Explore every episode of the podcast Power Lines

On Power Lines today, Sandy Garossino, former Crown prosecutor and columnist for Canada's National Observer, unpacks the B.C. election and the defeat of David Eby's NDP government. She and Max discuss how the Conservatives found success by moving toward the political centre and what the election means for Indigenous rights and resource development in the province.

They also examine Alberta's referendum, the future of Western alienation and how Mark Carney's approach to pipelines and clean energy could reshape Canada's economic future.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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What happens when the people who helped put you in power turn against you?

Max Fawcett sits down with Dr. Lisa Young, a political science professor at the University of Calgary, to unpack the fallout from Alberta's referendum and what it means for Smith's political future.

They discuss whether Smith can hold her party together, what the referendum results reveal about support for separatism, and how Alberta's political and business elites have helped fuel Western alienation. Lisa also explains what her research into populism reveals about Alberta voters, including some surprising findings about democracy.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett and former Alberta NDP MLA and environment minister Shannon Phillips unpack the fallout from the referendum and what comes next for the province.

They discuss why Phillips believes Smith is facing pressure from within her own party, whether the province’s NDP missed an opportunity during the referendum campaign, and the serious concerns about proposed changes to Alberta's electoral boundaries.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max reunites with Shachi Kurl, president of the Angus Reid Institute and his former co-panellist on a CBC show a decade ago, to unpack a pivotal moment in Canadian politics. With Albertans heading to the polls in a referendum, the two discuss what the results could mean for Danielle Smith and whether separatism has created divisions within her conservative base. Plus, Shachi explains the shifting political landscape in British Columbia, why climate change has slipped down voters' priority lists and the competing factions within Carney's Liberal coalition.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett speaks with journalist Ali Amad, author of the Maclean's feature The Great Generational Rip-Off, to discuss why homeownership, starting a family and saving for retirement have become increasingly difficult for younger Canadians. They also explore potential solutions, including reforms to Old Age Security, taxing wealth and finding a fairer way to share Canada's resources across generations.

Read Ali's Maclean's story, The Great Generational Rip-Off: https://macleans.ca/longforms/the-great-generational-rip-off/

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Who is Danielle Smith, really? And how did she make one of the most remarkable political comebacks in Alberta history?

Max Fawcett sits down with Alberta journalist Jeremy Appel, author of the new book Dark Phoenix: The Rise, Fall, and Re-emergence of Danielle Smith, to unpack the political career of Alberta's premier.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Corey Hogan is a Liberal MP for Calgary Confederation and a former senior Alberta government official who has worked under both the NDP and UCP. He and Max discuss Alberta’s upcoming referendum -- including Danielle Smith’s approach to separatism and why conservative politicians have been “playing with the separatist live wires.” The two also dig into Western alienation and Hogan’s argument that Western Canada has too often been treated as an afterthought.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett sits down with Phil De Luna, co-founder and CTO of Alberta-based climate technology startup CURA, to discuss why he believes Canada's push to attract investment could also accelerate the country's clean energy transition.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max and economist Trevor Tombe dig into the financial realities of Alberta separation. They dig into what an independent Alberta could mean for the province’s debt, taxes, pensions, public services, and borrowing costs—and why the fiscal benefits separatists promise may not be as straightforward as they seem.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max talks to Anthony Koch, managing principal of AK Strategies and a longtime Conservative strategist, about what’s happening inside Canadian conservatism. They cover why Conservatives are struggling to adjust to PM Mark Carney while digging into Donald Trump and MAGA’s influence on Canadian conservative politics.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max sits down with the University of Calgary's Sara Hastings-Simon to take stock of the global energy transition and what it means for Canada. They talk about the rapid growth of renewables and the future of oil demand, whether the oil sands’ Pathways carbon capture project still makes economic sense and how Prime Minister Mark Carney is handling the climate file. And of course, they dig into Alberta’s data centre boom.

Do you agree with Max and Sara? Where do you think they’re wrong? Let us know.

