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Source: National Post (Politics)

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre rises during question period on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025.

OTTAWA — Conservatives are planning to force a debate and a vote in the House of Commons Tuesday about

the recent deal struck by Ottawa and Alberta to build a new oil pipeline on the West Coast

, in hopes of exposing divisions inside the Liberal caucus.

The motion, brought forward by Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, calls on MPs to “take note” of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Alberta struck on Nov. 27 and to support the construction of “one or more pipelines” to export bitumen to Asian markets.

Borrowing from the original text of the MOU, the motion also mentions the possibility of an “appropriate adjustment” to the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act — which the B.C. government and many Liberal MPs in the province are opposed to — to make this pipeline happen.

“In the spirit of Christmas, I decided to take a great act of generosity and lift the words right out of the prime minister’s MOU in order to support a pipeline to the Pacific, and a repeal or an overriding of the Liberal tanker ban,” said Poilievre during Monday’s question period.

Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson replied: “In the spirit of Christmas, I’d invite the leader of the Opposition not to cherry-pick parts of the MOU but to support the entire MOU, which is what all of the Conservative premiers across this country are doing.”

So far, Liberal MPs have not said if they would be supporting this motion or not but expressed annoyance at the idea that they would be forced to take a public stance.

Corey Hogan, one of two Liberal MPs in Alberta, accused the Conservatives of playing “political games” which he thinks could jeopardize the existence of a pipeline.

“This is a motion that is designed to provoke and to divide,” he said.

Sukh Dhaliwal, a Liberal MP from Surrey, B.C., said “just watch” when asked how he would vote on the motion. He however called on all MPs to support the MOU because it creates economic opportunities for Albertans, British Columbians and Indigenous peoples.

Former environment minister Steven Guilbeault has already resigned from cabinet over the Alberta MOU and other more progressive Liberal MPs have criticized the deal.

In a video, Vancouver MP Patrick Weiler called the deal is a “big setback”

in terms of climate policy, while his colleague

Taleeb Noormohamed wrote on X that “any project

that goes through the Major Projects Office MUST have B.C. and First Nations consent.”

The Government House leader’s office declined to say if the vote on the motion, set to happen around 6:30 p.m. Eastern, would be “whipped” — which means that all Liberal MPs would be forced to vote with the government.

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A car travels along Highway 20 in British Columbia. Roger's new satellite service means customers won’t lose their signal, even in remote locations across Canada.

Rogers Communications on Tuesday announced the rollout of a new satellite-to-mobile service, the first of its kind in Canada. Rogers Satellite provides voice and video calling and a number of popular apps for weather and navigation information, vastly increasing the company’s coverage.

“This is really an important technology that’s a game changer for our industry,” Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri told National Post in an interview. “We’re really excited about this.”

Canada has decent cell service in its large population centres, although even those feature the odd dead zone. But away from major cities, there can be little to no connectivity.

Meaghan Oosterhoff knew that when she signed up for a

beta test of the new service

in July. The mother of three young children lives in Brant County, in southern Ontario, but has relatives in northern Manitoba.

“I use it for work and for when I visit home,” she told National Post. “I work in forestry services, and part of that involves going to remote destinations, mostly in the bush. So I use it to keep in contact with my kids while I’m away.”

Her grandmother lives outside the town of Roblin, Man., which is itself 400 kms northwest of Winnipeg. She said the unmarked roads mean getting there is a mix of written instructions and memory, “like turn left at the boulder … that sort of thing.”

She recalled a visit last Christmas in sub-zero temperatures, bringing her youngest child to meet her grandmother for the first time. “Before we go into the dead zone, we have our family chat, and we say, ‘OK, we’re going in. If you don’t hear from us in the next, you know, 45 minutes to an hour, send the search party.’”

She said this Christmas will be less stressful, regardless of the weather.

