Your World Tonight - “Nasty” trade fight, Canadian wildfire outlook, fewer happy campers, and more

Episode Date: August 6, 2026

With the next U.S. tariff deadline fast approaching, Prime Minister Mark Carney rejects President Donald Trump’s characterization of Canada as “nasty”, and says Canada still has bargaining power in trade talks.Also: Fires are burning in B.C. and around the country. A new study suggests human-caused climate change means wildfires will be more intense and more regular.And: Summer camps across the country say the kids aren’t coming. We’ll have a look at why enrollment is down this year.Plus: Arrests in U.S. consulate shooting, new type of flu vaccine approved in U.S., and more.

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Canada's nasty. They are. They're nasty. Tough talks. The U.S. President sounds off about Canada. as the Prime Minister admits negotiations have been difficult, with less than two weeks to go before steep tariffs could hit a range of Canadian products. This is your world tonight. It's Thursday, August 6th, just before 6 p.m. Eastern.

I'm Tashana Reid, also on the podcast. As we warm, the atmosphere's ability to suck moisture of dead fuels on the forest floor, needles, twigs, leaves, increases rapidly. Fiery new report. Scientists say severe wildfires are happening much more often than they used to, with human-caused climate change sparking a lot of those flames. The findings may be no surprise to people in British Columbia, where more residents have been forced out of their homes, and hot, dry conditions threatened to make the situation even worse. Cross-border trade between Canada and the U.S. is cooling, just as trade talks are concerned. heating up. Data from global affairs shows trade between the two countries slowed by nearly

$2 billion early this year compared to two years ago. Most affected the auto and steel sectors. Canadian officials are in Washington for high-stakes negotiations to try to stave off looming tariffs that could make the slide worse. And as Evan Dyer reports, the rhetoric is sharpening on both sides of the border. Dominic LeBlanc had little to say as he entered a meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Jameson Greer today with less than two weeks to go before a new round of U.S. 50% tariffs kick in against a wide range of Canadian goods from cement to cars to hockey sticks. We've been screwed by...

President Trump has been a lot less circumspect singling Canada out at a rally in Las Vegas yesterday for abuse. Everybody, by Canada! Canada's nasty. They are. They're nasty. People think Canada They're nasty. I love the people, but they're nasty. Nasty leadership. Yes. It's a negotiation tough. Mark Carney, visiting an aluminum smelter in Saginae, Quebec today, said negotiations have been tough. You could even say nasty, but that's because Canadian jobs are at stake. He said Canada will continue to focus on what it can control, finding new trading partners and attracting new investment.

We're creating jobs at twice the rate of the United States. We're foreign direct investment. twice the rate of our nearest G7 competitor, which is the United States. Carney said Canada wasn't interested in making side deals to benefit any one sector of the Canadian economy. We see everything is connected. There are many things that the Americans want from Canada. They say they don't want them, but they do want them. It's energy, it's potash, it's critical minerals, it's aluminum. And for us, it's all connected. We're one country. That unity of purpose is more important than meeting Washington's time.

timelines, he said. The deadline is artificial. It can be extended. Flavio Valpe of the automotive parts manufacturers association sits on Carney's External Advisory Committee. He says his sector is comfortable with the everybody or nobody approach. We have not said to the negotiating team or to the prime minister. You absolutely have to help us and forget about everybody else. No, if there isn't a good deal on August 19th, then, you know, Canada has to come out of this as a whole. Opposition leader Pierre Pollyev, visiting St. John, said Carney has been giving too much away already. Mr. Carney is not holding out for a better deal. We have a bad deal while he makes the concessions that you would normally take to the table to get something in return.

Pauliév said the digital services tax and increased defense spending were two areas where Canada had made concessions for no return. But Carney hasn't given ground in areas the Trump administration is complaining about now. He's back. the provinces that removed U.S. liquor from their shelves, and today he voiced strong support for dairy supply management. Evan Dyer, CBC News, Ottawa. Toronto police have arrested and charged two people in last week's shooting outside the U.S. consulate.

