The Ben Mulroney Show - The political panel -- revisiting Carney's first 100 days

Episode Date: September 5, 2025

Chris Chapin -Political Commentator, Managing Principal of Upstream Strategy - Warren Kinsella - Former Special Advisor to Jean Chretien and CEO of the Daisy Group If you enjoyed the podcast, tell a friend! For more of the Ben Mulroney Show, subscribe to the podcast! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://link.chtbl.com/bms⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also, on youtube -- ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@BenMulroneyShow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ben on Twitter/X at https://x.com/BenMulroney Insta: ⁠@benmulroneyshow⁠ Twitter: ⁠@benmulroneyshow⁠ TikTok: ⁠@benmulroneyshow⁠ Enjoy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Welcome back to the Ben Mulroney Show, and before we get to our this week in politics panel, a quick update for you on a story that took place in Ontario, but certainly has the nation's attention. You'll remember that there were videos of what appeared to be new Canadians, probably of Indian extraction, just going to town with their guns in Muscoqa, blowing up. trees and a bridge and really breaking the silence and the peace up there. And the RCMP, or the OPP, rather, started investigating. And so this is a follow-up to that story. The Bracebridge OPP announced the arrest of 24-year-old Gurkanwal Singh, who was charged with two counts of careless use of a firearm. So we will, of course, keep that story front and center because, yeah, that gave a lot of us the ick as my kids. would say. We're joined now

for our this week in politics final panel of the week, the Friday edition. We've got Chris Chapin looking dapper in his suit and his blazer, political commentator and managing principal at upstream strategy. Welcome to the show, Chris. Always a pleasure, Ben. And do we have Warren Kinsella? We don't have

Warren. We're going to be joined by Warren Kinsella, former special advisor Jean-Cretzian and CEO of the Daisy Group in just a few minutes. Once he gets here, we will fold him into the conversation. But Chris, all right, this show, It doesn't air at the same time everywhere across the country. And so in a lot of places, this will be airing after people hear the Mark Carney big announcement.

Apparently the very big press conference is coming. So I'm going to give you an opportunity to sound really smart and predict what he's going to say. Well, listen, I think, you know, Ben, the prime ministers spent a lot of time leading up to this announcement. and foreshadowing it for for some time. And I think, you know, he's certainly been critical about that. You know, he's been criticized about that. There's been a lot of question about what's taken the prime minister so long to demonstrate to Canadians what his plan for the Canadian economy is.

And so I think we're going to see, you know, a very strong direction about, you know, huge, huge billion dollar investments, whether that's, you know, know, this, the, the radar system that clearly was something that's been used and, and been ideally used to broker a deal with, with President Trump. Or, you know, some of the, some of the larger projects that I suspect will, we'll hear more and more of in the coming days, whether that's the, you know, the expansion of the Port of Churchill and getting liquefied natural gas to markets in Europe. I think, the big question I have when it comes to, to Prime Minister Carney and the federal liberal government is, can they actually?

get this done because you know this is a tall task this is a tall order and we've heard talks from the federal liberals about big projects for a very long time i'm still waiting to take a high speed rail train to to montreal you know and get to montreal for dinner and back in an hour yeah i'm just not sure when that's ever going to happen oh well it's it's not just the high speed rail i mean i was waiting for them to plant a billion trees and i don't think they got past a few dozen uh warren welcome to the show i suspect that mark carney is going to be a prime minister who differentiates himself from that sort of performative nonsense. And I have no doubt that at some point we're going to get some real meat on the bone.

And that could be today. Yeah, it could be. I mean, what we're all hearing, the rumors that this is going to be at the level of the type of budget that Kretzian Martin had that I was involved with as a staffer, 31 years ago, the historic budget that saw enormous cutbacks in the federal government at the staffing level, at the programming level, Canadian forces bases, you name it. It was a big, big change in the way Canada's books were run. So we're hearing the same sort of stories coming out of Ottawa and coming out of PMO. The big problem, I think, that Carney is still gone is, you know, the mandate he received in the election was for sure to deal with the red ink and to get.

get Canada back into the black and to be more of a progressive conservative. And he's been that, you know, with carbon tax and capital gains and defense spending and so on. The problem is on the fundamental issue in the election campaign, you know, Pierre Polia being elbows down and Mark Carney being elbows up, Mark Carney has put his elbows down. You know, that's his own phrase. It's now coming back.