“I’m not worried at all about my next visit home,” she said. “With WhatsApp for the family chat, and Google Maps — just being able to ping where we’re at and have access to that map instead of the hand-drawn instructions.” She laughs: “I don’t know about you, but my geography skills aren’t the strongest.”

Brian Carriere, another beta-version tester, has a similar story. He’s a forestry worker on Vancouver Island, and said the new service lets him keep in touch with his two teenaged daughters, and also get instant updates from his employer without having to go hunting for a cell signal or a wifi hotspot.

“If my coworker is driving, I can be updating my employer on where we’re at, where we’re going, and receive instantaneous reply while we’re on the move.”

There’s a public safety aspect to the service as well, he added.

“Where I work, on the drive to Tofino, there’s no cell service, and there’s tons of accidents on that road all the time. A lot of situations would have been resolved sooner had somebody been able to call 911 or text 911.”

Oosterhoff echoed that thought. “Last summer during the wildfires, our communities were affected a lot. And just being able to have that peace of mind, like, OK, we can track each other, we know where we are, if there’s any travelling between communities or evacuations or anything like that, it’s nice to know that. Next summer, we’ll have a better track on where we all are.”

During the trial, Rogers calculated that customers sent over a million satellite text messages.

Staffieri noted that

T-Mobile in the U.S.

launched a similar service for its customers in October.

“T-Mobile is one of those that we’ve been working with,” he said. “They’re a few months ahead of us as a result of satellite preparedness for the U.S. relative to Canada … but we’re closely following, learning from some of the things they’re finding, and making sure that as we go to market and launch this, that we have the best information possible to make this the best experience for Canadians.”

He noted that the new service will give Rogers three times the coverage of any other Canadian wireless provider. Though even at that, there’s room to expand.

A map of Rogers’ coverage

shows the satellite area blanketing Canada, but only as far north as the 58th parallel, roughly the latitude of Churchill, Man.

“As we expand on our satellite capabilities then it’ll cover the Far North,” Staffierai said. “Those satellites haven’t been launched yet, but … as they come into production, we’ll ensure that we bring it to Canadians as quickly as possible.”

He added that the coverage area also includes vast inland bodies of water like James Bay, as well as the oceans off the east and west coasts. “For the industries that are out there, this is a pretty important technology for those cases as well.”

Even in less remote locations, the new service means customers who might have had calls drop out on the odd dead zone along the 400 or 401 highways won’t lose their signal there.

The new service is included in some Rogers plans and can be added to others for $10 a month, or $15 for non-Rogers customers. The company’s intent is to expand the service next year to support further data and voice services, including 911 voice services across the country.

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Pete Hoekstra, U.S. Ambassador to Canada, during an interview at the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa on Dec. 8, 2025.

OTTAWA — The U.S. ambassador to Canada says he is “encouraged” by the energy deal Prime Minister Mark Carney struck with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, saying he believes it will lead to more oil and gas production — increasing expectations that more product will flow south of the border.

Pete Hoekstra’s comment come as Carney weathers some domestic political fallout since the signing of that agreement, with critics of it, such as B.C. Premier David Eby, saying no proponent has even stepped forward to propose building a new pipeline.

When it comes to the Canada-U.S. relationship, however, oil had formed part of the negotiations between Carney and Trump in exchange for reprieve from tariffs, before the U.S. president called off the talks in late October. It was also set to cover uranium.

Earlier that month, the prime minister had raised the idea of

reviving the Keystone XL pipeline

during his last White House meeting with the president, with his government

linking it to seeing progress on tariffs. 

Hoekstra says any agreement the U.S. strikes with Canada will include oil.

“What the expectations are on oil is that there would be more oil capacity, production and export opportunities down to the United States,” Hoekstra told National Post in a wide-ranging interview on Monday.

“That’s what we’re looking for.”

While Carney has promised to transform Canada into an “energy superpower,” Trump returned to the Oval Office for a second time with a promise to “drill, baby, drill.”

The ambassador said both countries share an interest in further developing their oil sectors, with most of Canada’s oil from Alberta, its largest oil-producing province, being shipped and processed in U.S. refineries.