One of the suspects is just 19 years old, the other, even younger, 15. Police believe the teenagers were hired online through encrypted messaging apps. Sien Desjardin reports. It's high time we stop the revolving door of young people and young adults being engaged in this kind of brazen activity time and time again in our public spaces. We need that cycle to stop. Police Chief Myron Demkew announcing the arrest of a 19 and 15-year-old today in connection with a gunshot that struck the outside of the U.S. consulate in Toronto last Monday, July 27 at 4.46 a.m. Both now facing a slew of charges. We believe that these two individuals were offered payment to carry out this attack through encrypted messaging apps.

A new video released by police appears to show a white car rolling past the consulate. One flashed from the passenger side window, and moments later, another before it speeds away going so fast police had to call off the chase. Just out of frame, a police car stationed at the consulate for added security after the building was first shot. shot at in March. We also believe that the motor subrandi in this investigation is consistent with what we saw in the previous U.S. consulate shooting, and that is criminals for hire. Joe Matthews, the chief superintendent of detective operations, suspects in Toronto dozens are taking contracts. We are working with all of our local, provincial and federal partners and internationally as well. They're still trying to figure out who is on top,

directing, financing, and organizing these attacks that young people were allegedly paid to carry out. What's making this, I would imagine, very frustrating for investigators is that these are people essentially enlisted through these encrypted messaging apps who have, they don't even know who they're working for, is my guess. Michael Arndtfield is a professor and criminologist at Western University. Well, behind the scenes, there's going to be a significant digital component to this investigation. Evidence like cell phone tower data, for instance, is the new DNA. I mean, it is showing up more and more, is expected more and more. And Demkew says law enforcement needs the tools to keep pace.

We need reform that gives us the ability to deal with the encryptions and the fact that criminal offenders are able to communicate in a way that makes it very, very difficult to penetrate and disrupt that kind of criminal activity. And as I said, the end result is our communities suffer. On top of last week's shooting at the consulate, police are also alleging the two suspects are connected to an arson days earlier, just north of the city in Caledon, where a vehicle was doused. in gasoline and lit on fire.

She and a detail day, CBC News, Toronto. The union representing WestJet cabin crew has released details of its tentative deal with the airline. QP says the deal includes a more than 18% raise over three years. It also includes pay for work done on the ground, as well as increased time off and higher food and uniform allowances. Flight attendants walked off the job Sunday. WestJet and the union agreed to the tentative deal early Monday, workers are set to vote on the deal in the coming weeks.

Coming right up, more help arrives from Mexico to fight spreading wildfires in parts of BC as smoke worsens air quality across the province. Plus, the new type of flu vaccine approved in the U.S. that could mean better protection from the virus. And later, we'll have this story. I'm Deanna Sumanak Johnson in Toronto. Summer camps are increasingly out of reach for many Canadians and experts say the impacts are You know, there's something about being in a place where you get to try new things that you can challenge yourself in those ways and really build grit and perseverance.

The magic and money of summer camps that's coming up on your world tonight. Reinforcements are arriving in B.C. to help combat raging wildfires in the province. More evacuation orders have been issued while residents across the province deal with poor air quality from the smoke. Jessica Chung explains. Touching down in Abbotsford, over 100 firefighters from Mexico marched out of the plane, ready to join the fight against the more than 100 wildfires burning across BC. I want them to feel at home. And they were warmly greeted by evacuees who brought the Mexican treats.

Nicholas Kosovic led that effort. We're really rooting for them. They are our absolute most honored guests. And we're super thankful that they're coming to our community to help with this situation. Premier David Eby welcomed the additional support, saying it's coming at a time when the province needs it the most. They'll be providing relief to frontline BC wildfire service firefighters so they can catch their breath and recover so that when the international crews leave, we have rested crews coming back online to be able to finish out the rest of the wildfire season. And the wildfire fight has now reached into Metro Vancouver.

Bucketing helicopters tackled a fire that broke out yesterday after. noon in Belkara Regional Park, just an hour northeast of the city center. The fire has torched through the mountainside. I think it will be a wake-up call. Christina Sutton lives less than 10 minutes away from the fire. She dropped off drinks and snacks for firefighters that worked through the night. I didn't actually think that it would ever come to this. So yeah, it is very disheartening and scary that this has happened. Metro Vancouver says the fire is now held. But the director of emergency management, Brandt Arnold Smith says crews will stay on site to extinguish hot spots and monitor conditions.

