca T's and Z supply. Welcome to the Ben Mulroney show best of the week

podcast. We had so many great conversations this week, including insights into what an election war room looks like. Plus, our dilemma panel was full of laughs and entertainment. Enjoy. Welcome to the dilemma panel. No question is too awkward. No problem too petty. And no opinion goes unchallenged. Our panel of overthinkers is here to dissect, deliberate, and sometimes derail the conversation entirely.

Grab your popcorn. This isn't just advice. It's a front row seat to life's most hilariously relatable train wrecks. Here's your host, Ben Mulroney. Welcome back to the Ben Mulroney show and welcome back to the Dilemma Panel because here's a fact for you, ladies and gentlemen. The candidates presenting themselves in this election are going to look down the barrel of the camera during these debates and they're gonna tell you that they have the solution to your problems. They can solve your problems. Baloney, as Veronica Corningstone has said,

grade A baloney. We here at the Dilemma Panel are the ones who will solve your problems. And of course we need to hear from you. We need to know what your problems are. Feel free to email us at any point at askben at chorus and dot com and joining me for the I want to say 85th time is Brad Smith the host of the Big Bake on the Food Network former host of Chopped Canada first contestant of Bachelor Canada former CFL player and

also Bon Vivant on radio. Listen I'm big shoes to fill Ben even sitting in that chair. Now I know why you have it propped up three feet above us. Yes, it's a position of dominance. And Mike Drolet, producer, and as well, he's a fill-in host here at Chorus. Mike, welcome to the show for the first time. Thank you very much. I'm just wondering, where are the dilemma PhDs for the wall?

Yeah, good question. You need to be a master of paperwork to be able to show the- Why are we solving your issues? We need... I just need the paperwork. Hey, I studied at the School of Hard Knocks. As you can see by my... Selling house.

As my delicate features can attest. Alright, let's jump into the first dilemma here. Dear Ben, I live with a roommate in a two-bedroom apartment, and when we moved in, we agreed to split everything 50-50. Rent, utilities, chores, the whole deal. Lately though, his girlfriend has basically moved in without any discussion. She's here almost every night, using our utilities, sharing our food, and taking up common space. She even showers here and does her laundry regularly.

I wouldn't mind occasional visits, but this has turned into a third person living here full-time without paying a cent. I brought it up with my roommate, but he brushed it off saying, she quote, just likes being around. I'm starting to feel like I'm subsidizing their relationship Is it unreasonable to expect her to contribute to the rent or utilities? And how can I approach this without turning my living situation into a constant argument signed Ian Mike? You're new to the dilemma introduce yourself with a solve here. Well, let me tell you I've had this situation I had this when I was in university

I had a roommate whose girlfriend was there all the time. And it was awkward. It was super awkward. You go in the living room and they just sort of quietly just sort of stare at you until you left. Because I was like, ah. So I probably didn't handle it well because I went in my room and I cranked music on my stereo.

Not passive aggressive. No, it wasn't passive aggressive. But I found out that the real issue wasn't even the fact that she was there all the time. Um, she mentions that he mentions in his, uh, things that she's there showering. It's the long hair because then all of a sudden the drain gets filled because you have so many more people there. And uh, you know, it's, it's, it's disgusting. It's horrible.

See, I think it depends on your relationship. Cause I had this in the CFL. I lived with a guy who actually played my position. We played the same position, same team for five years and his girlfriend lived with us. And because our relationship was so good, I loved it. Yeah. I loved when Kelly was over all the time. I didn't care about the, the monetary factor.

She just brought great energy and love and life into our like little home. And it just made me so happy and it made Tyler happy. So that's why I love to be, you know, but I can see, you know, I'm going to speak directly to Ian. Ian, your, your roommate's girlfriend is a mooch. You have, you had explicitly laid out that you guys would be splitting everything 50 50 without any conversation about this, this girl, you need to push this on, you need to push this, you need to have a, and if

it means having a meeting with her there to guilt her into realizing she's a mooch, do so. Listen, we're living in a, in a, in a, in an affordability crisis. I don't know what your, what your situation is Ian, but I have to assume that because you have a roommate and you've agreed to these terms, it's because you take your finances seriously. And if he's gonna be cavalier with your money, then you need to highlight that for him. Especially if she's there all the time. Yeah, yeah, I think so.

And maybe keep a running tab for a few days and say, this is what I've observed over the past few days. I'm just looking for other- There's a lot of passive aggressive tendencies right here. You're gonna keep a list? That's not passive aggressive. That's research. That's research to drop like a truth bomb in the living room. When you open up that little booklet with all this is what I've noticed. You start like itemizing stuff. Yeah, that's when you're made a rubric of the last three days here.

I got to wonder, could things be made better if by highlighting that maybe she cleans up a little bit or cooks a little bit or I don't know, does some of the chores that just makes life a little easier. Roommates is a relationship, just a different form of it and you have to have communication. So if Ian's sitting there and not communicating properly what he wants, that's his issue until he communicates. Well, it looks like he has already, he's got to push this issue. You have the moral high ground, man. Use it.

All right, dilemma two. This is a classic Reddit, am I the a-hole for not waking my husband up for his once in a lifetime job interview. Okay, so this happened last week and my husband is still mad at me. I'm 29 and my husband is 32. We've been married for three years and together for six.

My husband has been looking for a job for months. He finally landed a job interview with a company he's been obsessed with since college. The interview was scheduled for 7.30 a.m. on Zoom. The night before, he was playing video games, staying up late. I reminded him twice to get some sleep and he didn't listen, staying up until 2 a.m.