Hoekstra said the U.S. feels “very encouraged” by Carney’s recent deal with Smith. That deal commits Carney to help pave the way for a new oil pipeline by expressing a willingness to revisit the federal moratorium on oil tanker traffic off B.C.’s coast, in exchange for Alberta promising to strengthen its industrial carbon tax.

“It seems to put in place a framework for significantly more oil production and natural gas in Alberta,” the ambassador said.

“We expect that as that moves forward, that some of that oil, most likely will be shipped to the United States.”

While an exact route has yet to be established, the agreement between Smith and Carney explicitly states that they would work together on building “one or more private sector constructed and financed pipelines,” with the focus being on one that would deliver Alberta bitumen specifically to Asian markets.

Diversifying Canada’s market access has been one of Smith’s main pitches for why the federal government should get on board with seeing a new pipeline built in the midst of a trade war with the U.S.,

warning earlier this fall

that her other option would be to send more oil south of the border at a time when Canada is looking to expand its trading relationships.

Smith has also spoken favourably in recent months about the Carney government using energy like oil as a tool for leverage with the Trump administration.

When it comes to the Carney-Smith pipeline pact, Hoekstra said he understands, “the possibility that some of that oil will find its way to Asia,” adding that the U.S. takes no issue with Canada searching for other markets.

He said the deal with Alberta shows a “synergy” between Canada and the U.S. when it comes to energy, including when it comes to questions about energy affordability.

“Number one, we think it will result in the production of more oil and natural gas.”

Since signing the deal with Alberta, Carney has been dealing with a range of domestic fallout, from First Nations chiefs in B.C. speaking out about not having been invited to the talks, to Liberal MPs from B.C. voicing internal concerns and publicly declaring that no new pipeline can happen without the consent of both the province and impacted Indigenous people.

The prime minister also lost a cabinet minister over the agreement.

Steven Guilbeault resigned from cabinet after the deal was made public, saying that the work he had done to advance national climate policies under former prime minister Justin Trudeau was being undone, including a federal set of clean energy regulations, which Carney committed to exempting Alberta from under the deal.

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A former masseur in Victoria who was found guilty of sexually assaulting several women during therapeutic massages has convinced the Court of Appeal for British Columbia to order funding for his “complex” appeal against his conviction and two-year jail sentence, which is long enough to force his deportation to India at the end.

Ajesh Jacob, who was in his mid-30s at the time of the crimes, is currently in jail and does not have a lawyer.

In a recent ruling

, B.C.’s top court said there is no “obvious error” in the trial judge’s sentencing decision. But Jacob’s appeal is not obviously doomed, and he has shown he cannot afford a lawyer, so it is “in the interests of justice to appoint counsel on his behalf.”

It will be a complicated file, involving alleged Charter violations of unreasonable delay, judicial errors about appointing court interpreters, and the controversial issue of whether the women complainants were influenced in their testimony by reading each other’s stories on Instagram before the trial.

Jacob was initially charged with 11 counts of sexual assault between May 2019 and March 2021. Two were stayed by the Crown before a trial, in which a judge found him not guilty on four of them, and guilty of five.

Jacob, who immigrated to Canada in 2018, will be deported to India after serving his sentence if it is ultimately for six months or more. His trial judge decided this immigration consequence was not a mitigating factor that would justify a lesser jail term than the two years she imposed. Even his trial lawyer accepted that a sentence of less than six months would not be within the “appropriate range” for five sexual assault convictions, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Murray wrote.

The major issue at trial was the credibility and reliability of the complainants, specifically “tainting or unconscious contamination of evidence.” Jacob’s defence lawyer argued some of the women “recreated” their stories after hearing details of other complaints.

All of the complainants but one came forward, sometimes many months after the fact, after seeing a news article or posts on an Instagram account called Survivor Stories, whose administrator urged some to contact police or connected them to a lawyer pursuing a separate civil case against Jacob and the massage business.