We were able to save structures and ensure that the fire was aggressively attacked in the early stages so that we wouldn't see that spread. The impacts of the fire are spreading far beyond the flames. Smoke has blanketed most of southern BC. Much of the interior is under an orange air quality warning, meaning the air is so poor that the risk to health is very high. Chris Lamb is with the BC Lung Foundation. You can't really see it, but your lungs will definitely know that it's there. So if you have a pre-existing condition, it's going to make it really hard to breathe. But the one thing we really want to get out there is even for healthy people,

this can create some short and long-term complications to your health. Fire activity is expected to increase due to the hot and dry conditions. More firefighters from Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand are expected to land in B.C. in the coming days. Jessica Chung, CBC News, Vancouver. Community members in Washington State are banding together to give aid and comfort to the more than 65,000 people still displaced due to wildfires near Spokane. Ina Sadiou has the details.

You guys are amazing. How many people do you think help with these donations? I would guess maybe 50 families. An outpouring of support for those who have lost everything. Non-profit group Project Beauty Share put out a call for donations for everyday essentials. And families, including Anita Draney and her three kids, answered. We're just so blessed and lucky that we're not affected directly,

so we want to be able to help. It could be us tomorrow, you know. The Draney's pulled up in an SUV full of everything from toothpaste, body wash, to shampoo. It was the primary children in our church, so kids up to 12 years old, and they went around to neighbors and asked for donations. I thought that they weren't going to put anything on the girlstep, but then I was actually really surprised that most of them did.

Julie Farley started Project Beauty Share. She says truckloads of donations will be going to those in need, including firefighters on the front lines. When you have lost your home and you have lost everything, you know, we're all about dignity and about giving people hope and dignity. And so, you know, just one, if we can be one little piece that will help someone. Across the city, signs of support are everywhere. Tens of thousands of people remain displaced. The latest count, more than 900 structures, mostly homes, wiped out. Everyone here loves Spokane, and so just to watch our customers, our community, go through this, it's really hard. A Spokane-based coffee chain is donating all proceeds until sales hit $15,000 to organizations helping those directly impacted.

Manager Leah Patton says they're doing their part. We wanted to make sure that all of our wake-up call customers know that they're supported by us, even though this is coffee, it's more of a community. And it's not just people. Pets are displaced too. Local rescue spoke animal is providing free emergency housing for dogs and cats of evacuated families. They've also received truckloads of donations of food and supplies. taking anybody displaced from the fire, any pets, so they can bring them down and any pets that

people have found that might be lost from the fire. All three fires are still active. Progress has been made to slowly contain them, but crews are racing the clock. The National Weather Service is calling for the return of hotter temperatures the next two days and gusty winds on Saturday that could drive the fires in a different direction. Ina Sadoo, CBC News. Spokane, Washington. As residents on both sides of the border deal with the immediate effects of wildfires, a new study has found these major burns are twice as likely as previously thought here in Canada, and that is largely thanks to human-induced climate change. The CBC's Onond Rom has been digging into the report from scientists at World Weather Attribution. Onan, we've seen one bad fire

season after another for years now. Beyond anecdotes, what does this study show? It speaks to exactly that, that while we may think about bad fire seasons as being once in a while, that while is getting way more frequent. The study authors, including Canadian scientists, looked at the fires that happened in Ontario and Northwest Territories just last month, finding that, yes, the conditions that led to them were made far more likely because of human-caused climate change. But through some modeling and math, they're able to put some some numbers to the expected frequency. The fire weather in Ontario, for example,

the conditions that led to that, you know, incredible video from CN rail workers surrounded by flames. The study says that that could happen as often as every six years. And for the intense fires in the Northwest Territories, we could see that every couple of years. And in a world without climate change, which is what they base these models off of, this kind of intensity would happen only every 40 years,

maybe even every century. So how is the repeated nature of these fires, you know, returning every year impacting the communities that are forced to evacuate? The authors did touch on this. The fires are in remote areas, but there are people there, and sometimes they have to move out of the way very quickly, as we've seen. Here's Chris Boyer. He's a co-author of the study with the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Center. In terms of high-risk and vulnerable populations, we found that indigenous communities have been disproportionately affected by the wildfires. Some of these communities also are dealing with the shortened response and recovery times between disasters due to the recent successive wildfires. And so it's that repetitive strain that can wear people down mentally and physically. The study found that this is a result of human action.

