The Ben Mulroney Show - Pierre Poilievre says there are non-negotiable red lines for Donald Trump

Episode Date: April 2, 2025

Guests and Topics: -Pierre Poilievre says there are non-negotiable red lines for Donald Trump with Guest: Regan Watts, Founder Fratton Park Inc., former Senior aide to minister of finance Jim Flaherty 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

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Welcome back to the Ben Mulroney Show. In anticipation of Pierre Poliev joining us in studio today for a long-form interview, we should remind people that he actually just gave a very substantial speech here in the city of Toronto. He laid out a number of key points that are worth discussing. Before we discuss them,

let's bring in somebody who actually heard the speech. And that's my good friend, Regan Watts, founder of Fratton Park, Inc. and former senior aide to the Minister of Finance, Jim Flaherty. Regan, welcome to the show. Bonjour, mon chum. All right, so Pierre talked a lot about Donald Trump. And he

talked about some non negotiable red lines for Donald Trump. Let's listen. As I said, Canadians have the right to know what red lines I will draw in order to protect our country in these inevitable negotiations that any future Prime Minister will have to have and have quickly. So let me be clear. First, I will protect our control over our border, our security, our resources, our farmers, including our supply managed farmers, our fresh water, our automotive workers. Also, we will protect our

sovereignty, our laws, our currency, our dollar, our land, our waters, our sky, our culture, our official languages, and our resources and Indigenous rights will not be under the control of any other country. This is non-negotiable. We will protect Canada's sovereignty in any negotiations. That's some strong language. I haven't heard that level of ratcheting up by Pierre Poliev since the beginning of the campaign. He also committed, Regan, to hitting the 2% of our NATO

commitment, saying that any extra revenues from expanded trade with the US will go towards our defense. Now, Regan, you and I talk about this campaign daily. What do you think the impact of these new statements and perspectives are going to have? Well, Ben, I think there was a lot in the clip that you played, and there was a lot in the speech. I think what you heard this morning in the clip you showed

or you just shared is a big chunk of it, is a political leader who is looking at the country and listening to what people are having to say. And there's a big segment of the population who are concerned, and rightly so, at the actions and behavior of President Trump. And an area where Mr. Poliev has always been strong,

but perhaps has not cut through the message as clearly as he would have liked, is his view and his position on how he would manage President Trump and how we would protect the country in the face of threats from President Trump. And later in the speech talked about how he would build a Canada that would be resilient beyond trade with the United States. And so, you know, for me, I think the speech represents a turning point in the campaign. It's no secret that the polls have certainly tightened, and the Liberals have perhaps pulled

ahead and generated a small lead. However, people are worried. They're worried about President Trump. They're worried about his tariffs. They're worried about what it means to be Canadian. We hear the term, elbows up. Everybody has their own way of communicating and sharing their patriotism. And I think what you heard today from Mr. Polyev is his way of communicating and sharing their patriotism. And I think what you heard today from Mr. Poliev is his way of demonstrating that he's both heard Canadians from coast to coast while he's been on the road and his plan to respond. I don't think it's unfair to say that when Pierre Poliev speaks, whether you agree with him or not, you know what he stands for. He's been very consistent, right? But on the other side of the equation, and again, I don't think this is unfair, you have

Mark Carney, who he'll say something one day, he may have said something different than the day before, or he may say something different than next day. Here's what he said yesterday about the liberals and whether or not they will repeal the anti-pipeline Bill C-69. We do not plan to repeal Bill C-69 to answer your question correctly. What we have said and made very clear 10 days ago, formally with the First Minister's meeting, is that we will move for projects of national interest to remove duplication in terms of environmental assessments and

other approvals. And we will follow, as the federal government, the principle of one project, one approval to move forward from that. So what's essential is to work at this time of crisis to come together as a nation, all levels of government, to focus on those projects that are going to make material differences to our country to Canadian workers and to our future And work closely together

