The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, and Anthropic.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! 20-some years ago, the PC Party of Canada disappeared federally, and over time was replaced by the modern Conservative Party of Canada. 

This episode is about exploring Canadian conservative political thought, the state of conservatism and the state of the Conservative parties in Canada today, and whether the Conservative Party of Canada can build a big tent winning coalition.

Our guests today share their views about the current leadership of the Conservative Party, the current direction of the Conservative Party, the role of populism in the Conservative Party, the lack of a role for Quebec in the Conservative Party, and more.

With us:

Jason Kenney. He spent over 25 years in elected office. Federal MP and cabinet minister under Stephen Harper. Then 18th Premier of Alberta. He's now a senior advisor at Bennett Jones and a senior fellow at the C.D. Howe Institute. 

Kory Teneycke. Curse of Politics panelist. Founder of Rubicon Strategies. And a longtime conservative strategist who served as Stephen Harper's director of communications and has run Doug Ford's campaigns in Ontario. 

And, and Fred DeLorey. Recent guest on Curse of Politics. Chair and chief strategy officer at North Star Public Affairs. He was the national campaign manager for the Conservative Party in the 2021 election, and earlier served as director of field operations for Doug Ford and director of political operations for Stephen Harper.

It's as good a banter about politics as you'll find. So join us for our conversation about the state of conservatism in Canada.

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, and Anthropic.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! It’s been a year of economic anxiety and trade upheaval in Canada with our largest trading partner applying tariffs, making threats, and taking a far more adversarial stance, in advance of the upcoming CUSMA negotiation.

We’re experiencing an economy with a very low growth rate, an affordability crisis, and industry disruption in steel, autos, and aluminum.

I was particularly curious to get a fulsome and thoughtful Conservative take on the Carney approach, so we’re joined by Adam Chambers, Conservative MP and Trade Critic, and Vice-Chair of the House Standing Committee on International Trade. 

Adam acknowledged the realities of dealing with a difficult American government, but that a deal that could advantage the Canadian economy might still be possible. We discuss his view that Canada’s fiscal position is a reckless one that puts the country in long-term jeopardy, and much more.

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, and Anthropic.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! There was a resignation in Ottawa last week that struck a louder chord than most. High profile Liberal caucus member, and former Cabinet Minister, Steven Guilbeault announced will be leaving politics over the summer.

Best known for his time as Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Mr. Guilbeault has been nothing if not candid about his beliefs about climate change and the policy actions he undertook as a member of the Trudeau Liberals to address it.

The Carney government’s approach has differed greatly, of course, with most of those policies having now been eliminated, reversed, or weakened considerably.

Today we approach the podcast as an exit interview, and we hope you’ll join us for this frank discussion. 

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, and Anthropic.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! Here’s a question for you: Can anything pierce the political armour of Ontario Premier Doug Ford?

Recently, pollsters have showed tightening numbers in the wake of Ford controversies like buying and then selling a private jet over the course of 72 hours. Selling off Ontario Place so it could be clear cut and turned it into a spa. And just this week, Ford’s government unilaterally took over the Toronto Island lands and designated Billy Bishop Airport as a “special economic zone”.

All of this as the Ontario NDP try to find their footing and the Ontario Liberal Party is gearing up for a leadership race.

So ... just how vulnerable is Doug Ford? Or isn’t he?

That’s the question I put to my guest today, pollster David Coletto. He’s the Founder, Chair and CEO of Abacus Data. And the prolific writer of the excellent “InFocus” newsletter on Substack.

His latest wave of tracking suggests the PCs have regained their lost ground. And Ford’s personal image has rebounded. How is this man a political rubber ball, rolling on largely unimpeded as things just seem to bounce off him?

We’ll dig into it. And the state of play in Ontario politics. 

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, and the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! We’re over a year into a new government and nobody could possibly argue there hasn’t been a significant recalibration in the way Canada thinks about climate policy and environmental regulation.

The public policy balance between the environment, pipelines, and project-building has shifted from what it was, say, back in 2018. So has the public’s perception, by the way. Recent polling shows that Canadians now prioritize economic growth over environmental protection. 

All of this is what we’ll explore today. From multiple angles. In 3 different individual conversations.

First up ... Aaron Wherry, senior writer at the CBC ... to set the table on the issues between Ottawa and Alberta.

Then … Rick Smith, President of the Canadian Climate Institute, for his perspective. We talk about emissions reduction, what’s happening to the industrial carbon price, the clean energy economy and more.