What role has fossil fuels played? So the planet is warmer and our burning of greenhouse gases is trapping a lot of heat in the atmosphere. And that's not like firing a gun, but it's like filling the clip and making the bullseye way bigger. Mike Flanagan is a wildfire scientist with Thompson Rivers University in Camloops, BC. He wasn't involved in this study, but he nicely explains what warmer air does for wildfires. As we warm, the atmosphere's ability to suck moisture of dead fuels on the forest floor, needles, twigs, leaves increases rapidly. And unless we see more rain to compensate for this drying effect, our fuels are going to be drier.

And the authors recognize that it's not just Canada's role when it comes to getting off of fossil fuels. It's a global responsibility with clearly very real, very frequent local consequences. Onan, thank you. You're welcome. The CBC's Onan Rom in studio in Toronto. A new kind of flu vaccine has cleared a major hurdle in the U.S. The FDA has approved the first MRNA-based flu shot for older adults. It's made with the same technology that was key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic.

technology that allows the vaccine to be updated more quickly as the virus changes, which could provide better protection. Karen Pauls has the details. Every time that we see an advancement when it comes to vaccination for the flu or for any illness, that's good news. Jill Pramoli's two-year-old son Jude died from influenza B in Mississauga 10 years ago, even though he'd gotten a flu shot months before. Still, Pramoli believes vaccinations are the best protection against the virus,

so she started a campaign to promote them. Now, she's thrilled the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Moderna's MRNA-based flu vaccine for adults, age 50 and up. We're not vaccinating against diseases because they're uncomfortable or inconvenient. We vaccinate because diseases kill people. In the U.S., between 15 and 50,000 people die of the flu every year. In Canada, it's about 3,500 annually. As someone who studies older adults and people who are vulnerable,

I am so excited about the potential for MRNA vaccines. Don Baudish is a professor of medicine at McMaster University. She points to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine, which found MRNA flu vaccines are 27 to 35 percent more effective than traditional flu shots. The MRNA vaccines seem to be very protective in people who are older, who have comorbidities and people who are immunocompromised. One of the big advantages of mRNA vaccines, they're easier and faster, to make, which means more ability to adapt to new strains of the flu virus.

Dr. Celine Gounder is an American physician who specializes in infectious diseases and global health. Most flu vaccine is still grown in chicken eggs, and this takes months to do, and the farther ahead you have to plan to grow it, the farther ahead you have to predict what strains are going to be in there, which means your risk of a mismatch in strains is going to be higher. Moderna has applied for approval in Europe, Australia, and here in Canada, where it's under review. Hi, it's Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The FDA's approval comes one year after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a wind down of RNA vaccine development.

Replace the troubled MRI programs. Earlier this year, the FDA refused to review Moderna's application, but after public pressure, it reversed its decision. McMaster's Don Baudish says that gives her hope. It's a real success story about how doing good, rigorous science still can overcome misinformation and political mentally. Experts say public health officials will have to provide clear messaging about the benefits of mRNA technology so people can make informed choices to protect themselves. Karen Paul's, CBC News, Winnipeg. The chair directed Anthony Fauci to answer. He refused again. That is what we were voting on today.

Republican Senator Rand Paul speaking at the Senate Homeland Security Committee in Washington. The committee voted 8 to 5 in favor of holding Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress. Last week, the former top U.S. infectious disease official refused to answer committee questions. Fauci has been a repeated Republican target for his handling of the country. COVID-19 pandemic. Paul said he would deliver the contempt referrals to the Department of Justice. All Democrats on the committee voted against the contempt motion. Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan called it political theater. The goal was clear, and I want to emphasize this, the goal was to wait for Dr. Fauci to make any kind of misstatement and then have a weaponized

Department of Justice file criminal charges for that new statement. Contempt of Congress resolutions usually have to be considered by the full Senate, but Paul argued that wasn't necessary. TV seems to be working right now, so we'll try it again. And we concur. Astronaut Jessica Meir speaks with NASA Cruise on Earth. Mere was one of two astronauts taking part in a spacewalk today outside the International Space Station. Meir and Anil Menin were doing some electrical work to prepare for the future installation of new solar arrays.