Sure enough, that morning I woke up at quarter to seven and he was knocked out cold. He didn't get up and I refused to wake him up. I was annoyed that he didn't take personal responsibility. He's saying I'm in the wrong because this job was important for both of us, but I think it's all on him for not being responsible enough to go to bed early.

Oh my God, there's a lot to unpack. There's a lot to unpack. All right, Brad. What's the name of this person? It doesn't say. Oh, it doesn't say? Well, this person is dating a man child. Having been there before in my life, I remember,

Ben, the first time you ever interviewed me on the CSA red carpet after the bachelor, you asked the girl that I got engaged to, what's life like after? And she looked at you in her eyes, like in your eyes, and said, well, his call of duty kill ratio is going up. Yeah.

If this guy, if this job was so important where it's a life-changing job, how don't you wake up for it? How don't you get to sleep the night before and you're prepping for the job that you important where it's a life-changing job, how don't you wake up for it? How don't you get to sleep the night before and you're prepping for the job that you want for your entire life? Yeah, if it's that important, I agree. First off, sometimes that Grand Theft Auto or Call of Duty, you can't turn it off. I

mean, it's not letting you turn it off. But also, you know, married couples have these lesson things that they try to impart on each other. Yeah. You know, you think about dishes and stuff. Well, you know, there's times when it's like, my wife and daughters leave the dishes out all the time, so I refuse to put them away and it'll be three days, they'll just be sitting there and that'll be my lesson.

But there's some things I think, like a dream job, where I think you have to overlook the lesson and be the better partner. Yeah, do you want to be happier? Do you want to be right? Or do you want to be right? This seems like a toxic relationship though, if you don't know why I like to be right though.

They both, the two of these people, I don't even think they were mature. I don't know, they- Do you imagine though? 29 and 32, I would have said 19 and 22. Ben, do you imagine having your dream job and yes, you oversleep, whatever the parameters are the night before

and your wife doesn't wake you up in the morning? This wife wanted to be right. And now her husband is jobless, right? Like that's okay, congratulations on the peer. You made it worse. You made it worse. Thank you for the lesson. And by the way, I concede to her,

she's married to, you know, Will Ferrell from Wedding Crashers. Ma, me love! I never know what she's doing back there. Yeah. So I get that. I get that. But you picked him. You picked him. Yeah.

So you dance with the one that brung you. And you were already up. So you are in the wrong. You are in the wrong. Your husband's an idiot. Well, both of them are. Your husband's an idiot. And you're wrong.

So there you go. The lemmas. He can't do anything about being an idiot. But she can actually do anything about being an idiot, but she can actually do something about being petty. Okay, we're going to go through this one very quickly. All right. Dear Ben, my younger brother recently asked me to co-sign on a car loan for him. Uh-oh, this is not going to be good.

He says he needs a reliable vehicle to get to work and help him get his life on track. And he swears he'll make the payments on time. The thing is, I love my brother, but he doesn't have the best track record when it comes to money. He's bounced checks, missed bills, and once even had his phone shut off because he didn't pay it for months. I really want to support him, but I'm also worried that if he misses the payments or

defaults, it'll destroy my credit. Am I being selfish or just realistic? How do I say no without wrecking our relationship? Is there an epidemic of man, manchild-ism going on? Yep. Cause long story short, my, my sister, one

summer when I was working in Montreal, I was traveling from Hudson to Montreal. It's about an hour in. And she gave me her car for the summer. I made every single payment, paid the gas, made sure it was clean, and made sure it was the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me. That's what you have to do for people. And a way to pump your own tires and not solve a problem here.

Drill Lake, your turn. I'm telling you, I'm going to add to the man-child mystery here, because I think his tactic should be to just act. When I asked him the question, act like he didn't hear it. And it works. Sadly, I've done this before in relationships and stuff. And there's when you're thinking about your answer and you're just there's that pause and there is a point where you've waited too long to answer. So then you just have to act like you didn't hear it. I would say your, your, your, um, your, your brother is playing on your kindness. Do not allow him to take advantage of you. Tell him, he's a little brother. Tell him to kick rocks and go find a way to pay for his own damn car. Um, all right.

More of our dilemma panel. When we continue, including, have you ever want to spoil a surprise party on purpose? We discussed that next on the Ben Mulroney show welcome back to the Ben Mulroney show and welcome back to the public service announcement portion of the show it's the dilemma where you tell us your problems and we solve them for you you're welcome welcome back Brad Smith and Mike Drolet guys thanks so much it's been a lot of fun thus far you're welcome yeah to you as well and to both of you you're welcome and I appreciate that thank you so much enough with's been a lot of fun thus far. You're welcome. Yeah. To you as well and to both of you, you're welcome. Yeah, and I appreciate that. Thank you so much. Enough with the chit chat. Our job is not done.

Okay, let's go. We have problems to solve. Kick rocks, Ben. Kick rocks. Dear Ben's panel, prom is coming up and my teenage daughter just told me she and her friends are planning to get a hotel room for the night instead of coming home afterwards. Flag on the play. She says, quote, everyone is doing it. And that it's just to hang out, take pictures

and celebrate the end of high school. Oh God. She promises there won't be any drinking or anything quote bad going on, but I'm not naive. I remember what prom night was like when I was a teen. And honestly, the idea of a group of unsupervised teens in a hotel room makes me very uncomfortable. I trust my daughter,

but I don't necessarily trust the situation. I told her I'd prefer she come home after the dance. And now she says I'm being overprotective and ruining her prom experience. The hard part is she's using it against me that I trusted her brother to grab a hotel a few years ago. I think it's different for boys and girls and I have to be more protective. Help me out of a tough situation. Signed, Jeff. Mike. Oh my, I've got a 12 year old daughter and that just gave me, no, she's not anywhere near that stage yet. And I'm just, I, I, I'm shaking now because I I've terrified of that. I, that idea,

but having to have that conversation. And all I know is this, when we were in school and we were going to prom, it is a far different world and the kids are into much more, they're far more sexualized, it's scary. Yeah. I would say, I would say, lock her up. Yeah. See, you made the problem of letting your son do this before. So you set a precedent so that your daughter, but Ben, I think we grew up the same way. Do you think that my dad and my mom ever let me even contemplate the idea of being in a hotel room after prom.

