The Andrew Lawton Show

With rampant inflation and a rising cost of living, Canadians can't catch a break. While life is getting more expensive in pretty much everywhere, government is the big beneficiary. A new report from the Fraser Institute breaks down how Canadians are spending more on taxes than they are on food, clothing, and shelter combined. True North's Andrew Lawton discusses with Kris Sims of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

Also, critical theory has taken over Canadian schools, in large part because of a leftward shift in teacher training programs, a new essay charges. James Pew joins the show to talk about his piece "Transforming Children" in this month's C2C Journal.

Plus, Andrew makes a big announcement, so you don't want to miss this episode.

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Canadians are turning on the immigration system, with recent polling showing Canadians think immigration rates are too high. This is Justin Trudeau's fault, True North's Andrew Lawton says. By setting arbitrary targets and making virtue signalling the goal over a sensible, measured approach to immigration, Trudeau has let the system get out of control. Can it be fixed?

Also, the federal government has given the health minister, right now Mark Holland, the right to override Health Canada and unilaterally ban some products based on harm concerns – with no need for study or legislation. David Clement of the Consumer Choice Center says Canadians should be concerned about this consolidation of power in one person's hands. He joins the show to explain why.

Plus, leaders around the world are condemning the sham election in Venezuela that Nicolas Maduro claims re-elected him. Ana Rizo of the Ladies of Liberty Alliance joins to discuss what's happening and why it matters.

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The International Olympic Committee has apologized for the 2024 Paris Olympics' controversial opening ceremonies, which included a Last Supper depiction featuring drag queens and a "fat acceptance" activist playing the part of Jesus. The organizers insist that no mockery or offence was intended, but True North's Andrew Lawton points out that Christians are pretty well the only religious group anyone would dare make such a performance about.

Also, Canadian Taxpayers Federation Alberta director Kris Sims went by Edmonton City Hall to take a stock photo and was shocked to find the area around it filled with garbage and urine. Cities across the country are falling into similar states with no one seemingly doing anything about it.

Plus, a new report from the Aristotle Foundation finds that Canada and the United States have the most permissive approaches – making younger patients eligible for "invasive surgeries and/or potentially irreversible and medically harmful dispensation of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones."

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Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre took aim at legacy media reporting on drugs at a London, Ont. press conferences, calling reporters "irresponsible" for interviewing the so-called harm reduction efforts who are profiting from the system and on whose watch things have gotten so out of hand. He also told True North's Andrew Lawton that he's open to making treatment mandatory but wants to see evidence on how or if it would work.

National Post columnist Adam Zivo also weighs in.

Plus, a new documentary from SecondStreet.org draws attention to the urgent need for healthcare reform. The organization's president, Colin Craig, joins the show to explain why.

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Justin Trudeau and his office routinely bar and block independent journalists from attending their press conferences and otherwise having any opportunities to ask him questions. And yet, when Keean Bexte of the Counter Signal tracked Trudeau down to a Tofino beach, many of Trudeau's defenders said it was in poor form to hassle a man on a vacation with his family. True North's Andrew Lawton says he would agree if Trudeau didn't shield himself from journalists he didn't like during the rest of the year.

Also, the Competition Bureau is looking at what it suspects might be "anticompetitive" practices guiding gas prices. Dan McTeague from Canadians for Affordable Energy joins to weigh in.

Plus, despite how much politicians love to talk about free trade with other countries, there isn't even free trade within Canada. Interprovincial trade barriers are costing the economy $200 billion a year, a new report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business says. CFIB interprovincial affairs director Keyli Loeppky joins the show to discuss.

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NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Justin Trudeau has "failed" as a prime minister. But when asked if that means he'll pull the NDP's support for the Liberal government, Singh just said there's already a scheduled election coming in October 2025 and he just wants Canadians to know they have an alternative. True North's Andrew Lawton says it's clear the NDP and the Liberals are one party, so Singh should stop pretending otherwise.

Also, a new decision by the Supreme Court of Canada allows judges to award compensation if Parliament or provincial legislatures enact unconstitutional legislation. However, legal scholars warn that the judiciary is vastly expanding its own authority here, and undermining democracy at the same time. Christine Van Geyn from the Canadian Constitution Foundation joins to discuss.

Plus, the unemployment rate for temporary residents in Canada is double the national average, with skilled and educated immigrants unable to find work due in part to how the Canadian immigration system is structured. Immigration lawyer Siavash Shekarian joins the show to offer up a couple of possible solutions.

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President Joe Biden has responded to the mounting calls for him to bow out of the presidential race by doing exactly that – announcing the suspension of his campaign on the weekend. Meanwhile, Trudeau is taking a leisurely family vacation in British Columbia as his party continues to drag in the polls. True North's Andrew Lawton wonders whether he'll finally take the hint.

Also, the bureaucracy has grown in Canada by 42% since Trudeau took office, with 108,000 new public servants despite the population only growing by 14% in the same time. We discuss with Kris Sims from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

Plus, gun control groups are in a panic over what they say is an "abandonment" by the Liberals of their commitment to getting rid of "assault-style rifles." Tracey Wilson of the Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights weighs in.

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Justin Trudeau has said that the federal government will not provide funding to municipalities that don't build more homes. Sound familiar? It should, True North's Andrew Lawton says, as it's right in line with the "gatekeeper" messaging and policies that Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been talking about.

Also, major flooding in Toronto this week has exposed huge gaps in the city's infrastructure priorities, but Mayor Olivia Chow and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau say the real culprit is climate change. Toronto Sun columnist Brian Lilley joins the show to discuss.

Plus, an American Home Depot cashier has been terminated after she was exposed on social media for having posted on her Facebook page that she wished the assassination attempt on Donald Trump had been successful. Is this an appropriate response or cancel culture gone too far?

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Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said in his statement about the attempted assassination of Donald Trump that he was glad the shooter, identified as a 20-year-old Pennsylvania man, was dead, prompting a great deal of finger-wagging from the left and the legacy media. Is it okay to rejoice in the death of a bad person? True North's Andrew Lawton weighs in and discusses what things were like on the ground in Butler, Pennsylvania with Rachel Parker, who was reporting on the rally for her new show, Rachel and the Republic.

Also, former congresswoman and 2012 presidential candidate Michele Bachmann joins the show to discuss what this means for the United States and the world.

Plus, the federal government has forced banks to label carbon tax rebates as it tries to salvage the loathed carbon tax. Kris Sims from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation joins to discuss.

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As Liberal poll numbers continue to drag, a new Globe and Mail story cites sources in Justin Trudeau's office putting the blame on Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland for "not being effective in delivering an upbeat economic message." The story also reports that the PMO has considered recruiting Mark Carney as finance minister. It was just a few years ago that Freeland's predecessor, Bill Morneau, was similarly knifed through PMO leaks, True North's Andrew Lawton asks if we are about to see one of Trudeau's most loyal foot soldiers thrown under the bus.

Also, universities have become "exasperating" with hateful rhetoric getting a pass while discussions about free speech, EDI, and gender are censored. A new essay in The Hub from Concordia professor Zachary Patterson says there's still hope to purge universities of their "extreme leftist ideology." He joins the show to explain how.

Plus, fossil fuel consumption has increased since the Kyoto Protocol and greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise following the Paris climate accord. So why are we inflicting economic harm on our country in support of net-zero measures that clearly aren't working? Fraser Institute senior fellow Dr. Kenneth Green joins the show to weigh in. 

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