But Warren, doesn't that, I mean, doesn't that take a backseat if in this announcement, we have the getting rid of the EV mandate and we hear about some of these big projects of national importance and we hear about a pipeline and we hear about like we said a port of Churchill and we hear maybe maybe we hear about the tanker ban being tweaked in one way or another mean if those things happen those are the things that we have said as a as a nation not just one side of the political spectrum or the other as a nation these are the things we need to get the country moving whether or not Donald Trump is a good or bad actor. These are the things we have to take care of what's happening at home.

And I think he'll get a lot of credit if he does those things. No, I don't think it takes a back seat. It doesn't. It doesn't. It is the fundamental issue from the election campaign. And it's starting to show up in public opinion polling, Abacus last week, showing the Tories ahead, not by lot, but ahead for the first time in months. Now, Angus Reid this morning, showing the Tories ahead.

Now, Pierre Pahliav continues to be baggage for. them and is probably dragging them down but the main reason why the conservative party is now ahead of the liberal party for the first time in many months is because people feel that he flip-flopped on the key promise he made so all these other things yes for sure they can work for you on a regional basis but in terms of the macro in terms of the national question did he do what he said he was going to do no he didn't and that's why he's paying a price now in the polls Chris, this is a story that we didn't send you, but I'm sure you have an opinion on this. You know, we talk on this show and talk radio stations across this country about what feels like an increase in violent crime and, you know, citizens not feeling as safe as they once did.

That was something that Pierre Palli, that was a drum that he beat incessantly in the last election campaign. And I've heard people say that if he wants to, if he wants to take one issue away from the liberals, it could be. be domestic security, like at home security. And he does seem to be right on a lot of these things. Can the liberals rest control of that with some changes to bail reform and criminal justice reform? I think they can, Ben. I think it comes back to the same points I raised, you know, a couple minutes ago about what's taking them so long. I think you look at what Prime Minister Carney said right after he was first elected. He said, you know, I'm going to touch bail reform. I'm going to Hutch bail reform in the fall.

And then we've had a summer ripe with, you know, you can't go a day of the news without hearing some home invasion, some violent carjacking, things we just, we were never used to hearing in this country. And I think he's ceded that ground to the conservatives who've always been stronger on, you know, law and order issues. But there's a lot of people now publicly calling for things like Castle Law and being able to protect your house. You know, I think there's a lot of people who are fed up with hearing the police.

say, oh, just comply with the burglars. And so there would have to be quite the about face. Now, to Warren's point, I think we've seen so far Mark Carney be quite willing to lean to the right, whether it is, you know, abandoning the carbon tax or abandoning the capital gains tax. But that's a big question for his party and the coalition he's built. Would he look at doing something like, you know, bringing back Harper's, you know, minimum sentencing laws? Would he look at something like real strict bail reform that, you know, many in his party believes impedes on, you know, violent offenders' charter rights. And so could he grapple that ground back from the conservatives?

Of course, they're the government. That's the perks of being in power. I think it comes down to do they have the will to. I think they might just get forced into considering how they do that because I think that's one of the key issues, you know, like Warren said, we're seeing, you know, the Tories pop back up in the polls. Public safety is going to be among the top issues moving forward if the federal government doesn't do something.

Warren, it's going to be a kitchen table issue, right? It's that thing that it's going to affect everybody. And not for nothing. The liberals typically do very well in cities. And the cities are the places that are being affected most by this, I'm not going to call it a crime wave, but this increase in crime. And I'm going to ask you to answer me in about 35 seconds. Well, I represent a family who was targeted with a shooting by a 12-year-old. The 12-year-old was out on bail when it happened, allegedly.

and then as we light out and bail again a couple days ago. So, yeah, the perception in big cities across the country is crimes out of control. But the problem for the liberals is, as Chris says, Tories are seen as better on law and order. You know, liberals are seen as better on health care. So how Carney squares that circle, it'll be interesting to see. All right. We're going to take a quick break.