My mom showed up at our after party at 10 30 and brought me walked into the party, grabbed my hand and walked me out in front of everybody. Listen, I'm going to say something. Oh, yes. I was not allowed. They were strict. I was not allowed to have any sort of fun after 10. I think parents can do what they want. They can treat their kids any way they want. I have been living in a world with a steady diet of stories that I have been sharing with the public for years that, I'm sorry, the world does not treat women the way it treats men.

And when alcohol is involved and a private setting is involved, and who knows what's going on. Especially young women too. Yes, don't tell me that the stories that I read about intimate partner violence and aggressive boys and alcohol leading to bad outcomes, don't tell me that I have to shut that off and treat my daughter the way I treat my son.

They're so young. My job is to raise my kids to be, raise my sons to be better versions of me. And my job is to raise my daughter to protect herself against anyone who is raised differently. There's a double standard for sure. Of course there is.

And my older sister would complain about the fact I had no rules. I'd be able to go out and do whatever I wanted. And unlike you, unfortunately, Brad, but I was able to go out and they just said, well, you know, he's more street smart. Yeah, but that's the thing. Which I was.

Imagine alcohol at 16, 17 years old. You don't even have the capability to process what it's doing to you. And then you're having people that are making decisions based on immaturity, like, no, no. Do not let that happen. The hotel room. No.

Jeff, here's what you do, man. You tell your daughter, sucks to be you. You're gonna be out of the house next year. So yeah, you're coming home right after that or I'm coming to find you. Make sure your location setting is on on your phone because I'm coming to get you. And you know what?

Do you know what? It's not mean, it's just parenting. Yeah, sorry. It's the right thing to do. And parenting, so many people don't do that. Yep. And why do we have problems? Well, just your reaction to your 12-year-old daughter,

that's going to happen in four years. And you have to say, no, you're not doing this at all. All right, dilemma number five. Dear Ben, my family's planning a big surprise party for my brother's 50th birthday. They've been organizing it for weeks, venue, guests, decorations, the whole nine yards. There's just one problem, my brother hates surprises.

He's never been a big fan, being in the center of attention, and he gets anxious when things are sprung on him. I've tried to gently bring this up to the rest of the family, but they're so excited and they keep saying, it'll be different this time, or he'll love it once he sees everyone there. I'm torn between respecting the effort they've put in and wanting to give my brother a heads up

and spare him the stress. The thing is, I know if I tell him, he'll keep it a secret and play along, but also can mentally prepare for it. Would I be totally out of line if I told him? Signed, Kelly. I don't know, Ben, you go first. I don't think he'd be out of line.

You know your brother better than anybody. They seem to be poo-pooing his, his anxiety, which is a big deal for some people. It can be crippling. It can be triggering. Uh, and if you think he can play along and fool everybody, then yeah, there you go. And he, he'll appreciate the hard work and there will be no, uh, long-term damage to his mental health. And there's a danger of what you said, poo-pooing, you know, somebody who's at serious anxiety issues like that, jumping into a,

hey, a surprise, he might crap his pants. He could. He could. It's possible. When you get into those moments of extreme sort of anxiety and stuff, it's a medical thing. You can actually, your body tenses up and boom, and you better have a camera rolling.

Then it becomes a pants party. Camera rolling for the crapping of the pants. Yeah, and then you just ruin his life every other way. So as somebody full transparency who suffers from crippling anxiety, my ex-girlfriend did this for my 40th birthday. A little surprised. How'd that go?

And it was amazing. Oh yeah? It was the exact opposite of how I thought I would react. And the emotion from the people that were sitting around the table kind of softened. It was lovely, it was beautiful. And the fact that somebody went to the effort to do that for me was something that no one has ever done.

And it made me just feel great. Now when you walked in the room, did they all say in recognition of your anxiety, surprise? No, no, no. I came in and they were just all sitting there. It wasn't like a surprise thing. It was just kind of like a absolute shock. and it ended up being three hours of love. So maybe Kelly, maybe that's the middle ground.

Maybe you say, listen, okay, I was going to tell my brother because I really don't think that he will, he'll, he'll respond well to a big surprise. But if you're all just kind of sitting there quietly and he walks in and you, and you allow that moment to soak over and that's the surprise. Maybe's that's a win-win for everybody. I think that actually is sort of the best idea yeah because you don't want to scare him you don't want to freak him out and and you know you don't want to ruin his day it's his day it's his day exactly you're doing for him 50 is a big one too don't push push what you want to do on his 50 there you go on him yes all right look we solved it, guys.

We did it. I think that was the only one we did perfectly. Well, I know I solved it. You guys just talked about yourselves. Here I am doing a mitzvah and you're already screwing up. All right, here we go. Is the diploma in the mail? Yeah.

All right, hello, Ben. Easter is coming up this weekend and my mother-in-law has once again insisted on cooking the entire holiday dinner. The problem is I really don't enjoy her cooking. Her food is often overcooked, under-seasoned, or just plain odd. Last year she made deviled egg salad casserole.

