February, 2025
Canada races to revive Commonwealth ties with its U.S. relationship on shaky ground
With the U.S. losing its long-held place as Canada’s most trusted partner, the country’s leaders are now clamouring to revive ties to like-minded countries, most notably historic allies like Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. (Pawel Dwulit/The Canadian Press) The Canada-U.S. relationship is at its lowest point in more than a century with President Donald Trump’s near-daily threats to ruin the Canadian economy and undermine the country’s sovereignty. With the U.S. losing its long-held place as Canada’s most trusted partner, the country’s leaders are now clamouring to revive tiesRead more
Ukraine’s mineral riches could bankroll its postwar future. But what does Trump’s deal really mean?
The giant excavator working in the quarry near the central Ukrainian town of Zhytomyr rarely stops scooping, removing earth and precious titanium ore 24 hours a day. “Ukraine possesses approximately 20 per cent of the world’s titanium reserves,” operations manager Dmytro Holik told CBC News, as the noise of the excavator blared in the distance. “I am very interested that Ukraine can become a global or European titanium hub.” On that point, Holik and U.S. President Donald Trump would appear to share common ground. After weeks of painful — and often publicRead more
USAID workers pack belongings, as Trump administration targets 90% of foreign aid contracts
A U.S. Agency for International Development worker holds a bouquet of flowers after retrieving her belongings from agency headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/The Associated Press) U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) workers — many in tears — carted away belongings through cheering crowds in a final visit to their now-closed headquarters on Thursday as the Trump administration’s rapid dismantling of the congressionally authorized agency moved into its final stages. Notices sent out in mass mailings this week are terminating more than 90 per cent of USAID’s contractsRead more
Trump moves to end congestion pricing in New York City
The Trump administration said on Wednesday it was rescinding federal approval of New York City’s congestion pricing program that is designed to reduce traffic and raise money to upgrade aging subway and bus systems. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the move will halt a program that “leaves drivers without any free highway alternative and instead takes more money from working people to pay for a transit system and not highways.” Under the program, which launched on Jan. 5, most passenger vehicles are charged $9 US during peak periods to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street. Trucks and busesRead more
These charts reveal a Canada-U.S. bond forged in steel and aluminum
It’s a move that could reshape North American trade. Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump announced tariffs on all steel and aluminum products coming into the U.S. from anywhere, including Canada. That means each time any Canadian steel or aluminum crosses the 49th parallel, the exporter will have to shell out 25 per cent to the U.S. government — on top of another 25 per cent if Trump makes good on his threat to tariff all goods coming from Canada. Here are nine charts that put the metal trade between the U.S. andRead more
With Trump looming, Pierre Poilievre tries to wrap himself in the flag
It’s not hard to list the ways in which Poilievre and Trump are not alike. But it’s also fair to say Poilievre is working with some of the same anti-establishment, us-vs.-them, populist forces that are most loudly evident in American politics. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press) Donald Trump now seems to loom over everything — almost as overwhelmingly as the giant Canadian flag that loomed behind Pierre Poilievre at his “Canada First” rally last weekend. If not for Trump, it seems unlikely Poilievre would have been celebrating Flag Day so enthusiastically. ForRead more
Top general says military relationship with U.S. is solid as Trump’s threats continue
The country’s top military commander delivered a keep calm and carry on message on Wednesday in the face of U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to annex Canada. Gen. Jennie Carignan says the military-to-military relationship between the two countries is solid and has not shown the signs of the political strain that has racked the two nations. “The relationship that we have with our American military colleagues is very stable and very strong,” Carignan said as the Department of National Defence released an update on how the military will rebuildRead more
Can Canada just build its own cars? Experts say no – here’s why, and what we could do instead
The interior of the Windsor Assembly Plant in southwestern Ontario. Amid tariff threats on imported steel and aluminum by U.S. President Donald Trump, there’s also concern in Canada’s auto sector. (Katerina Georgieva/CBC) President Donald Trump’s threats of tariffs on Canadian products entering the U.S. and his planned imposition of tariffs on imported steel and aluminum have triggered alarm in the Canadian auto sector, with experts warning of possible work stoppages and supply chain disruptions. But experts say building cars in Canada for the Canadian market isn’t the answer — instead,Read more
Trump vs. the last democratic guardrail: the courts
In a corroding American democracy, there’s one guardrail still standing. The court system. President Donald Trump is testing it, he’s pushing it, but so far has not kicked it aside. Time and again, he has run into court orders — rulings that have restrained him, constrained him, and told him no, you can’t always get what you want. Trump has so far stopped short of crossing the democratic Rubicon of blatantly defying a court order, a line no U.S. president has breached in at least a century and a half. “InRead more
Canadian residents are racing to save the data in Trump’s crosshairs
The call to Angela Rasmussen came out of the blue and posed a troubling question. Had she heard the rumour that key data sets would be removed from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website the next day? It’s something Rasmussen had thought could never happen. “It had never really been thought of before that CDC would actually start deleting some of these crucial public health data sets,” said the University of Saskatchewan virologist. “These data are really, really important for everybody’s health — not just in the U.S.Read more