When we come back, I'm going to put the question to Warren Kinsella. Will he be saying, thank you, Donald Trump, in 20 years? That's the question. Coming up next on the Ben Mulroney show. This show is sponsored by Better Help. Let's be honest. We've all shared our problems in some pretty funny places, the group chat, your barber,

maybe even a stranger on a plane. And, hey, sometimes that helps. But when it comes to stuff like stress, anxiety, or relationships, it makes a big difference to talk to somebody who's actually trained to help. That's what Better Help is all about. They connect you with credentialed, professional therapists, online. And what makes them stand out is their therapist match commitment. After a quick

questionnaire, BetterHelp does the hard work of finding someone who fits your needs. Most people get it right the first time. But if it's not a match, you can switch counselors anytime at no extra cost. It's flexible, totally online, and you can hit pause whenever you need to. With over 5 million people supported to date globally, BetterHelp is now available in Canada with a network of counselors who have expertise in a wide range of specialties. With a 4.9 out of 5 rating based on over 1.7 million client reviews. BetterHelp makes counseling affordable and convenient, and you can switch counselors at any time for no cost.

Our listeners get 10% off their first month at betterhelp.com slash Mulruni. That's better-h-elp.com slash Mulruni. In the 70s, four young women were found dead. For nearly 50 years, their cases went cold. I'm Nancy Hicks, a senior crime reporter for global news. In the season finale of Crime Beat, share how investigators uncovered shocking evidence of a serial killer, and hear exclusive interviews with the killer's family. Listen to the full season of Crime Beat early and ad-free on Amazon

music by asking Alexa to play the podcast Crime Beat. This is the Ben Mulroney show, but when we do this week in politics, I share the mic with people far smarter than I. Please welcome back to the show, Warren Consell and Chris Chapin. Warren, the question is to you because the former premier of Quebec, Jean Charray, said that, you know what, 20 years from now, we may be thanking Donald Trump for putting us, for holding up a mirror to this country and saying, you can do better. So I ask you, 20 years from now, is there anything you're going to thank Donald Trump for? I'm trying to think of something nice saying, and by the way, I'm not smarter and you're smarter than anybody. I honestly I guess I think what Choray was reaching for

when I read the headline I was like what the hell is he going on about because obviously Donald Trump has been a disaster for the world in terms of tariffs and favoring Russia over Ukraine and meddling in the private sector and just his appalling personal record you know he's been the worst president ever

I think to guys like me But there is some truth to what Mr. Shire says, which is, you know, it was wonderful. It was upsetting, but it was wonderful to see this country come together, right, left, east, west, north, south, old, young. People came together as a country. And, you know, we're still seeing it. You know, people are not taking vacations in the United States. People are buying Canadian. Those are all good things.

So I think, in a sense, yes, we're grateful for Trump stirring up that kind of patriotic fervor. But overall, he's been pretty bad for the world and he's been pretty bad for Canada. And I take all those points. I think you're right on a lot of them. But significantly, like I stopped my car when I heard the announcement that Mark Carney said where he was going to bump the pay of every member of the military and veteran by 20%. Like, I stopped the car because it made me proud. And I couldn't remember the last time I felt proud of a government the way they were treating our military. And I took stock of it in that moment.

I was like, this is a new feeling. I don't think that we would have been anywhere close to that position by any government, liberal or conservative, were it not for the pressure that Donald Trump had been putting on the allies of the United States. I'm not saying he's a good dude. I'm just saying on this one thing, Chris. you got to you got to recognize where the genesis was yeah i i listen i don't take anything warren said for granted because i think he's right about the personal conduct of the president and what he's done around the globe just for his own amusement but i've said this on this program and others for for months now i we would not have accomplished we would not be accomplishing

what we're doing you know i would call this one heck of a shot in the arm a wake-up call for our country that was very uh blaze for far too long we our economy hasn't grown the way it should have for decades now we left natural resources in the ground we didn't build big infrastructure projects we underfunded our military and there's only one reason any of that's changing and his name is donald trump like we we are investing you know our share of gdp that we always promised to into our military to meet our nato you know requirements simply because of donald Trump. We're talking about an NDP premier opening up the port of Churchill for liquefied natural gas because of Donald Trump. We're talking about the idea of pipelines from the east, the east