At trial last year, Judge Murray found one complainant was a “textbook example of tainting or unconscious contamination … (she) took information she learned from others and made it her own — consciously or unconsciously.”

Another issue was identity, and whether Jacob was in fact the man known to the complainants in the massage clinic and by his name tag as “Sam,” and whether these complaints might actually be about a different employee of Korean ancestry.

Another issue was the long delay, some of which was due to Jacob’s request for an interpreter in the rare language of Malayalam and arguments over the competence of the interpreters chosen.

The issue of whether Jacob actually needed an interpreter was not argued before the trial judge, and his challenge of the interpreters’ competence failed in a pretrial ruling. Jacob grew up in southern Kerala province of India, where he was taught in English. He has a master’s degree in English language and literature, and completed a two year diploma in human resource management in Victoria, in English.

At trial, Judge Murray found much of Jacob’s evidence was contradictory, senseless and inconsistent. She found he touched these women sexually without their consent and intentionally manipulated one woman’s hand to briefly touch his penis.

She accepted his relative youth, lack of a criminal record, obedience to bail conditions, and strong support from upstanding community members as mitigating factors in his sentence.

There were also plenty of aggravating factors, not just the large number of offences. He was in a position of trust, providing a therapeutic service to women in a vulnerable situation. He stood at reception as they paid, causing fear and preventing any disclosure to the other staff. His assaults were planned and deliberate, not just opportunistic.

And Jacob’s “moral culpability is high,” she decided. There were no factors of “diminished blameworthiness” or “compelling mitigation” that would justify letting him serve his sentence in the community rather than in jail. The jail sentence of two years less a day, followed by three years probation, places him “under supervision for the maximum allowable time,” the judge ruled.

It means he will serve the time in a provincial jail, rather than a federal prison. Federal prisons take offenders sentenced to more than two years. It will also mean that he will be deported to India at the end of his sentence.

“In my view, this sentence sends a strong message to Mr. Jacob and other like-minded individuals that sexual assault will not be condoned,” the trial judge wrote.

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Justice Minister Sean Fraser

OTTAWA — After a week of controversy, Justice Minister Sean Fraser broke his silence Monday about his government’s floundering deal with the Bloc Québécois to remove the religious exemption for certain hate speech in exchange for passing bill C-9.
 

On Monday afternoon, the Bloc Québécois fired a barrage at the minister during question period, accusing Fraser of reneging on the deal he had brought to the Bloc in order to pass the bill targeting hate and terror symbols.
 

In response, Fraser did not deny he had made a deal with the Bloc as he argued that the minority Liberals would need to work with other parties to get the contentions legislation through.
 

But he was mum on the state of that deal, which the Bloc said is on its deathbed after the Liberals twice cancelled or suspended the Commons justice committee meetings last week where amendments to C-9 are being debated.
 

One such amendment, proposed by the Bloc, is to remove an exemption in the Criminal Code to the charge of willful promotion of hateful or antisemitic speech if it is based in good faith on the interpretation of a religious text.
 

“My priority is to see this bill adopted,” Fraser said during question period. “That’s going to require that we collaborate with different parties who have different points of view.

“I thank my colleague for the conversations that we’ve been able to share,” he added in response to a Bloc question. “I look forward to seeing the decision that’s going to be taken not by an individual minister, but by the justice committee as they consider potential amendments going forward.”
 

They were his first public comments on C-9 since
National Post revealed last Monday
that the Liberals had struck a deal with the Bloc to support the legislation in exchange for removing the religious exemption.
 

Bill C-9 would create a new offence for intimidating someone to the point of blocking their access to a place of worship or another centre used by an identifiable group, as well as criminalizing the act of promoting hate by displaying a hate or terror symbol, such as one tied to a listed terrorist organization or a swastika.

News of the Liberals agreeing to remove the religious exemption for certain hate speech — a longtime Bloc ask — has earned the Liberals both fierce criticism and praise from various groups.
 

