There’s an air of excitement in Ottawa as it prepares for King Charles III to arrive and deliver the speech from the throne, which lays out the Liberal government’s plan and priorities. His visit is also widely seen as pushback against U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to turn Canada into the 51st state. 

But according to the new U.S. ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra, that saga is over and Canada should move on. He sits with Catherine Cullent to discuss that and the next steps in the Canada-U.S. relationship.

Plus, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Canada of emboldening Hamas, a Middle East expert joins The House to talk about if there’s been a shift in Canadian-Israeli relations. 

Then, a constitutional expert, a royal watcher, an Indigenous leader and members of Quebec’s sovereignty parties talk about what message King Charles’ speech will send to Trump — or whether the whole thing ultimately means nothing to the U.S. president.

Finally, the parliamentary bureau chief of the National Post and the Ottawa bureau chief of La Presse explain what to look for in the government’s to-do list.

This episode features the voices of:

• Pete Hoekstra, U.S. ambassador to Canada
• Thomas Juneau, University of Ottawa political science professor
• Patricia Treble, royal watcher
• Philippe Lagassé, Carleton University political science professor
• Perry Bellegarde, former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations
• Pascal Bérubé, Parti Québécois MNA
• Catherine Gentilcore, Parti Québécois MNA
• Ruba Ghazal, Québec solidaire MNA
• Stuart Thomson, National Post parliamentary bureau chief
• Joel-Denis Bellavance, La Presse Ottawa bureau chief