coast to the west coast because of Donald Trump. And so, you know, whether it's interprovincial trade barriers that are being broken down by the premiers, like none of this was happening. Yeah. Yeah. You know, none of, I'm sorry. I guess at this point, it seems like a blur. None of this was happening nine months ago. Yeah. Yeah. And he really did, you know, send a wake up call to this country. And so I think I get what Jean-encher was getting at. There is very good. chance if, in fact, we fulfill

all these promises that we're out talking about. All right, well, one sticking point, one problem that is sticking in the craw of so many people out west is the issue with canola and the issue with the tariffs, different tariffs, Chinese tariffs, right? And the Globe

and Mail seems to believe that the auto sector benefits outweigh the canola industry. And so they're saying, if you're going to pick, between Ontario and Saskatchewan, they're picking Saskatchewan. They're pick in Ontario. And Warren, I got to think, like, I'm looking at the, at the situation with these tariffs. On one hand, you have a very real industry in Canada that is being affected. And on the

other, just tell them, I'll call them back. So on one hand, you got a very real industry in Canada that is affected. And we're tariffing a product that doesn't even exist in Canada, these Chinese EVs. And I think there's room for both. Canola and the automotive industry, but I really think at some point, Mark Carney needs to pay very close attention to what's happening in Saskatchewan. Yeah, for sure. And it's a, canola is a big, big deal in Western Canada and to this country. You know, why is this happening? The Chinese are mad at us, very mad at us, for setting up a wall, an import wall for their EV giant. They are the giant, not Elon Musk.

The Chinese are the giant globally in the production of electric vehicles. And we've made it difficult for a lot of good reasons for them to get their vehicles sold and driven in Canada. So that's what the canola fight is all about. You know, the Chinese are taking a page from Donald Trump's book. You know, they're using thuggery and bullying tactics in order to get what they want at the trade level. And, you know, and then that's not entirely new. It's just the degree of it, just where countries like Canada, who have been, you know, good operators and been fair people to deal with are being treated unfairly. And this is an example of that.

And, Chris, look, I understand why we had to do what we did on EVs or maybe a way to tweak that policy. but if we had a problem with Huawei a few years ago, then of course we're going to have a problem with Huawei on wheels, right, with cameras and sending data back over the internet over the air to the Chinese Communist Party. I get it, but it seems like in order to protect Ontario, Saskatchewan is paying the price. And if I'm the people in Saskatchew, I'm like, what the hell did I do? I don't have a dog in this fight.

Well, no, it's exactly that, Ben. And, you know, for business, I spend a lot of time out in Regina and in Saskatchewan, and I, you know, they make fun of me as the Torontoite coming out is the Laurentian elite and that I don't understand their problems. And I think when you read stories like this, you understand why they have a certain level of animosity towards, you know, Ontario and Quebec and, you know, Eastern Canada is because of stories like this, trying to pretend that canola doesn't matter. Canola is such a massive, massive industry for Canada's economy.

But electorally, the prairies don't exactly pack the same. punch that that Ontario or Quebec or British Columbia do. And so we do favor industries. That said, I think there's room for, you know, the federal government specifically to protect both industries. And I think that's, you know, we can't play one against the other because, you know, as much as we're elbows up or elbows down, the last thing we need to do is have our own internal divisions continue to grow. And so I think, you know, the Chinese knew exactly what they were doing targeting canola. The Chinese government is brilliant in terms of the way they, you know, split apart allies. And I think that.

That's exactly what they're trying to do here, knowing that, you know, a tariff on canola is something that will divide Canadians between East and West. We're renovating a hotel, expanding our resort, and breathing some life back into the lake house. Out of here. All while raising a family. It's messy, it's real, and it's all us. Exciting. I can't tell if that's your exciting face. This isn't just construction.

This is our life. Who needs sleep? Building Bomberler. News series Sunday, September 7. On Home Network. It's three months at TV. I do.