Muslim, Christian and civil liberties groups as well as the Conservatives have lambasted the proposed amendment, tagging it as an attack on both freedom of speech and religion. They have argued that it risks criminalizing individuals speaking about their faith.
 

But eliminating the religious exemption is supported by Jewish and LGBTQ groups, the Bloc as well as the Quebec government, who have called for its removal repeatedly since 2023. They all say religion should not be used as a cover for antisemitic or hateful speech.
 

On Monday, the Bloc accused the Liberals of breaking their promise after saying last week that it was Fraser who approached them proposing to remove the religious exemption in exchange for the party’s support in getting C-9 through the House of Commons.
 

They also suggested the Liberals would cancel the justice committee meetings this week where amendments to C-9 are being debated, including eventually the Bloc’s to remove the religious exemption.
 

“The Liberals are abandoning their deal with the Bloc and are abandoning Quebecers. They are pulling the plug on C-9,” charged Bloc justice critic Rhéal Fortin. “How are they going to justify this about-face after so many broken promises?”
 

On Monday, CBC News cited anonymous sources saying the progress of the bill was stalled because Fraser’s office had failed to inform the Prime Minister’s Office before brokering the deal with the Bloc. The report said the bill is stalled because the PMO has not authorized any amendments.
 

In a statement, Fraser’s office said the minister has been working in “lockstep” with the prime minister on the bill. Spokesperson Jeremy Bellefeuille also suggested Tuesday’s justice committee meeting would go forward.
 

“Our offices work together as they should, and internal discussions are entirely normal in a minority Parliament as we work with all parties, including the Bloc,” Bellefeuille said, accusing the Conservatives of stonewalling the committee with opposition to a different bill.
 

“We’re ready to keep working in good faith at tomorrow’s committee meeting.”
 

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Sophie Grégoire Trudeau in Montreal on April 22, 2024. She recently appeared on French-language singing show, Chanteurs Masqués.

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau stunned judges and an unsuspecting audience after she revealed herself to be the voice behind one of the characters on the Canadian French-language singing show, the Masked Singer.

Grégoire Trudeau appeared on a Christmas special of the show, called Chanteurs Masqués in French, which she said in a post on Instagram was recorded over the summer. The show’s premise is for panelists and the audience to learn the identity of the celebrity singers, who compete to stay on the show until they are the last one left.

Panelists on the Christmas special were unable to uncover the real identity of the person behind elaborate Christmas Fairy costume. Turns out, it was the ex-wife of Canada’s former prime minister Justin Trudeau.

“It was so fun to play and sing as the Xmas fairy for Chanteurs Masqués (Masked singers),” she said in an Instagram post on Monday. “Judges and public were so surprised! Thanks for the invite!”

Grégoire Trudeau sang two songs, I Put a Spell On You, which is a cult classic by Jay Hawkins, and a rendition of Faufile by Canadian singer Charlotte Cardin.

In

a video clip that the show posted on Instagram

, Grégoire Trudeau beamed about the experience, speaking in French. She asked whether or not people at home were able to guess who she was.

Grégoire Trudeau previously performed publicly in 2016 at a Martin Luther King Day event. She sang an original song that she said she wrote for her daughter, Ella-Grace Trudeau.

Grégoire Trudeau is not the only person in her family with a love for music. In the comments of her Instagram post, her oldest son Xavier Trudeau, wrote, “Sign her,” insinuating that she should be signed by a record label. The 18-year-old

released R&B songs earlier this year

.

And Grégoire Trudeau’s ex-husband Justin also has connections to the music industry through his current partner, pop star Katy Perry.

The pair recently went Instagram official. They appeared together in a series of videos and photos Perry posted over the weekend.

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U.S. player Brady Tkachuk (top) fights Canada's Sam Bennett during first period 4 Nations Face-Off hockey action in Montreal on Feb. 15, 2025.