Ooh, yeah. But she takes great pride in hosting and gets very sensitive if anyone even suggests contributing a dish, let alone taking over entirely. I love her and appreciate the effort, but I also dread the meal every year. I've gently hinted in the past that maybe we could do a potluck or help out in the kitchen, but she brushes it off and acts offended.

My spouse agrees the food isn't great, but doesn't want to rock the boat with her mom. How do I handle this without hurting her feelings? Is there a way to tactfully suggest we try something new next year, or am I doomed to eat another plate of mystery meat and beige side dishes? This reminds me of the episode of Friends where Rachel made the trifle. It tastes like meat. Is there meat in here? Nice. Jam good. Meat good. Joey

eats the whole thing. Yeah. So I look, I don't, I mean, you could lie and say you've got a doctor's appointment and you have to fast. I think this is one you gotta suck up. You gotta suck it up. You don't ruin the relationship with the mother-in-law. That is something that will get between you and your spouse. Every sort of, my mom was a terrible cook. And yet she always wanted to have us over for dinner.

And we'd go over and it'd be like, oh, is this a water with boiled chicken? Oh, this is wonderful. Yeah, great. But we knew that what we were expecting. And then it would be like, we're going to go take out on the way home. Yeah, exactly. And you've proven you can eat it and not die in the past. So suck it up for one more meal, make your grandmother,

make your mother-in-law happy. Exactly. And move on and get some KFC or some Popeyes on the way home. See, every time I'm on radio, I uniquely feel that I sewer my mother for something. And she comes from a long line of terrible cooks. Really?

My grandmother was the worst line of terrible cooks. My grandmother was the worst cook of all time. We're talking like vegetables that would disintegrate in your mouth before you. And my mother is, Lisa, I'm sorry, the worst cook ever. And because I've worked on Food Network and became a pretty decent chef, she, you know, asked my advice sometimes, yet she doesn't take any of it.

And you still have to eat the George Foreman grilled chicken with broccoli that is microwaved. And you know, my dad, like God love my dad, he just sits there for years. But no, you, you, mother-in-law, like Mike, you said, you don't screw with the mother-in-law. No, no, no. Never. Yeah. As bad as the food is, your life will be worse if you get on the wrong side. You shovel that stuff down and you just smile. May I have some more, please? Is sucking it up for three hours worth it

for a lifetime of grief? Exactly. Or just side eye. All right, Anonymous, we solved your problem. Hey, Mike Drolet, thank you so much. Brad Smith, thank you so much. And to everybody who wrote in, we appreciate it. Thursday, May 8th is McHappy Day, when every menu item purchased at McDonald's helps support

families with sick children. So you can feel the good that comes from doing good, just from ordering. So if I order a Big Mac, I'm helping. Yep. What about a McFlurry? 10 piece chicken McNuggets and apple pie? You got it. Every single order helps.

Join us at McDonald's for McHappy Day on Thursday, May 8th. Do good, feel good. A portion of food and beverage sales will support RMHC chapters in local children's charities across Canada. 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. Very happy to be joined by a good friend of the show, a good friend of mine, Warren Kinsella, former special advisor to Jean Chrétien and CEO of the Daisy Group. Warren knows as much about running an election campaign as anybody, so to have him with us, so we can lean on his knowledge and his insights during this election campaign,

invaluable to me and invaluable to the listeners of the Ben Mulroney Show, Warren, welcome. Thanks, my friend. So yesterday, after some quiet time from Donald Trump, he reared his head again, the threat of a 51st state and annexation and all that stuff, except it wasn't him saying anything. It was the CBC goading his press secretary into saying something.

I'm not so cynical as to assume that Katie Simpson of the CBC did it deliberately, but it certainly is beneficial to Mark Carney. Yeah, I said to my editors when it happened, CBC for the assist. Yeah. But Katie Simpson is an excellent reporter, as you and I both know. And then we also didn't know what was going to come out of the White House press secretary's mouth. She could have, they could have reversed course, but they haven't, clearly.

And that accrues mainly to Mark Carney's benefit. However, like if he tries to use it tonight, Ben, it'll be a reach, right? Like it's like, okay, we got the prime minister of Canada quoting a press secretary. You know, it's a bit of a reach, you know, and what does Poliev do with it, Blanchet do with it? So it may not even show up, but obviously, at least in the White House, they're still thinking about us as the 51st state. And meanwhile, there's a poll that I really, I want to highlight on the show, we've talked about it a couple of times in the National Post, it says three-quarters of Canadians who plan to vote conservative say that the emotion

that's going to get them off the couch, that's gonna get them to check a box in favor of their conservative candidate is hope for a better future. And in contrast, six out of 10 liberal voters say they're motivated by fear of what the future holds for Canada. What do you make of that?

I found that fascinating. Actually, that is, yeah, there are two buttons available to you in a campaign, which is hope and fear. And you know, when you're in opposition, you tend to hammer away at the fear button, you know, don't put these guys back in. And you know, they're going to wreck things even worse and et cetera, et cetera. And you're the incumbent, you're usually doing hope. So like Ronald Reagan, you know, it's morning in America again.

But this is fascinating that the liberals are now in the position, at least according to this poll, of pushing the fear button. Yeah. It's not their natural position. No, it's not. It's what they like to do. I was going to say that.

