The Munk Debates Podcast

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Will the US go to war with Iran? Donald Trump is being taunted: if he backs down on his demand that Iran restrict its ballistic missiles program he will lose face in the Middle East. Janice believes that if Iran agrees to a deal that pauses its nuclear weapons program indefinitely Trump should take it and claim a big win. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to the big finance news of the week, specifically the mass selloff in software stocks that wiped one trillion dollars from the stock market due to the release of new AI bots that can automate legal and financial services. How can software companies survive in this environment? Why was the market response to these AI bots so severe? This is a signal to how new technologies are coming for white collar jobs in a way that we can't even imagine. Are policymakers working on a response to how radical this job dislocation will be to our economy?

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Members of the Alberta separatist movement have been travelling regularly to meet with members of the Trump administration. Should this be considered treasonous? Does the province of Alberta have legitimate grievances? Equalization is not a good program but it is not a plot against Alberta. How can we pull together and rediscover what we have in common in the face of American hostility? Andrew argues that we must channel this crisis into a positive direction and protect what is good and great in this country. In the back half of the show Andrew proposes a security agenda for Canada to strengthen our democracy and our borders. Where is the urgency and creativity of a policy agenda to match the diagnosis of rupture? And do any of Canada's political parties have the vision and fortitude to rise to this unique challenge?

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Rudyard and Janice begin today's show with the dangerous escalation between Iran and America. Trump has moved an Armada into the Middle East following his demands that Iran cease enrichment of uranium and limit its ballistic missile program. Will Trump use force if Iran does not comply? And what are the targets? Turkey and Qatar are trying to broker an agreement but the Ayatollah, a fervent idealogue, does not want a deal. This is a very dangerous situation that could easily escalate without a clear plan. In the second half of the program they discuss the fallout from Mark Carney's Davos speech and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer's suggestion of a North America customs union. This would build a wall of tariffs around the continent and lead to much deeper integration with the U.S., in opposition to Carney's plans for trade diversification. Why would America want this? And will Trump stoke the flames of Alberta separatism to influence upcoming trade negotiations?

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Rudyard and Andrew react to the explosion of anger in the U.S. over the killings in Minnesota by ICE agents. Is this the first time the U.S. President has had to respond to a public outcry and recalibrate his position? Andrew believes that the point of these ICE exercises has nothing to do with immigration reform. They are looking to provoke fear, anger, and terror in the population. Ultimately the responsibility rests with Trump: this is his policy, these are his people. In the back half of the show Rudyard and Andrew break down some of the big domestic developments from last week, specifically Mark Carney's Davos speech. Carney recognizes that Canada is at the centre of a geopolitical crisis. And while this has given him a boost in his personal approval ratings, he hasn't been able to convert that into support for the Liberal Party. Does Carney's Davos speech give us insight into how he will approach CUSMA negotiations? Andrew believes we should not invest too heavily in the success of these talks, and it's time to develop policies to reduce the cost of walking away from trade with the U.S.

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Rudyard and Janice begin the show with the remarkable-sized TACO Trump delivered this week, whipping the world into a frenzy over threats to take over Greenland. His tough talk turned into a whimper after a meeting with the NATO Secretary General and a framework of a deal that has not been accepted by European leaders. What happened behind closed doors that made Trump back down from these threats? How did the bond market play into this? Meanwhile Mark Carney's Davos speech was well received by the European elite, but what is his plan for Canada? How will he enact sweeping and fundamental change in this country that match the substance of his speech? In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice discuss an AI-generated video impersonating former UN Ambassador John Bolton discussing Mark Carney's China visit. The convincing video - which has been viewed over 180,000 times - is a reminder of how easily AI can be used by interference and influence campaigns by foreign governments. What if 2026 is the year we can't tell what's real and what's not?