A new ad for the upcoming Winter Olympics from NBC is throwing some serious shade on Team Canada.

In the 30-second spot, called “The Speech,” actor John Hamm is giving a pep talk to hockey’s Team U.S.A. in their locker room. “It’s an honour to speak to you all before you head off to the Olympics,” he says. “You’re going to Milan to bring home the biggest prize of all.”

“Canadian tears,” Jack Eichel responds, which takes Hamm back a step.

“Exactly! Wait, what? What did Canada do?”

“Stuff,” says team member Brady Tkachuk, an Arizona native who plays for the Ottawa Senators during the NHL season.

What follows is a conversation, intercut with clips of skirmishes and roughhousing during the first game between Canada and the U.S. at the 4 Nations Face-Off, which took place Feb. 15 in front of a sold-out crowd at the Bell Centre in Montreal.

Canada beat the Americans 3-1 in that game, and won the tournament after defeating the United States 3–2 in overtime in the final.

Hamm’s character, perhaps not remembering the fight between Tkachuk and Canadian forward Sam Bennett, counters: “But they’re usually so polite!”

“Not anymore,” says Charlie McAvoy.

“Really?”

“No,” says Auston Matthews, who was born in California but currently plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“Are we sure we can’t just hug it out?” Hamm wants to know. The remark gets a round of laughter, after which Hamm concludes: “No. Go get ’em, boys.”

Hamm has thrown his star power behind Canada in the past, appearing in a series of ads for Canadian food delivery service SkipTheDishes. During the pandemic he delivered a

“thanks Canada” video

in which he noted: “Obviously I’m not Canadian but it’s times like this that I really wish I was.”

He goes on to deliver a monologue on some of his favourite places in Canada, while of course mentioning the food delivery sponsor. But when it comes to hockey rivalry between the two nations, the gloves are off.

The Winter Games start Feb. 6 in Milan. Men’s preliminary rounds begin Feb. 11.

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Pete Hoekstra, U.S. Ambassador to Canada, during an interview at the US Embassy in Ottawa on Dec. 8, 2025.

OTTAWA — U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra says he

does not believe the United States wants to “terminate” its trilateral trade agreement with Canada and Mexico.

Hoekstra, speaking to National Post in a wide-ranging interview on Monday, said Canadians ought to be prepared for a range of possibilities, as the three countries ready themselves for their first joint review of the agreement, which was inked during U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term in office.

“Canadians should be prepared for what they had signed up for six years ago, so should Americans,” the ambassador said from the U.S. embassy.

The sweeping trade deal, known in Canada as the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, is scheduled to undergo its first review next year, with parties already having launched consultations.

Prime Minister Mark Carney met last week with Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum as part of a FIFA World Cup event, where all three met for 45 minutes and “

agreed to keep working together on” the agreement, according to a statement from Audrey Champoux, a spokeswoman for Carney. 

The agreement, which came into force in 2020, has a clause stating the deal is set to expire in 2036, with the review purposefully scheduled ahead of time. As part of the review, countries must state whether they wish to extend it for another 16-year term and present formal recommendations.

If one member decides against extending the agreement, the countries would be subject to more frequent joint reviews, with the possibility of extending it for another term available throughout any future process. Another option under the deal is that a country could provide notice to withdraw from it completely.

Jamieson Greer, who serves as U.S. Trade Representative, recently told POLITICO that withdrawal remains a possible scenario.

Speaking from Ottawa, Hoekstra says the joint review “covers the full gamut of potential outcomes,” from a continuation of the deal, including with “modifications,” as well as “the possibility to terminate the agreement.”

“These things are all possibilities under the framework of the agreement. It doesn’t say anything about, we’re going to do it with a bias towards any one of these outcomes.”

“It’s just that all of these outcomes are possibilities. Do I think termination, that the United States wants to terminate

—

no.”

The ambassador acknowledged that there were three sides around the negotiating table and said the U.S. views the agreement as having been a “very positive relationship benefiting both countries.”

