The Vassy Kapelos Show

It's the Graham Richardson Show - where we talk politics and also have a little bit of fun! You can catch Graham every single Friday from Noon until 2PM.

On today's show:

• The Friday Five: Zelenskyy meets with Prime Minister Carney in Banff. Trump offers a $5,000 'dividend' promise. How Americans are responding to Trump's trade war. Canada's potential shipbuilding rebound. The horrific events of 9/11 and what has changed 25 years later.
• The Big Conversation: CTV's Adrian Ghobrial joins us from New York City, an iconic American hub that was shaken to its core on this day in 2001.
• Life with Canada's Best: Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida discuss their new joint memoir.
• TIFF 2026: CTV movie critic Richard Crouse has everything you need to know about this year's festivities.
• A new report shows that Canada won't even meet 2030 emissions targets by 2050. Canadian Climate Institute's Rick Smith dissects the findings.
• An Ottawa developer has managed to build a townhome that costs under $300K. So how did they do it? Graham chats with CIAVAN CEO Frank Cairo.
• Have Your Say: 25 years since 9/11, and what you remember about that horrific Tuesday in 2001.
• What made Graham smile this week: Celine Dion returns to the stage, and where she belongs!

Prime Minister Mark Carney has gathered his Liberal Cabinet in Banff, Alberta ahead of the House of Commons' return on September 21st. Ahead of announcing a new Defense support package, Carney sat down for a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Vassy is joined by CTV National News senior correspondent Judy Trinh, who is in Banff covering the meetings.

On today's show:

• Ahead of the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Vassy speaks with Percy Farwell, the present-day Mayor of Gander, Newfoundland.
• Talk Science To Me with CTV Science and Technology specialist Dan Riskin: Why microwaving fish stinks so much.
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Mike LeCouteur, Laura Stone, and Marieke Walsh.
• Part 1 of a 4-part series with psychotherapist Jentzen Michael Shea. Today's episode explores the world of grief, and how to manage it.

Not even 24 hours after Canada's counter-tariffs were launched against their next-door neighbours, U.S. President Trump is already thinking of hitting back. He is planning to ramp up 50% tariffs against more Canadian goods, while also banning Canadian products from U.S. government contracts. CTV's Mike LeCouteur has the latest developments.

On today's show:

• Federal Transport Minister Steve MacKinnon reacts to the latest trade action from the White House.
• B.C. Conservative Party leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay joins Vassy in the midst of a trying time for her party, as nine MLA's have fled the Blue Tent under her watch. They are all citing her leadership as the reason for their exit, and five of them have started a new party.
• The Explainer with Dr. René Wittmer, a family doctor based in Quebec: Why are doctors advising against full-body scans?
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Laura D'Angelo, Jeff Rutledge, and Stephanie Levitz.
• Phil Gurski, a former Strategic Counterterrorism Analyst at CSIS, looks back at the horrific events of 9/11 25 years later.
• An engineer for Anthropic publicly calls it quits, citing fears that A.I. could soon kill us all. We dig deeper with Gladstone A.I. co-founder Jeremie Harris.

Prime Minister Carney has released a new 'forward guidance' video message - warning of economic pain to come - as Canada's retaliatory duties on U.S. products take effect. Vassy speaks with international trade lawyer William Pellerin as the latest developments roll in.

On today's show:

• The Globe And Mail's Steve Chase joins Vassy with details on Canada and China resuming Defense cooperation, marking the first time both sides have done so in nearly a decade.
• Money Talk with John Klotz: How to fix your finances before 2026 wraps up.
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Sharan Kaur, Jamie Ellerton, and Nojoud Al Mallees.
• Vassy speaks with Roger Hilton, a Defense Fellow with Central Europe international think-tank GLOBSEC, about the AFD winning a state-level election in Germany.
• TSN's Aaron Korolnek talks about the Toronto Blue Jays' Wild Card push, and whether their Post-Deadline surge will be enough.

Tim Powers fills in on the Graham Richardson Show - where we talk politics and also have a little bit of fun! You can catch us every single Friday from Noon until 2PM.

On today's show:

• The Big Conversation: A new report sheds light on what would happen to the Canadian economy if U.S. President Trump withdrew America out of CUSMA entirely. We dig deeper with Matthew Stewart, a Partner in the Economics Group at Deloitte Canada and the co-author of these findings.
• Life With Canada's Best: Historica Canada President and CEO Andrew Wilson-Smith discusses the new Heritage Minute commemorating 9/11 and the town of Gander, Newfoundland.
• Tim chats with fellow Newfoundlander Brian Madore from VOCM Radio in St. John's about Hilroy leaving Newfoundland and Cape Breton off its Familiar School Workbooks map.
• Sharan Kaur, Jeff Rutledge, and George Soule dissect this week's top stories - most of which has to do with the Canada-USA trade relationship and Canada's looming counter-tariffs.
• Abacus Data CEO David Coletto discusses his latest polling on how Americans feel about the Trump trade war.
• CTV U.S. political analyst Eric Ham explains President Trump's latest attack on the Federal Reserve.

Prime Minister Carney responded today to U.S. officials claiming he called off Canada-USA trade talks for political gain. Those allegations were ahead of Monday's federal byelections and the Quebec provincial election. Chatting with reporters in Thunder Bay, Carney also announced a major contract for VIA Rail passenger cars.

On today's show:

• CTV Your Morning chief meteorologist Kelsey McEwen has the latest on Wednesday's historic storm that caused widespread damage across Toronto and the GTA.
• Vassy goes 1-on-1 with Germany's Ambassador to Canada to discuss a foiled drone attack last month, which Germany is now linking to Russia's hybrid warfare operations.
• Talk Science To Me with CTV Science and Technology specialist Dan Riskin: Why 'review bombing' is wrecking today's online reviews.
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Mike LeCouteur, Laura Stone, Rob Benzie, and Marieke Walsh.
• CTV's Pat Foran joins Vassy with the details of W5's investigation into 'lemon' vehicles being sold in Canada.

The Bank of Canada has held firm on its key interest rate at 2.25%, marking the seventh consecutive occasion it has done so. At the same time, BOC Governor Tiff Macklem is warning that high oil prices caused by the war in Iran could be a bigger inflation risk than the U.S. trade war. Vassy Kapelos gathers instant reaction from RBC Chief Economist Frances Donald.

On today's show:

• Vassy goes 1-on-1 with Arizona Democratic Senator Reuben Gallego, as the two discuss the ongoing trade war.
• The Explainer with Dr. Nicholas Leyland, the President of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada: What is post-partum psychosis?
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Jeff Rutledge, Sabrina Grover, and Shannon Greer.
• Vassy speaks with marketing strategy expert Eric Blais about the political messaging on both sides of the Canada-USA trade dispute.
• An eighth B.C. Conservative MLA has quit the party, citing Kerry-Lynne Findlay's leadership.

Prime Minister Carney has responded to U.S. President Trump and his officials' recent trolling of Canada, as he celebrated a Liberal trifecta of byelection victories. Vassy is joined by CTV News senior political correspondent Mike LeCouteur to break it all down.

On today's show:

• CTV B.C. Legislative Bureau Chief Rob Buffam has the latest on B.C. Conservative Party leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay's growing woes, as a 7th MLA has stepped aside under her watch.
• Money Talk with John Klotz: Part 2 of back-to-school without breaking the bank, and it's all about post-secondary planning.
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Sharan Kaur, Jamie Ellerton, and Nojoud Al Mallees.
• A jury has found Duane Davis guilty in the murder of American rapper Tupac Shakur. Vassy chats with Cathy Scott, a best-selling investigative journalist and author who covered the 1996 murder as a Las Vegas Sun police reporter. She also wrote the 1997 book 'The Killing of Tupac Shakur'.
• Tips for back-to-school stress and anxiety with child psychologist Dr. Janine Hubbard.

It's been one week since trade talks broke down between the Carney Liberals and the Trump administration. Today, the U.S. President has once again ramped up his rhetoric, attacking Canada in a Truth Social tirade. Vassy is joined by CTV U.S. political analyst Eric Ham for his perspective on where the Canada-USA relationship stands right now.

On today's show:

• Is Trump's deal on Venezuelan oil bad news for Canada? Vassy chats with energy expert Heather Exner-Pirot for a reality check.
• Tech Check with tech analyst Carmi Levy: Google Maps changes Lake Ontario to 'Lake America'.
• The Daily Debrief Panel - featuring Tom Mulcair, Tim Powers, and Michele Cadario.
• A new study has found a strong link between the shingles vaccine and a lower risk of dementia. Vassy speaks with Brown University Professor and lead author Kaley Hayes.
• Vassy is joined by Lisa McEwan, the co-founder of Hemisphere Freight and Brokerage, for a closer look at how the latest Canadian tariffs are impacting exporters.

It's the Graham Richardson Show - where we talk politics and also have a little bit of fun! You can catch Graham every single Friday from Noon until 2PM.

On today's show:

• The Friday Five: U.S. President Trump trolls Canada. Canada reacts to the Trumpian trolling. The week that was in trade war escalation. The latest on the devastating floods in Nepal. Plus, the latest GDP numbers display a surprising Canadian growth.
• The Big Conversation: CTV chief financial correspondent Amanda Lang reacts to the unexpectedly positive 3.3% GDP growth in Q2.
• Life with Canada's Best: Professor Kathryn Whitehead is one of 48 U.S. academics that Canada has 'lured' with a new international recruitment campaign.
• New data from CAMH finds that more teens are gambling online than ever before. We dig deeper with Dr. Hayley Hamilton.
• Retired Major-General Scott Clancy, a former Director of Operations for NORAD, on the challenges and opportunities in Canada's Arctic.
• Tyler Groeneveld, the CEO of Protein Industries Canada, makes the case for domestic food production as a means of economic sovereignty.
• Graham goes 1-on-1 with former Alberta Premier Jason Kenney on separation, trade, and Conservative politics.
• Have Your Say: The Canada-USA trade war heats up yet again.
• What made Graham smile this week: Canada's AI-generated trade war protest song.