Music credit: Energy Rock Bundle by Basspartout, via Envato

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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On this latest episode of Powerlines, Max speaks with former national security investigator Patrick Lennox about foreign interference, disinformation and why he believes Canadians are "sleepwalking" into a dangerous moment.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max and Heather Exner-Pirot of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute talk Canada's energy strategy. They get into whether global demand for fossil fuels will continue to grow, if renewables are advancing faster than the industry expects and whether new pipelines still make economic sense. Buckle in.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett sits down with Margareta Dovgal, managing director of Resource Works, for a debate on Canada's energy future. They discuss whether federal climate policies are driving away investment, the future of pipelines and Canada's regulatory system, and much more.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Are younger Canadians paying the price for decades of political short-term thinking?

Max Fawcett talks with Dr. Paul Kershaw of Generation Squeeze about housing, healthcare, retirement spending, climate policy and the growing generational divide in Canada. They ask a difficult question: can Canada become fair again for young people?

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett is joined by Dr. Kathryn Harrison, a political science professor at UBC and expert on climate and energy policy, to unpack how Canadian climate politics have shifted from the Trudeau era to the current rollback of key policies. They talk about why public concern about climate is so cyclical, how federal-provincial tensions and global energy trends are reshaping Canada’s fossil fuel future and what it would actually take for climate to matter to voters again.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Following the election of Avi Lewis as leader of the federal NDP, cracks are forming between the federal party and its provincial counterparts. Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi came out swinging following Lewis' election, as did Saskatchewan NDP leader Carla Beck — both raising concerns with Lewis' hopes for a fossil fuel-free future.

David Moscrop joins Max Fawcett to talk about how the NDP can mend fences, and what a reinvigorated party will mean for the political landscape currently dominated by two parties.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett is joined by pollster Dan Arnold to talk through the Alberta independence referendum and why Canadians shouldn’t be complacent about its potential to tear Canada apart. Also: Dan bets the over/under on the “yes” vote.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett is joined by Rory Johnston, the founder of Commodity Context and one of Canada’s best oil analysts. They talk about what the war in Iran means for oil supplies, Canada’s future, and the prospects of a new West Coast pipeline.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Is Bitcoin a legitimate alternative currency? Is it the currency of the disenchanted? Or the hedge against a rocky future? Max Fawcett talks with Bitcoin enthusiast Adam O'Brien about that as well as government overreach, the Ottawa occupation and the seizing of bank accounts.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Haida Gwaii is a stretch of islands teeming with life just off the coast of British Columbia. The land, its skies, and the bodies of water around it have been protected for thousands of years by local Haida guardians. Protecting Haida Gwaii is a story about a First Nation that continues the fight for its rights, despite having inhabited the territory for thousands of years.

Read more about Haida Gwaii at Canada’s National Observer.