Regan he's mastered the technique of saying something then wrapping it up in a word salad and then finishing it up with a slogan and if you ask Danielle Smith He told her something very different a few days ago. So for a guy who says he wants to jumpstart the economy, he's not being very clear on how he would actually do it. So good points, Ben. I'll just start with bridging back to where you started the question,

which was with Mr. Poliev. His speech was clear. He knows exactly what he wants to do and knows where he wants to take the country. You know, Mr. Carney, who again is an entirely credible economist, on this campaign, he reminds me of remember that CBC show Degrassi Junior High. He reminds me of Joey Jeremiah on the first day of school walking through the cafeteria. He's very awkward, socially insecure, struggling

to find his place. And I think Mr. Carney's comments on Bill C-69, which is a law, just for your listeners, just so they know, it is a law that this Liberal government passed several years ago that make it virtually impossible for pipelines to be built in Canada. That is not hyperbole. Industry has come out and said it is next to impossible, which is why they're out looking at other places to invest their capital. Mr. Carney yesterday, uh, reinforced that he was not going to repeal that act, in spite of what he has said privately, uh, based on Daniel Smith, premier Smith, her comments, uh, that he would be open to pipeline development.

So it's not, it's hard to see where Mr. Carney lands, but I think part of it is his Joey Jeremiah tendencies when he's in front of the cameras and in front of media. It's just still new for him. And so his positions are, I think, are actually quite clear. Mr. Carney is a central banker, he's used to using very precise language. I think he believes exactly what he said in that clip, which is he's not going to repeal Bill C-69, which leaves Canadians, I think, with a very clear choice. If you agree that resource development is the way for our country to move forward economically, to reduce our reliance and dependence on the United States, then you need more resource development. And until that bill is repealed, it's very, very difficult for Canada to move forward. And for me, I think it's a

critical issue that people need to understand. With that bill, pipelines don't get built. Yeah, mines don't get built. Resources don't don't get built resources don't get extracted, which means less wealth, less tax revenue, fewer jobs for Canadians to have the things we like, which are roads and bridges and hospitals and police stations and fire stations and community centers and museums and hockey rinks, and all the things that we have as as cultural infrastructure and civic infrastructure that make this country great.

Reagan, what do you make of the premier of Alberta's plan to have a post-election panel to gauge Albertans appetite for a referendum? Because on one side you've got people who are saying she's stoking the sovereignty flames and on the other you've got people saying no, it exists as she's doing her best to tamp it down but she does need to know where people stand. You know, national unity, Ben was your father who used to say, and he was right that the Prime Minister of Canada has two jobs. One is to work with the United States, and two is to preserve national unity. And it is unclear, or if it's not clear for your listeners, by now, I'm not sure when it will be, but the country, after 10 years of liberal rule, has left us more

divided. We have had the strokes of separation from Quebec and recently from Alberta for the better part of the last 35 years. There's been different periods where that has died down, but Canadians are anxious. And we were talking about Bill C-69. That is an existential threat to the province of Alberta and its ability to get resources to market. And after 10 years of liberal government, Canadians have to ask themselves, do we want to keep drifting? Do we want to stay divided? Do we want to keep talking? Or do we want to have leadership? Do we want to build a nation? And do we want to keep drifting? Do we want to stay divided? Do you want to keep talking? Or do we want to have leadership? Do we want to build a nation? And do we want to have action? Yeah, and I want to get one more question. And I'm sorry, but the block leader,

he Francois Blanchet said that there are still so many things we don't know about Mark Carney. Now you knew him before he ran in politics. And look, I feel like I'm a broken record here, but we don't know enough about this man. At what point is that going to be a liability for him? Because I know that they're trying to play keep away, but at some point, aren't voters, even those who support him are going to say, you know, you are an unknown. Look, Mr. Carney is a, I worked with him