The two astronauts spent six hours and 27 minutes outside the ISS. It was Mears' sixth spacewalk and the first for Menon. Happy campers are called that for good reason. Summer camp can be a special experience for kids on break from school. But organizers across the country say parents aren't signing them up like they used to. As Deanna Sumanak Johnson tells us, it's another example of how Canadians are cutting back in tough economic times. It's the sound of summer for many Canadians as kids make new friends in the beautiful nature of Camp Abigweigweight in Prince Edward Island. But behind the scenes, camp operators and parents are sweating how to keep that summer magic alive.

Everything costs more. So insurance has gone up significantly for us. Food costs have increased. Our staff wages have increased. Alex Corbett, business manager of Camp Abigweit, says they try to transfer as little of those rising costs onto families as possible, but inevitably, the fees have gone up.

At the same time, families are struggling to stretch the dollar as prices of everything from food and clothes has gone up. The result, camp enrollment is down. If I look at returning camper numbers, we're missing about 60 campers that went to camp last year. That didn't come this year. It's a trend seen across the country in day camps and overnight camps alike, says Matthew Wilfrid, Executive Director of Canadian Camps Association. What we're also seeing is that many camps and the provincial associations that they're under

are offering subsidy programs and those are being accessed more and more. And when camp is unaffordable, kids miss out, says Professor Aaron Sharp in the Department of Outdoor Education at Brock University. You know, there's something about being in a place where you get to try new things that you can challenge yourself in those ways and really build grit and perseverance. So learning self-awareness, emotional management, social awareness. Kelly Hall, Vancouver-based financial advisor and mother of two, says she suggests parents look beyond camp. if it creates a strain on family finances. I didn't want my kids to be missing out. But really, I felt like maybe I felt a little bit of FOMO.

But as the kids got older, I started arranging more play dates and actually talking to parents and seeing what their schedule is to see if we do a bit of a swamp or I'll host some kids. Camps organizations say that if your kids attending camp is a priority for you to contact your local camps, Some have subsidies or grants for families in need as they urge all levels of government to help camps with more funding. Deanna Suminac Johnson, CBC News, Toronto.

And finally, some of the songs of the loggerhead strike, courtesy of Cornell University. The masked black, grey and white birds are cute, about the size of a robin. But don't let their appearances fool you. It's also known as the butcher bird, and for good reason. I was getting into my car, and that's when I saw one of the strikes fly up and impale something on the barbed wire on the fence. And then the second one came over and they each started ripping chunks out of it and it disappeared pretty fast. That's Saskatoon birder, Carrie Jerdes, describing the grisly scene in the field beside his office this summer.

The birds need to get creative when killing insects, mice, frogs, and other prey since their dainty songbird feet aren't strong enough. They don't have talents to hold their prey, so they impale them on thorns or barbed wire, and then they'll pull pieces off with their beaks. Emily Putz of Nature Saskatchewan says Saskatchewan is home to about 40,000 of the Shrikes and their main breeding ground. But that population is in steep decline. Putz says pesticides are part of the reason, since the birds like to eat grasshoppers. But road deaths and habitat loss are also a major factor. The Shrikes rely on native prairie land to nest and hunt, and now only 13% remains.

The Lagerhead Shrike is a threatened species. There is in many left, and it's a unique species. It's great pest controls, so I just think it's important that we do everything we can to help them along so that the next generation can see them, as well as that they can continue filling the niche in the ecosystem. For anyone living in the parts of Canada, these birds call home. Putz says planting thorny shrubs like Buffalo Berry and Hawthorne can help them score their prey. Thanks for being with us. This has been your world tonight for Thursday, August 6th.

I'm Tashauna Reid. Good night. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca.