The Rundown

Do Ontarians want an early election? We check in with radio hosts from across the province to see how communities are responding to heading to the polls 16 months early.

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Receiving a diagnosis of dementia requires a series of tests and a deep understanding of cognitive function. It also requires someone who can recognize the early signs. In short, the wait time for a dementia diagnosis is long. January is Alzheimer's Awareness Month, and to get a better understanding of the disease and the impact dementia has on the lives of the 750,000 Canadians living with it, Saskia Sivananthan, data scientist and neuroscientist specializing in dementia, former Chief Research Officer of the Alzheimer Society of Canada and founder and CEO of The Brainwell Institute joins Steve Paikin to discuss.

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It's Day One of the 44th Ontario general election and it's not an exaggeration to say the newest member of the Queen's Park leaders' club has a daunting mission ahead of her. Bonnie Crombie has been the Liberal leader for just over a year. But unlike the other leaders, she is now seeking a seat for the first time and very much hoping to bring her party back to official party status, which it hasn't had for two consecutive elections. Let's find out what's up her sleeve. Here's the Leader of the Ontario Liberals, Bonnie Crombie.

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Ontario's 44th election has been called. There will be many issues discussed between now and election day, February 27. But clearly the big issue for discussion on Day One is: Can the premier justify calling this election nearly a year and a half before he needed to? For insight, we welcome: JOHN MYKYTYSHYN, a Conservative political consultant and public-opinion researcher; KIM WRIGHT, principal and founder of Wright Strategies and an NDP strategist; DAN MOULTON, partner at Crestview Strategy and Liberal strategist; SABRINA NANJI, journalist and founder of Queen's Park Observer; and RICHARD SOUTHERN, Queen's Park reporter for 680 NewsRadio.

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Canada has pledged to spend more on economic development and security of the Arctic, but it has some catching up to do as climate change, technology and changing global geopolitics begin to transform the region. A look at Canada's sovereignty in the region, which is important for future national security and resource development plans, on tonight's The Agenda.

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February 1 is the day Donald Trump declared the U.S. will impose import tariffs on Canadian products. In the meantime, leaders at the federal and provincial level have been debating responses to those tariffs. One idea that has cropped up again... and it's by no means a new one... is bringing down interprovincial trade barriers. Why do they still exist and what could easing them mean for the Canadian economy?

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Why did Trump win? Did the Democrats lean too heavily on identity politics?Are people being driven by economic frustrations? Or cultural and social issues? Have we entered a new political era? Is this the end of an approach to economics that began with Reagan and Thatcher? The questions are endless for trying to understand this political moment and for diagnosing our current political condition. Harvard's Michael Sandel offers answers on all these and more. He explains to Steve Paikin why he thinks the left lost its way, how Bill Clinton paved the way for Trump, and how the left needs to reclaim a new type of identity politics and restore a sense of dignity to all of those that feel forgotten after three decades of hyper globalization.

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On the heels of the fires that continue in Los Angeles, the Copernicus Climate Change Service reported that 2024 was the first calendar year that was 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels – the limit agreed upon in the Paris Climate Agreement. Yet, support for climate policies here in Canada seem to be on the wane. According to Abacus Data, concern about climate change has decreased 14 points between 2023 and 2024, from 76% to 62% of Canadians. And, according to an Ipsos poll from this month, climate change or the environment was ranked ninth among the list of priorities for Canadian voters. Housing, healthcare, economy, inflation/interest rates, and immigration rounded out the top five. Do we simply no longer care about climate change in this country – especially at the ballot box?

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What makes democracy different than all the other forms of government is that it actually needs everyone to get involved and have their say. TVO Today Live convenes a town hall conversation hosted by Steve Paikin that offers a civics lesson that doesn't feel like one. Civics educators, engaged citizens and people who've put their names on the ballot gather for a wide-ranging discussion that breaks down how things work to help everyone find ways to get involved and make a difference.

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Civics education is mandatory for Ontario students. But from teacher shortages to our contentious political times, do the in-class offerings make the grade? Steve Paikin talks to civics educators to find out about the gaps, and possible solutions, to improve civics instruction in Ontario schools.

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