when he was in the Department of Finance. I worked with him when he was at the Bank of Canada. He's been very good to me personally. I do not have a bad word to say about Mr. Carney personally. He's an eminently decent person and a proud Canadian and an accomplished economist. However, it is not Mark Carney the person that is unknown for me. It is Mark Carney and his ideas. Mr. Carney is not my enemy. He's my political opponent and his ideas for Canada, we talked about pipelines and other things are wrong for the country. I was not I believe I got it. Let me wrap this up. He has not been clear

with the country on where he wants to take the economy. He's not been clear with the country and how he's gonna stand up to president. All right, we gotta go. We gotta go. Mr. Blanchet is right. Welcome to the Ben Mulry show. Thank you for listening to us anywhere you find us, whether it be on the radio, on the Khorus Talk Network, whether it be on a streaming app like the iHeartRadio app, or perhaps you listen to us in podcast form.

We will take it any way we can get you. Thank you so much. And I gotta tell you, very excited for later on in this show, I will be sitting down for an extended conversation with the conservative leader Pierre Poliev. Lots to talk about, lots of questions about where he wants to take this country. Lots of questions I know you, the listeners have for him, and I will do my best to have those questions answered if I endeavor to push him until we get the answers

that we want. I think it's incumbent upon our leaders to answer the questions about where they see our country, what the problems are and what the solutions are that they wanna bring to bear on those issues. And so that is later on in the show today with Pierre Poliev, so stick around to the Ben Mulroney show. Meanwhile, after we're done here today,

I've got a few things to do, and I'm headed to the airport. I'm going to Washington, D.C. And thank you, I love this. The Great Escape is one of my favorite movies of all time. And this song, it's my marching orders. I'm going down there to talk to Americans. I'm spending a number of days

with some key influential people in Washington, DC. I want to ask them, what's going on? How do you see Canada? How do you see us as a threat? How do you see tariffs as the solution to the problems that possibly ail America? And the goal is going to be to strike up relationships with a number of these people so that I can then have them as guests on this show. I think moving forward during this Trump administration, talking to people who are

in his orbit will be central to understanding how best to deal with him, whoever forms the next government here in Canada. I also am going to be spending some time at the Canadian Embassy, and I look forward to spending time with the ambassador and I hope to have her on our show in short order. So that's coming up as well. Every day, I like to get myself psyched up, psyched up to do this show. I listen to psych up music.

I told you, I have the great escape theme song in my head as a way to get excited as well. And you know, I think I found a speech that is going to get me hyped up every morning. Let's listen to the hype man supreme, Mark Carney, telling a crowd on how he's gonna build a better future. You're gonna be able to buy a home. You're gonna be able to afford a home,

just like I could afford a home. You've got a future, we're gonna build a future. You're going to be able to buy a home. You're going to be able to afford a home just like I could afford a home. You've got a future. We're going to build a future. I'm built. We're building a future for you, for you guys right here. Oh my God. This is this is why I'm in this actually right there, right there. Okay.

So maybe not, maybe not. That was Mark Carney on the campaign trail inside a in a pub. I think somebody on social media said pointed out that he was in a crowd of older Canadians. So people who probably have homes telling them that they'll be able to afford a home. But look, to be fair, that's not his brand. His brand is not excitement. And in a lot of ways, that is the antidote to years of theatrics from his predecessor. You know, he's supposedly about the steak, not the sizzle. And so there you go. But I have to say,

I thought I had an image in my head of Mark Carney coming into this race. It wasn't that. It wasn't that guy. He's not. He's learning on the job for sure, for sure. And I'd like to say that, yes, I've got Pierre Poliev coming in today. The invitation is always open to Mark Carney to sit and take questions here on the Ben Mulroney show as well. I've said it before, I will say it again.

I promise that it would be a good faith conversation. It will not be me leveling accusations. It won't be belligerent. It will be friendly. And it will be in an attempt to understand him, why he's in the race, and what he wants to do if he is able to form government. So that invitation goes out to Mark Carney every day, consider it an open invitation until election day. Conversations are happening on every channel, radio, television, podcast in the newspapers about this election, the CBC is no different. And we have questions on where the liberals stand on the carbon tax. You know, we're now living in a time where the carbon tax has been turned down to zero, more money in our pockets when we go pump our gas.

