What happens when a crisis becomes an opportunity to make changes governments and business have wanted for years?
This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips and Leah Ward dig into the politics of “crisitunity,” the Team Canada response to the trade war, and what Canada risks giving up in the name of competing with the United States.
First: the race to the bottom. Environmental protections are being weakened, labour rules are under pressure, and governments are promising to move major projects faster. But if defending Canadian sovereignty means stripping away the things Canadians say make this country different, what exactly are we defending?
Then: Saskatchewan NDP MLA Sally Housser joins the show to talk about the Prairie response to the trade war, the politics of AI data centres, the pressure to actually build the workforce needed for major projects, and what opposition parties need to do to look like governments-in-waiting. Plus, what changes when you go from political staffer and pundit to the person whose name is actually on the ballot?
Plus, for Patreon subscribers: new Ipsos polling suggests Albertans are far more willing to fight back against the United States than their provincial government is. Shannon and Leah dig into Danielle Smith’s opposition to retaliatory measures, why the UCP may be badly offside with its own voters, and how the Alberta NDP could turn that gap into a political message that actually breaks through.
Trade wars, data centres, labour, environmental protections, Prairie politics, polling, and just how much “crisitunity” Canadians are willing to tolerate.
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Guest:
Sally Housser
MLA for Regina University
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