Finally … Andrew Leach, energy and environmental economist and professor at the University of Alberta, to explore the energy sector, particularly oil. The economic impact vs. opportunity cost of pipelines, and the tension between market forces and climate policy. 

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, Saab Canada, and the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Greetings you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! If you’re any kind of regular listener to the Air Quotes Media Pod universe, you know a powerful political eruption is happening in B.C., as a result of a ruling of the B.C. Supreme Court.

The Cowichan Decision, in combination with the existing DRIPA legislation, has been covered in depth by our sister pod, Hotel Pacifico.

Why should a politico in the rest of Canada care? Because I think this is the biggest legal question, not just in British Columbia, but all of Canada right now: Can a court declare Indigenous title over privately held land?

If so, do you own your house after 30 years of mortgage payments? Does industry invest in new nation building projects on land they don’t even know is theirs? 

The politics of this thing are sinking Premier Eby in British Columbia. Poilievre raised it as a cudgel in Q.P.  Prime Minister Carney responded that private property rights are fundamental in Canada and that his government will always defend them.  They are appealing the decision of the B.C. Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, the issue goes to the heart of reconciliation agenda in this country. Harming perceptions and long fought for advances.

With us to discuss ALL OF IT are the hosts of Hotel Pacifico and 2 of the best political strategists I know ... Mike McDonald & Geoff Meggs. 

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

Recorded live at the Empire Club on May 6, 2026.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, Saab Canada, and the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Greetings you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! It’s been about a week and a half since the federal government tabled their Spring Economic Statement, “Canada Strong for All: United in a Time of Uncertainty.” 

Today we sit in discussion with Canada's Minister of Finance, François-Philippe Champagne to reflect on our serious economic challenges, and yet, why he thinks Canada is a lighthouse in an uncertain world.

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, Saab Canada, and the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Greetings you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! So, there is little doubt we are living in a time of massive change.

•  A dislocation – perhaps temporary, perhaps not – between long time trading partners.
• New stressors on our economy forcing new economic alliances.
• A voting public with very real pocketbook issues looking at government line-item spending – a private jet, for instance – like never before.
• A minority parliament suddenly transformed into a majority.
• How do you successfully GOVERN your way through it all? That’s what we explore on the pod today. And we’ve got just the people to do it with.

 The Chiefs are here! Three former Chiefs of Staff to some of Canada’s most accomplished heads of government:

Ian Brodie – first Chief of Staff to Stephen Harper. Now, Professor of Political Science at the University of Calgary, and Senior Advisor at New West Public Affairs.

Tim Murphy – former Chief of Staff to Paul Martin. Now, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategic Affairs Officer at AECON.

Brian Topp – former Chief of Staff to Rachel Notley in Alberta and Deputy Chief to Roy Romanow in Saskatchewan. Now, founding partner at GT&co.

We talked about the Spring Economic Statement. Including the mostly confusing launch of the Sovereign Wealth Fund. The state of the Canada/U.S. file. The new Carney majority. And the arteriosclerosis of old governments that would lead them to the door of a private jet showroom. 

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, Saab Canada, and the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! 

The way we’re thinking about defence in Canada is not the same as it was 5 years ago. 1 year ago. Or even 6 months ago. The wars in Ukraine and Iran have dramatically demonstrated the impact of new technologies. And in February, the Carney government committed more than 80 billion NEW dollars over 5 years to rebuild and rearm our forces. 340 billion in total. It’s more than defence spending.  It’s a whole new defence industrial strategy. 

I want to know: How do we spend that money?  What kind of defence capacity do we build?  Who and what are we defending ourselves against? How have war innovations changed thinking about what we produce, or procure? What will our North look like in 10 years?

This is just some of what I covered with our guest, David Perry, today. Including ... shockingly ... his opinion that we should be buying American jets! And my debate with him on that.

David is making his 2nd appearance with us on the pod. He’s the President and CEO of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, a non-partisan, independent think tank.

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail, and Fidelity Investments Canada.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! With me today is Carla Beck, leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party, the official opposition in the Saskatchewan Legislature ... and a heartland NDPer.

As you know I’m from Saskatchewan. My political roots are in Saskatchewan. I just love Saskatchewan politics. This is my opportunity and yours to get all caught up on what's going on in Saskatchewan politics and whether the NDP have a plan to beat Scott Mo and the Sask Party in the next election. 

Stick around for my exchange with Ms. Beck about the implications of Avi Lewis' victory in the federal NDP leadership and what that means for her prospects of election in Saskatchewan. 

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.