Written by Brandi Morin

Edited by Zahra Khozema

Cover art by Ata Ojai

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Greedflation, justflation, and even shrinkflation are the newest terms to describe what we have all been going through financially for the past two years. And on top of this, we have rising interest rates. Is there anything that can be done to ease the pressure? Max speaks to economist Armine Yalnizyan to find out.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Can nuclear be part of the fight against carbon emissions? In some places, nuclear is back in vogue. Max Fawcett talks with an environmentalist who thinks it is essential for nuclear to be part of the solution because renewables aren't yet at the scale needed to solve the problem. And she's not alone.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The carbon tax is misunderstood and controversial. The federal government's price on polluting is one of its strategies to fight the climate crisis. But is it working? And is it fair? Max Fawcett talks to a Saskatchewan farmer who feels rural Canada and, in particular, agriculture, is being hit too hard by the tax.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Should we treat the climate emergency like a war? Seth Klein thinks so. In his book A Good War: Mobilizing Canada for the Climate Emergency, Klein lays out a comparison between the Second World War and the climate crisis. He argues that we can't win the war unless we work together like we did in the war against the Nazis. Max isn't so sure.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Jeromy Farkas might be called a cautionary tale of politics and political friends. Max talks to the former city councillor and Calgary 2021 mayoral election runner-up about his take on the recent provincial election and the highs and lows of his career in the Conservative circle.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Is Bitcoin a legitimate alternative currency? Is it the currency of the disenchanted? Or the hedge against a rocky future? Max Fawcett talks with Bitcoin enthusiast Adam O'Brien about that as well as government overreach, the Ottawa occupation and the seizing of bank accounts.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can nuclear be part of the fight against carbon emissions? In some places, nuclear is back in vogue. Max Fawcett talks with an environmentalist who thinks it is essential for nuclear to be part of the solution because renewables aren't yet at the scale needed to solve the problem. And she's not alone.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Janet Bufton believes in libertarianism ⁠— a philosophy that argues for minimal government involvement in people's lives. However, she's thankful for the federal government's intervention during the pandemic. Max Fawcett thinks most libertarians behaved badly during the pandemic by making it about their civil liberties rather than coming together to fight the common enemy ⁠— Covid-19.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Max Fawcett asks Rachel Notley if the NDP have the policies to win the next Alberta election. The former Premier of Alberta gets into the energy transition, health care and door-knocking. Oh, and she also talks about political interference in the judicial system.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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The fossil fuel industry considers Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as a tool for emissions reduction. It is used to replace coal as a power source in many countries. Canada sees exporting LNG as a contribution to meeting our climate commitments. Max Fawcett isn't so sure. And he's talking it through with historian and CEO of Resource Works, Stewart Muir.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Ken Boessenkool has been a Conservative strategist for more than 20 years. He's worked with Canadian politicians like Stephen Harper, Ralph Klein, Christy Clark and Stockwell Day. So, what does he think about the policies of the new kids on the block like Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre?

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Some experts say carbon capture is the wrong way to address the climate crisis in Canada and that the government should not fund the fossil fuel industry for this technology. Instead, spending should focus more on renewables. Is it that simple?

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

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Alberta has been unhappy with Ottawa for a long time. There is a feeling they pay into Canada but don't get enough in return. Some are saying Canada is broken and Alberta should leave the federation. Max speaks to Derek Fildebrandt, a former politician and the head of a major right-leaning provincial publication about whether disconnection is a real solution.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The carbon tax is misunderstood and controversial. The federal government's price on polluting is one of its strategies to fight the climate crisis. But is it working? And is it fair? Max Fawcett talks to a Saskatchewan farmer who feels rural Canada and, in particular, agriculture, is being hit too hard by the tax.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canada's National Observer's publisher, Linda Solomon Wood, chats with Max about journalism, how the publication came to be and who really funds his columns.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we unwind into the holidays, we'd like to bring your attention to another Canada’s National Observer creation: This true crime climate podcast is called The Salmon People. The investigation, by Sandra Bartlett, our Managing Producer for podcasts, takes us off the coast of British Columbia, where wild salmon started dying by the millions. We follow an unlikely detective - a whale biologist - Alexandra Morton - who battles against government, industry and multinational corporations to save Canada’s wild salmon population. You can binge the entire series on your favourite podcast streaming platform.

Maxed Out and The Salmon People are made possible by listeners like you. If you’ve supported the podcast already, thank you. If you haven’t, click here to donate what you can to help us keep producing valuable journalism.

Got questions or comments? Email us at producer@nationalobserver.com

Follow us on Twitter: @NatObserver

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greedflation, justflation, and even shrinkflation are the newest terms to describe what we have all been going through financially for the past two years. And on top of this, we have rising interest rates. Is there anything that can be done to ease the pressure?

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A discussion with a former Alberta Progressive cabinet minister on politics, oil and gas (of course!) and Danielle Smith's brand of populism.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Should we treat the climate emergency like a war? Seth Klein thinks so.  In his book A Good War: Mobilizing Canada for the Climate Emergency he lays out a comparison between the Second World War and the Climate Crisis. He argues that we can't win the war unless we work together like we did in the war against the Nazi's.

Prefer watching? Full video episodes are available on Canada's National Observer YouTube channel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.