Now, would you recommend, if you had the ear of the conservative campaign, would you recommend if you if you had the ear of the of the conservative campaign, would you recommend that they lean into this and maybe put together a quick online promotional ad campaign pushing that message of hope that feeling of hope? 100%. But you know, I mean, like, you know, I just I've been waiting for two years for a peer poly and since he became leader to say, you know, not the country is broken is like this country's got lots of problems, but I love this country. I love the people of this country.

We are the best country in the world. We got a bunch of stuff to do. Let's do it together. But he, you know, it hasn't been his style. And I think he is in fairness to him during that two year period when he was talking about the country being broken. A lot of people agreed with that. But the problem now is a reason in the month of January is Donald Trump comes in and also

says Canada is broken. So you know, making that pivot at this point after week three in the campaign, it's pretty late. However, you know, like, you know, your dad did it in 88 with John Turner, Turner was surging over, you know, a hope-fear type exchange during the debates. And then there was the, you know, the bomb the bridges. So it was just kind of leveling any kind of advance that Turner had made. It is possible, but you've got to be ready to get your creative, your spots, dropping tonight. You know, that's

what the NDP did with Michael Ignatiev, right? Part of being leader of the opposition is showing up for the job. And then they had the drop right after the debate. And it just killed Ignatiev. Right. Yeah. And listen, I'm a big believer in the debates being consequential. How consequential depends on what is said. And how consequential depends on who gets the airtime. There's a lot of debate news that we've got to talk about. We've got to talk, and I'll just list them off, and we'll talk about them organically.

You've got the fact that they changed the French language debate time to suit a hockey game. You've got the fact that a last minute change of who can come to the debates with the Green Party being turfed. What do you make of these changes? What does it say about, I mean, I don't think we have to talk about the, the, um, the, uh, debate commission itself, but it doesn't seem like they're being run very well. Well, you know, but what's more Canadian than that, the change, a consequential leaders debate for a hockey game. I as a Habs fan, I love

that. Um, but the greens not being there, um, that actually accrues to Poliev's favor. Okay. And when I prepped Crutch Inn in 2000, he said to me, oh, you know, there's gonna all these people on stage yelling at me. I said, exactly. I said, if I could get more people on stage,

yelling at you, I'd do it. Yeah. Because all you have to do is sit there and, you know, cross your arms and look like a prime minister. Yeah. And they all look like, you know, snapping little dogs at your ankles.

So it works to car knees favor if the more people on stage Because then he looks like the adult so the fewer the the antagonist he's got Yeah, you know it can work for them. I my prediction is poly ev is going to cool it a bit tonight He knows he can be too hot for TV. He knows that it turns off women. So I think he's going to be cooler but firm. He'll have a couple killer lines and they're going to be looking for the clips. The clips is what matters because increasingly sadly a lot of people don't watch debates. I was hearing that Blanchet was really didn't want Pedneau there from the Green Party because he acquits himself very well in French and he didn't want to compete on that level. So

does this benefit Francois Blanchet? Yeah, I think so. And then, you know, Blanchet and Singh have got the same problem is there being just their momentum is being killed by the Liberal Party. So those two guys, you know, somebody, one of my readers said to me this morning, oh, you know, Blanchet's going to go after Paulie Evan. I'm like, no, he's not. You know, his the threat to his existence is the Liberal Party under Mark Carney. So I expect the NDP and the block are going to go hard after Carney because they have to talk to me about this piece that you've

written recently in the Sun about elections, Canada picking holy week to hold advanced polls. What do you make of that? I think it was sloppy. Um, you know, I'm full disclosure, I'm a church going Catholic, but I'm not a fanatic about it. And when I looked at the dates, there's like, Holy smokes, no pun intended. Like they're having the advanced polls, you know, on Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Passover. Um, and, and like those Holy Week, those are the most Holy Week of the year for Jews and Catholics, and like, couldn't you pick other dates?

And I checked the legislation, I checked the Elections Act, and the elections commissioner, Mr. Perot, does have the authority, he's got the jurisdiction, to change the dates. He's actually done that in the past. And you know, why they're not doing it here? I don't know, increasingly secular society. Maybe they think they could they could get away with it. Maybe they're locked in because of the election date. I don't know. But it I was quite surprised because it I thought that some people would get upset about that. Yeah, yeah. Hey, I want to go back to one last thing. I watched as I'm sure you did. I watched the leaders on tout le monde en parle. and I was struck by,

if I'm being completely objective and fair, how much better Carney's French was in that moment than I've seen at all in this campaign. He was, even in English, extemporaneously, he ums and ahs his way through answers, and there was none of that in French, and I was quite taken, I said, my goodness, if he's able to do that in just a matter of days,

what's he gonna be like on the debate stage? Well, we you know, we've both seen it when you're an Anglophone with the exception of your dad and maybe Josh Ray, you know, there's very few Anglophones who can slip into both cultures instantaneously, where you can't really tell the difference. And so it's hard. And let's you know, what you've got to do with your candidate, if he's an Anglophone like Carney, is you're going to make sure he's surrounded by

Francophones the entire week before the French debate So there's no slipping back of their brain into speaking English because you can see that when they do that So my suspicion is the liberals have surrounded Carney because if you look at Carney's schedule, he's kind of disappeared in the past week He's done a couple media vails, but not a lot. And so he's been far less available in Pollyanna. And I think that's a recognition of the fact that Cardi's French wasn't where it needed to be. So they basically put him back into French immersion,

showing some results. All right, Warren Kinsella, thanks so much for the update and go Habs Go. Go Habs Go, thanks brother. Yeah, I don't know. I'm gonna have to watch, I don't know what I'm gonna watch on tape Yeah, I don't know. I'm gonna have to watch, I don't know what I'm gonna watch on tape delay. I don't know what I'm gonna watch on social media.

