Front Burner

Fires continue to burn in Los Angeles as millions of people remain under an extreme fire weather alert. The Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire have already flattened entire neighbourhoods in Los Angeles, leaving nothing but outlines and ash where homes once stood. It is expected that this will all amount to the worst natural disaster in American history in terms of cost and scale.These fires raise major questions about the future of Los Angeles, who is to blame, insurance and just how prepared we are for worsening fires and other climate change fueled disasters.To discuss the size and scope of these fires, and what can be learned from them, we’re joined by David Wallace-Wells, New York Times writer and columnist and author of The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming. For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

Donald Trump is building the wealthiest cabinet in American history with 13 billionaires set to be part of his administration. That of course includes his vocal backer and X CEO, Elon Musk. But it’s not just the ones joining him in office. A parade of CEOs and business giants have met with him over the past month in Mar-A-Lago including Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook and Canada’s Kevin O’Leary.Even in a country where the super rich have always had an outsized role in American life, this moment stands out. But does it compare to the past and other administrations and why are they aligning themselves with Trump so publicly now?To explore this shift we’re joined by Quinn Slobodian, professor of international history at Boston University and the author of Crack-Up Capitalism: Market Radicals and the Dream of a World Without Democracy. For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

A week after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation, a much clearer picture of the Liberal leadership race has emerged.Whoever the candidate ends up being will have the challenge of running both a leadership and a general election campaign at essentially the same time.According to some recent polling by Abacus Data, that won’t be the only challenge.David Coletto is the founder and CEO of the polling firm. He’ll talk about that, how Canadians are responding to Trudeau’s resignation, and what that means for the Liberal party.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

Joe Biden will end his reign as President as not only the oldest holder of the executive office, but one of the longest tenured lawmakers in American history. As he enters his twilight in public life, we look at the President’s final few weeks in office and ask: how is Joe Biden likely to be remembered? President Biden’s final weeks in office include the controversial decision to pardon his son, Hunter, and the passage of the largest single-day grant of clemency in modern American history. But many believe he should use his final days to pass meaningful legislation on issues ranging from racial justice to the environment, national parks, abortion and Gaza. Our guest is Alex Shephard is a Senior Editor at The New Republic and has been writing about Biden through his Presidency, and beyond.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts