The Big Five Podcast

Elias Makos caps the week off with Justine McIntyre, Co-Founder of Civica Strategies and former city councillor, and Raphaël Melançon, political analyst for CTV Montreal and CJAD 800, columnist for the Montreal Gazette, and president and founder of Trafalgar Strategies.

• Canada has its worst ranking ever in the 14-year history of the World Happiness Report
• The Pierre Poilievre episode of the Joe Rogan Experience was released yesterday
• Parti Quebecois MNA Alex Boissoneault is accusing a feminist organization of leading an “ideological intimidation” campaign against him
• One of the biggest publishers in the U.S. has cancelled a book release over allegations that the book was written using A.I.

Elias Makos returns and welcomes in Caroline Codsi, Founder & Chief Equity Officer, Women in Governance, and Victor Henriquez, Public affairs and crisis management specialist at Public Strategy and Conseil.

• The provincial budget was unveiled yesterday and there is good news. The deficit is down by nearly four billion dollars compared to the last fiscal year 
• For the first time in 30 years, more people have left the province than have entered
• Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is set to appear on the Joe Rogan podcast this afternoon
• A Quebec judge has ruled that two men are no longer allowed to donate sperm

Trudie Mason is joined by Andrew Caddell, columnist for the Hill Times and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy, and Neil Drabkin, a lawyer who served as federal prosecutor and a political commentator who was a chief of staff in the Harper government.

• It is the final budget before the provincial election this fall but Finance Minister Eric Girard says do not expect anything big
• The Federal government has decided that it will challenge the ruling calling the use of the Emergencies Act during the freedom convoy protests unlawful
• The clash continues between the city and its blue collar workers on who is telling the truth and who is lying about the usage of its road-sealing machines to fix potholes
• A new column in the Journal de Montreal this morning is arguing that the younger people who are working in the province need to go back to the office

Trudie Mason welcomes in Gabriel Retta, special advisor to the mayor of Montreal, Soraya Martinez Ferrada, and Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante.

• After three months of investigation, Quebec’s Anti-Corruption Unit has so far been unable to establish the authenticity of the text messages regarding the "brownies" that led to the resignation of former Liberal leader Pablo Rodriguez.
• As the price of gas continues to grow, could shale gas exploration return to the province?
• The City of Montreal is launching a major spring cleaning operation this week. 
• A local cemetery is exploring the idea of nighttime tours

Trudie Mason hosted this morning's Elias Makos Show.

Joining Trudie were Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante and Meeker Guerrier, Commentator at Noovo and RDS.

Among the topics discussed were

• The Israeli ambassador to Canada Ambassador Iddo Moed calls Canada a global centre of anit-semitism
• Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has chosen to endorse the controversial former hockey commentator Don Cherry for his Order of Canada nomination
• The English Montreal School Board (EMSB) has spent $2.7M of  public funds on legal battles challenging Quebec’s controversial language and secularism laws, including Bill 21 (Quebec secularism law) and Bill 96 (Quebec language law)

Elias was joined on The Big 5 by Neil Drabkin, is a lawyer who served as federal prosecutor and a political commentator who was a chief of staff in the Harper government and Paul Gott, lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia.

Among the topics discussed by Neil and Paul were

• More than 200 thousand homes lost power across the province this morning due to freezing rain. That’s about over 35 thousand in Montreal. The REM is also disrupted between Brossard and Gare Central.
• IRIS, the progressive Quebec economic think tank, has a suggestion for how to tackle the province’s gaping deficit, and you’ll never guess what their solution is: higher taxes.
• Global News reports that after Carney visits Norway and London, the Canadian delegation will return home without him.
• For the First time ever, Canada has made it to the quarter finals of the World Baseball Classic

Elias Makos is joined by Caroline Codsi, Founder & Chief Equity Officer, Women in Governance, and Lea Streliski, Best-selling author, comedian and columnist.

• Weather experts are saying we should gear up for an ice storm, reminiscent of the one we got back in 2023, that left millions of homes without power
• We have another floor crosser. Nunavut NDP MP Lori Idlout will cross the floor to join the Liberals
• Final arguments wrapped up on Tuesday during a hearing for an injunction to stop two Quebec men from donating sperm
• A worker who developed tendinitis and suffered a ligament tear because she used her cell phone all day to perform her duties is eligible for benefits from the CNESST

Elias Makos is joined by Political analyst Karim Boulos, and Victor Henriquez, Public affairs and crisis management specialist at Public Strategy and Conseil.

• MP’s took part in a debate yesterday evening in the House of Commons about the U.S-Israel war on Iran but one key person was not present for the debate
• Canada’s immigration system is facing some tough questions after a tense committee hearing on Parliament Hill
• At least 35 thousand asylum claims have been accepted without an in-person hearing since 2019 in Canada
• New York Magazine has conducted an informal survey of New Yorkers, asking them how much they make

Elias Makos kicks the week off with Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante, and Andrew Caddell, columnist for the Hill Times and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy.

• The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that Quebec discriminated against female refugee claimants by introducing regulations that denied them access to subsidized daycare spaces
• A rally was held on Saturday asking the city of Montreal to recognize itself as a sanctuary city for people living in Canada without permanent immigration status
• The city of Laval is being forced to pay the taxes of its former mayor
• A video out of Repentigny blew up over the weekend after it showed a security guard at a convenience store being assaulted by teenagers from a local high school

On this Friday edition of the BIG 5, Elias is joined by Justine McIntyre, co-founder at Civica Strategies and former city councilor and Daniel Tran, director of communication and governmental relations at Casacom.

• Closing in on a week since the war in Iran kicked off, and if you’re struggling to figure out just what Canada’s official position is in this conflict, you are not alone.
• Speaking of the Middle East, six days after U.S.-Israeli military strikes began, there are still Quebecers and Canadians abroad trying desperately to get home.
• Chinatown residents are saying enough is enough: "It is time to stop making Chinatown a dumping ground for misery."