There's gonna be a lot to consume tonight for a person like myself. Welcome back to the Ben Mulrooney show. And as always, we thank you for listening to us on radio, on a streaming app or on any podcast platform you may find us. We appreciate your ears wherever we can find them here on the Ben Mulrooney show.

I'm a Mulrooney. So as a Mulrooney, I appreciate the importance of election debates in 1984 and 1988. They were defining moments of those campaigns. In some cases, if the stakes are high enough and if a leader nails a moment in those debates, it can change the outcome of an election. And so we're all waiting with bated breath for the French language debate as well as the English language debate that's coming up in short order. But I think it's important to talk about what's going to be talked about at the debate. And here to discuss this is Tasha Carradon, who's written a really great piece in the National Post. There is much the leaders need to debate.

Too bad they won't. Taja, welcome to the show. Oh, thanks, Ben. Okay. So what do you mean by this? Like there's, it's true, listen, there's a lot to get to in an election campaign. It's hard to get to all of it in a debate. But what don't you think is going to get discussed that should be discussed in the debates? Well, the big one that's missing is national defense. Yeah. And not every debate may need an entire segment on this. But in this day and age right now, I think that that segment is a must do. And it's in neither debate. There's, you know,

going to be talk about affordability. Absolutely. Cost of living tariffs. Great. Quebec's doing a piece on immigration. Both have a segment on climate, which is not an issue actually that is in the top five, according to voters' concerns at all in this election. But there's nothing on national defense. There's one segment on public security, but that is a very broad topic and safety could include crime. It's not national defense.

Yeah, I like to divide things into nice to have and must have. And when times are good, we move the environment and climate change from the nice to have into the must have. But right now people are hurting and people are worried. And if you take Mark Carney and the liberals at their word and we are facing a crisis and we're facing an aggressive neighbor to the south, then national defense should be paramount in English and in French. You would think so. And not only that, we've also been talking about rebuilding our armed forces even before

this election. We have a 10,000 troop deficit in the last three years. We've had more people leave than sign up so it is a serious problem and then there's the fact also the leaders have also talked about it they have been very vocal on what they would do and they have different visions they probably have want to build one Arctic base and hire 2,000 more Rangers for the north in particular Carney talking about two bases there's a whole discussion around the F 35 do we continue that contract or not There's a whole discussion around the F-35s. Do we continue with that contract or not?

There's a lot of material there to discuss, as well as the big question, how are we going to pay for it? Yeah, yeah. Nobody's answered that. Nobody's answered that. Everyone talks a mean game, but when it comes time to showing the respect to those who wake up every day and put their lives on the line to defend the Maple Leaf

and those who've paid the ultimate sacrifice in service of their country. We stop short as we like to do. We like to make bold pronouncements in this country. We don't necessarily like to follow through with the policy that would allow us to honor them and to promote Canadian values around the world. Let's talk more broadly about the debate commission and and sort of the show that they're running because my goodness, it has been it's a little bit of a clown show in terms of I'm hosting a fireside chat tonight with with Don Stewart, the the the MP conservative MP

who's responsible for what I call the miracle in midtown in Toronto. And it was all designed so that people get home and watch the French debate only to find out that at the last minute they changed the time of the debate to suit the hockey game that's being played in Montreal. Yeah, well, I'm sitting at the desk at Radio Canada tonight in Montreal, actually to do both both nights of debate. And now there's no pregame show. Our pregame show is at half an hour.

I can't even make it because I have other commitments. So I guess I'll do the English one, which in Quebec no one's gonna watch on French television. But you know, it is ridiculous. I think if I had to move one of the two shows that are on tonight, I would have moved the hockey game. And you know, this is an election. I know hockey is the passion, especially in Quebec.

The Canadians are in the playoffs. But still, I mean, it's a little absurd when you think about it that we're prioritizing the hockey game over the debate at a time when we're talking about 51st state and it's an election of our lifetime. And the debate commission just folded like a cheap suit and said, oh yeah, we'll move the debate back to six o'clock.

Who's going to be watching it at 6pm? Well, let me play devil's advocate though. Like how many people are actually going to watch it versus consuming it in snackable bites on social media? I mean, we are living in a world where people consume information differently. I mean, you could argue that it's going to happen regardless. And people will come into contact with it over the course of the next 24 hours, just by virtue of how we consume media now. So are we, is it a tempest in a teapot? No, 50% of us are going to watch voters.

50% of voters and of them, of them, 18% say, I don't know. I want this is going to decide for me. So that's 9% of the electorate. Okay. I have been, I have been schooled by the numbers, Tasha. I was shocked too. I was shocked too. But I think it's because this is a consequential election bet and everyone's telling us, you know, this is the election. So people are going to be paying attention. But now, I mean, you know, if you're coming home from work

or you're dealing with your kids at that hour at supper, like you're not be paying attention to the debate. And yes, you're going to get it in the soundbites, which are of course filtered through media and some media better than others. Yeah, no, that's a good point. That's a very good point. So look, I think they, I think they got it wrong on this front. Let's also not forget that there are francophone populations far, far west of Quebec and Ontario that for a lot of those people, they will be at work when this debate is taking place.

Yes, 100%. If you go Franco-Saskancho, I'm pronouncing it right, Franco-Albertin, Franco-Colombie-Britannique, I mean, there's French radio, I know this because I do it in every province in Canada, those audiences. So yes, those people are completely out of luck.