He said much has changed from when the agreement replacing the former North American Free Trade Agreement was signed six years ago, such as the demand for critical minerals as well as energy needed to power AI data centres, as well as threats from China.

“Our intent is building strong, reliable relationships with our friends and allies, of which Canada is a key part,” Hoekstra said.

He also acknowledged the fact that the idea of the U.S. striking separate bilateral deals with Canada and Mexico has also been discussed.

“Is that post-CUSMA?” the ambassador said, adding how the review reflects the fact “we live in a very, very dynamic world.”

“Canada and the United States will decide exactly what that relationship will look like moving forward from here and it will be different, OK.”

Business leaders and Carney himself point to the current trade agreement as being key to Canada seeing most of its goods exempt from U.S. tariffs, with the prime minister arguing that Canada has the best arrangement compared to any other country that trades with the U.S.

Talks about striking a deal with Trump that would see the president outright remove or lessen tariffs on key Canadian sectors, such as steel and aluminum, have not restarted since Trump announced in late October that negotiations were off, blaming anti-tariff ads from Ontario Premier Doug Ford.

Hoekstra said he understands that both sides were close to securing “some kind of a framework” for a deal that would have covered steel and aluminum as well as oil and uranium by the week before American Thanksgiving in late November.

Trump recently said, “we’ll see” when asked on Sunday about restarting talks with Canada.

His ambassador expressed confidence on Monday that negotiations would resume, but said “it’s a matter of time” for when both parties feel ready to get back to it.

“But the bottom line is, we will restart negotiations.”

With a file from The Canadian Press

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Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, and U.S. President Donald Trump attend the FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Draw at John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on December 05, 2025 in Washington, DC.

U.S. President Donald Trump offered mixed messages when asked pointedly on Sunday whether he would revive stalled trade talks with Canada.

“We’ll see,” he said toward the end of a scrum with reporters ahead of the 2025 Kennedy Centre Gala in Washington, D.C. “The problem is Canada makes a lot of things that we don’t need because we make them also, but we’ll work it out,” he said, as seen in a

video shared by Forbes

.

He called Canada “tough traders,” but insisted he has “a very good relationship” with Prime Minister Mark Carney and Canada at large. “Canada is a special place, and they really are good at ice hockey, aren’t they?” the U.S. president quipped.

Trump said he met with Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum for 30 minutes after Friday’s World Cup draw at the Washington, D.C. venue, with their “very productive” conversation centred mostly on trade.

Carney’s office had previously said the conversation, which it clocked at 45 minutes, was “constructive” and the leaders agreed to keep working together on the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), according to

CTV News.

Trump abruptly halted the negotiations in October upon learning of Ontario’s anti-tariff advertisement featuring a radio address by former president Ronald Reagan in which the Republican is critical of tariffs.

On Truth Social, Trump called it “fake” and reinforced the importance of tariffs.

“Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED,” he wrote.

After consulting with Carney, Ontario Premier Doug Ford agreed to pause the ad campaign, but not before it aired during Major League Baseball World Series broadcasts.

In a clip from an Ontario anti-tariff ad, U.S. President Ronald Reagan delivers a radio address on April 25, 1987, explaining why he was imposing tariffs on Japanese semiconductors contrary to his preferred trade policy.

Trump then announced an additional retaliatory 10 per cent tariff on Canadian imports over and above the existing flat rate of 35 per cent.

At the time, he and Carney were both scheduled to be in South Korea the following week for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. Asked ahead of the trip if he planned to meet with Carney, Trump said, “I don’t have any intention of it, no,” as reported by

Bloomberg

.

“For those that are asking, we didn’t come to South Korea to see Canada,” he posted to Truth Social as Air Force One touched down in Busan a few days later.

Nevertheless, the world leaders found themselves facing one another at a table during a state dinner hosted by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.

Carney later told Global News he and Trump enjoyed “a very good conversation” while they dined.