And the panel was asked, Kate Harrison, who was guest on this show often was asked by David Cochran, the host, why she feels that the liberals carbon tax repeal, and it's not really a repeal, isn't believable, isn't authentic. There's a few reasons. The first one to your point David is Mark Carney's personal history of advocating for a consumer price on carbon prior to becoming the liberal leader. He said that it should be higher. He said that Canada's consumer carbon price was a model for the world to follow. So he is on the record prior to two months ago saying that he personally championed this. He's also surrounded by the same Trudeau liberal cabinet that were proponents of this very thing.

He has written books about the integration and importance of environmental policy and fiscal and financial policy. And he has not taken the step because the House was not reconvened to actually repeal the legislative measures needed to make this a permanent change. That's a pretty convincing case as far as I'm concerned. I think she's right. This is this, if past is prologue, then you have to look at previous statements and assume that someone of value and someone of principle holds, still holds those views. And I don't think there's anything wrong

with being cynical at this point. If political leaders are willing to do an about face on things that they claimed were so important, who's to say they're not gonna do another about face? I don't think that's bad faith. I think that is being realistic and I think it's protecting yourself and I think those are fair questions to ask.

Now, south of the border, a reporter in the White House briefing room asked the White House press secretary, Karen Levitt, when Trump goes down to Florida, what does he hear from older Americans who may live on a fixed income and who may see their 401k suffer because of the chaos that is being drummed up due to the unknowns around his vision of tariffs. Well, certainly they are legitimate concerns and the president takes those concerns very seriously.

And he's addressing them every single day. And tomorrow's announcement is to protect future generations of the senior citizens you mentioned. It's for their kids and their grandkids to ensure that there are jobs here in the United States of America for their children to live the American dream just like they presumably did. And as for their worries about their 401ks, their social security, I just addressed social security, this president is always going to protect it for our tax paying senior citizens. As for their 401ks, look at what

President Trump did for you. I think it's a fair a fair question. I don't know if that answered the question. But things are getting really interesting on cable news in the United States. You know, if you've heard me talk about this before, you've heard me say the difference between what's happening in Canada, the impact of the tariffs here and the impacts impact of the tariffs in the United States is that we know things are going to be bad. We're prepared for it. We're girding for it. We know things are gonna be bad.

And so we're expecting that these terrorists are gonna come in and hurt us. And despite that, we're ready to fight. I don't think there's anybody in this country that thinks tomorrow is gonna be a great day. I think it's gonna be, people are gonna lose their jobs and we are ready, we're having those conversations already. Whereas in the United States, Donald Trump promised

once he became president, America would be great again. And he did not really push the level of terrifying that he was going to do during the election campaign. And so now that there's the prospect of storm clouds on the future for the American economy, he's taking a hit in his approval rating. And so this is a Fox anchor, essentially trying to get people to understand

that they have to get on a war footing before these tariffs come in. Those 401k people who were depending, those retirees, all of that, just talking plain speak with them. Look, when this nation used to go to war, people in this country would support the war effort with their materials at home and making things for weaponry and all that.

We got to do 100% buy in over this bumpy period. Just communicate. Yeah, that's not going to be an easy sell. That is not what you sold Americans. That's not what Donald Trump sold Americans on when he was asking for their vote. He did not say things would get bad before they got better. He said things would be great on day one. So I don't know how easily he's going to be able to sell time to go to war. There's no limit to how far criminals will go to cover their tracks. But investigators will go even further to uncover the truth.

I'm Nancy Hicks, a senior crime reporter for Global News. This season on Crime Beat, I'll take you from the crime scene to the courtroom and inside some of Canada's most high-profile cases and some you've likely never heard of before. Search for and listen to Crime Beat on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and wherever you find your favorite podcasts.