Okay, well, let's talk about something that finally seems like they got right. You know, a lot of hay has been made over the fact that you're going to have five leaders on stage, but only two really have a chance of forming government, which means a lot of the extraneous conversation during this debate you could view as wasted. I don't think anybody really thought thinks Jagmeet Singh is going to form government, obviously the bloc que becois a force in Quebec, but certainly not in a position to form government. And then you got the greens and there's been a real debate over whether or not they even belong at the debate.

Looks like they finally made a decision, the commission, and they have, they have, they have made sure that they are not, they've kicked them off. They've kicked them off the debate stage. And I think rightly so. Well, you know, they, because they say that they intentionally reduce the number of candidates running the election for strategic reasons. So they no longer meet the intention

of participation criteria to justify inclusion. We could have figured this out before, right? I think the last minute, it's, you know, I almost feel bad for Pedno, who was preparing for this debate and now has nothing to do. And yeah, the debate commission I almost feel bad for for Pedno, who was preparing for this debate. Yeah, nothing to do. Yeah, the debate commission has a lot to answer for here. So I think that decision should have been made a lot earlier. You know, yeah, but you know, Natasha, if we take them at their word that this was a strategic decision on their part, okay, well, that's a choice you

made. And because you made that choice, you fell below the threshold required to justify having you on the stage, which means you don't get to be there. Right. And that's fine. But like I said, everyone knows, they've known since Monday, it was a drop dead date for candidates, right? So they could have made that decision yesterday, they could have made it Monday, they could have made it ahead of time because everyone knew that the Greens are not going to be running

a full slate of candidates. They don't, you know, not even close. So yes, and honestly, if you're talking about a party that would have the balance of power, it's likely if there's a minority government it would be the block at this point, not even the NDP, but at least the NDP has right now 20 odd seats. So let them in. Tasha Carradon, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it. Thanks, Ben. Now, our change will honour the Supreme Court of Canada, where justice and truth have guided decisions since 1875.

As the country's highest court, it plays an essential role in protecting the rights and freedoms of all Canadians. The new one-dollar coin features a semicircle of laurels, symbolizing the nine judges and their enduring pursuit of justice. Find the limited edition 150th anniversary of the Supreme Court of Canada coin today. I've just been to Specsavers and upgraded my lenses

to extra thin and light with 50% off. Now, what else can I upgrade? My cat? Meow. Ro, what else can I upgrade? My cat? Meow. Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff r I'll load the dishwasher. Awesome! Exclusions apply. See Specsavers.ca for details. Offer ends soon. Welcome back to the Ben Mulroney Show. Thank you so much for joining us. It is time now for a segment that I look forward to each and every week.

This is when we all get to learn a little bit about our Canadian history that we should know that we don't know. And who better to walk us down the path of Canadian history than Craig Baird, the host of Canadian History X. Craig, welcome to the show. Thanks for having me again. Okay, so we've been talking elections over the past few weeks, the history of our elections.

And today we're gonna take a look at the 1957 election. Yeah, this is kind of a pretty big election in terms of the shifting dynamics of the political landscape because for the previous 22 years, Canada had been governed by the Liberal Party since they won in 1935. That's the longest stretch in Canadian history. But by 1957, people were looking for a change, especially with the entire debate of the Trans Canada pipeline and the American company that was brought in to build it,

and the liberals had pushed it through parliament and evoked closure. So it was a very divisive issue and the progressive conservatives were now led by a very dynamic man named John Diefenbaker. And I think today we kind of don't really realize how good of a speaker and how popular John Diefenbaker was when this election campaign started. And he really kind of shifted Canadian politics with his election win, even though he got a minority government. But then obviously the next year,

he had a massive majority government and really kind of changed Canadian politics. So talk to me about who he was as a man. What was his appeal? And sometimes a person's appeal is because they are not the other guy, right? So who was he and talk to me about his counterpoint

on the liberal side. Well, he was very much a dynamic leader. He was the first leader who really saw the potential of television. And so the liberals were led by Louis Saint Laurent, who was the prime minister since 1948. And by that point, he was in his mid seventies and he had this

kind of persona of Uncle Louis. He was very good with children. He was beloved. But by 1957, he was starting to get very tired. He wasn't really into the election campaign. He would speak in large cities while Dieffenbaker would go to small towns and speak with people and often speak to like 2000 people crammed into a building just because he was so fiery. He had an amazing ability to to to speak to people and he was probably one of the greatest campaigners in Canadian history. John Deven Baker was really just somebody who really appealed to just regular people and was somebody that people look to for a change. And you know, we are talking in this election about,

there's a poll that came out that said conservative voters are more likely to be motivated to vote because of hope. And on the other side of the equation, liberals are more likely to vote out of fear. Was that dynamic present in the 1957 election? Was one somebody who was promising a positive vision and somebody maybe less so?

I would say that it wasn't quite like that back then. Diefenbaker was promising, you know, a lot of nationalism, a lot of, you know, talking about the Canadian North, where the liberals were very much campaigning on, we've been governing for 22 years, look at the things that we've brought in. They've more or less governed, or not governed, but campaigned on their past record, while Diefenbaker was saying, this is what I'm going to do for you if I'm elected going forward. So I think Canadians were just looking to the future rather than the past by this point. I gotcha.

And so from what I understand, the liberals, they were campaigning on like, look at what we've accomplished since 1935 and Diefenbaker was promising lower taxes and making your life easier tomorrow. Yeah, absolutely. And he was talking about how we can, you know, be a dynamic nation, how we can develop the Canadian North, how we can do all of these things. And he obviously really did kind of campaign on the Trans-Canada pipeline

and the divisive issue related to that. Yeah, talk to me about the lift of trying to promote the Trans-Canada pipeline, because I'm wondering whether it was as hard to push forth in the Canadian Federation back then as it is today. Well, the liberals really wanted to get this pipeline built. So it would take natural gas from Alberta and send it to Ontario and Quebec.