A few days later, Trump revealed that Carney personally apologized for the ad but that it wouldn’t spur trade talks. Carney later confirmed he made the apology.

“It’s not something I would have done,” he said, explaining that he’d seen it before it was aired and asked Ford to pull it.

United States President Donald Trump looks towards Prime Minister Mark Carney as they raise their glasses during a toast at a working dinner in Gyeongju, South Korea, on Wednesday, Oct 29, 2025.

While conducting a press conference at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in South Africa in late November, Carney was asked about the last time he spoke with Trump.

“

Who cares? I mean, it’s a detail.

I spoke to him. I’ll speak to him again when it matters.”

In the House of Commons two days later, Carney admitted he’d used “a poor choice of words about a serious issue.”

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Mezuzahs were torn from the doorways of Jewish senior residents of a building in North York on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. City councillor James Pasternak shared a photo on X of one of the homes missing a mezuzah.

Mezuzahs have been ripped from the doorways of homes belonging to Jewish seniors at an apartment building in North York over the weekend. Police say the hate crime unit is investigating.

Toronto police’s 32 Division received reports on Sunday that mezuzahs — prayer scrolls that are affixed to the doorways of Jewish homes — had been taken from apartments located at a Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation (TSCH) building, at Bathurst St. and Steeles Ave, a police spokesperson told National Post.

City councillor James Pasternak

said

on X that the incident was “an act of hate directed at Jewish residents — seniors who deserve safety, stability, and dignity.”

“There is no excuse for targeting people because they are Jewish. Toronto cannot look the other way while seniors are intimidated in their hallways,” he said.

He included a photo showing a spot where a mezuzah had been taken.

Later on Sunday evening, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow thanked Pasternak for connecting residents with police in

a post on X

. She also condemned the incident as “vile and outrageous.”

“This is a public supportive housing building for seniors. They deserve to live in peace without fear of being targeted for being Jewish. I will be reaching out to TSCH leadership to investigate this how this could happen,” she said.

Israel’s ambassador to Canada Iddo Moed

said

on X ripping off mezuzahs from Jewish homes was “reminiscent of the darkest days of Europe.” He added: “Such a vile act of hatred and intimidation must be condemned in the strongest possible terms.”

Jewish advocacy group B’nai Brith Canada

said

in a post on X that it has “engaged” with municipal leaders and Toronto police after being made aware of the incident. It would be organizing a mezuzah drive for members of the community to donate mezuzahs for the seniors in need.

“The permissive nature of the City’s response to the rising levels of incitement and intimidation aimed at the Jewish community continues to embolden those who wish to target Jewish Torontonians,” said B’nai Brith Canada. “Now, it is a group of Jewish seniors who appear to be paying the price for the inaction of our municipal leaders. The inability to protect our elderly is a sign of the further decay of our society.”

Thornhill MP and deputy leader for the Opposition Conservatives, Melissa Lantsman, called out the incident as “cowardly” and “hateful” on social media. She also said it was “massive loser energy to target seniors.”

A mezuzah in not just an object, but rather “a reminder of our faith, heritage, and identity,” explained Jewish advocacy group, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) in a post on X.

“It is placed on our doorways to provide a sense of comfort and spiritual protection. And yet the seniors at a building in North York were targeted in a place where they should’ve felt the safest,” the CIJA post

said

. “We’ve seen hateful conduct go from shouting in the streets to targeting Jews outside our homes to now in the hallways of our own buildings.”

City councillor Brad Bradford said a full investigation should be done to determine who was responsible in a

post on X

. Meanwhile, MP from B.C. Tamara Kronis called the incident “next level antisemitism.”

“There is nothing anyone can say to justify this remarkable act of hate and intimidation,” she

said

on X.

In 2017, mezuzahs were removed from the doorways of homes at a condo building in North York, near Yonge St. and Sheppard Ave, the Canadian Jewish News

reported

. There were also notes left behind that said: “No Jews.”

More to come…

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