And the company TransCanada Pipelines was an American company, they were hired to build it. So there was a lot of opposition to that because people wanted a Canadian company to build it. But there was a deadline that the Liberals had to meet. So they really had to get it through Parliament before this deadline. And that's why they invoked closure, which meant that it was essentially they were forcing the vote, forcing, and they had a majority. So they were able to vote it in. And a lot of people really didn't like that. They felt like this was kind of an example of the liberals being kind of long in the tooth, maybe not quite corrupt but feeling like they can do what they want because they've

governed for so long and it was something that Dieffenbaker really sunk his teeth into and it really kind of dominated the campaign for him. Oh a liberal party long in the tooth thinking they deserve to govern simply because, and a young conservative coming in, changing that dynamic. Who knows, maybe everything that is old is new again. We'll have to wait and see in the next couple of weeks. All right, let's move on to something I knew nothing about, the 1921 walk across Canada. I really like this story because it kind of starts with these two guys named Charles Berkman

and Sydney Carr and they just wanted to find work so they decided let's walk from Halifax to Vancouver and they left on January 17, 1921. They promised to send dispatches back to the Halifax Herald. They would make money by selling postcards about their journey and then about a week later this father and son named Jack and Clifford Behan, they decided, well, you know what, we're going to race these two guys to Vancouver. And it was kind of just an impromptu race. And then a couple of weeks after that, this married couple named the Dills decided to join the race, Frank and Jenny Dill. And so they

started racing and it became kind of this impromptu race. Now, Sydney Carr didn't want to race, so he actually dropped out pretty soon after. And Charles Berkman walked the entire distance by himself. But it was just this impromptu race across Canada. And it was something that really gripped the nation at the time in 1921. Gripped it how? How were people keeping tabs on this walk that was apparently a race? Well, all three teams were sending dispatches back to the Halifax Herald about where they were. And so people were following along as they went across the country.

So they actually had to go from Nova Scotia to New Brunswick, then through Maine, and then into Quebec. And then they kind of just followed almost really where the Trans-Canada Highway goes now. And a lot of people just really latched onto this. It was this interesting story, especially because of Jenny Dill. She was the one who kind of had her husband join it. A lot of women were really campaigning for her to win because she was saying anything a man can do, a woman can do as well. So it was just a really, you know, there was a lot of interest in all of this just because of these three teams that decided Hey, let's walk across Canada our own little version of the battle of the sexes. It wasn't on a tennis court It was across Canada. Let's listen to a snippet of the 1921 walk across Canada

Like George Costanza the B hands liked making good time on February 28th, they walked 56 kilometers in one day more than double what Berkman walked that same day," Jack Behan wrote. We know we are closing the gap on Berkman and can almost hear him pant as he leads us in the race. By the end of February, Berkman had covered 1,490 kilometers in 42 days, the Behans had 1,382 kilometers in 34 days, and the Dills had 928 kilometers in 27 days. Hoping to stay ahead, Berkman hoped to walk 85 kilometers in one day to Pembroke, Ontario. His feet were filled with blisters and he instead walked 51 kilometers to Chalk River. When people told him the beehands were catching up, he said he was going to hold the lead. Walking into northern Ontario and afraid of being attacked by a pack of wolves, Berkman bought a gun and then lost an entire day in North

Bay while waiting for it to be repaired while he was also buying, yet again, new boots. The Dills meanwhile walked into Montreal where they celebrated their second wedding anniversary on March 10th. They didn't rest on their laurels and instead walked straight through. Far ahead of them the Beehands were now only one day behind Berkman. I'm sorry, we got shotguns, we got bears, we got walking across Canada in the dead of winter. One thing we're not good at is the 1921 walk across Canada does not convey the sizzle of the excitement of what this should have been about. Well, absolutely.

This story is so little known that I really was happy to be able to share it just because there's so much to it. Like you said, there's wolves and bears, there's walking through winter storms. You know, Berkman starts out with a friend and then he's walking alone. He eventually gets passed by both the Dills and the Beans. And he decides, you know, I'm just going to take a leisurely walk across Canada at this point and he just kind of enjoyed himself. And these people were all very famous

as they walked across Canada, and then afterwards, kind of everybody forgot about them. Craig Baird, the host of Canadian History X, remind us where we can find the show. You can find it on all podcast platforms, and you can listen every weekend on the Chorus Radio Network. Just check your local listings. I appreciate you, sir.

I hope to talk to you again next week. Absolutely. 1921 Walk Across Canada. I'm telling you, I love these conversations with him. I learned something new every weekend. I hope that you do too. Thanks for listening to the Ben Mulroney Show podcast. We're live every day nationwide on the Chorus Radio Network

and you can listen online through the Radio Canada player and the iHeart Radio Canada apps and make sure to follow and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you get your streaming audio. We release new podcasts every day. Thanks for listening. I'm ready to eat. Want to kick your cooking up a notch? This is the moment you've been waiting for. Flavor Network is giving one lucky viewer $15,000 to put towards the grocery bill.

Oh, I love that. Tune into Flavor Network every night at 9 Eastern or stream live on StackTV. Look for the daily code word and enter on our website for a chance to win $15,000. Oh my god, that's so good. We're gonna blow some minds. Let's do it. Visit flavornetwork.ca for more details and to enter now. Game on, people.