David Akin's Roundup: Tariff reaction. Smith's pipeline. Shutdown fight.
THU OCT 2
Canada
How will Canada respond to Trump’s new lumber, cabinet and furniture tariffs?
U.S. President Donald Trump is escalating his trade war with Canada by slapping a 10 per cent tariff on lumber imports and 25 per cent duties on cabinets and furniture. Mackenzie Gray explains how Trump’s tariffs are affecting businesses on both sides of the border, and how Prime Minister Mark Carney is staying tight-lipped about Canada’s potential response. | Global National
Blanchet says Bloc unlikely to support budget
Blanchet said he’ll wait to see what’s in the budget before deciding whether or not he’ll support it. “But as I said, I don’t see how,” Blanchet said on Wednesday. ” I cannot see how we could support a budget, which is first based on some taxes reductions, electoral gifts and some fantasies in many regards. I cannot support that,” Blanchet said the government should “take note” that, at this point, the 22 Bloc MPs are planning to vote “no.” | CTV
How Trump’s new H-1B visa fee could push top talent to Canada
U.S. President Donald Trump’s move to charge $100,000 for H-1B visa applications has sent shockwaves throughout the tech industry. But that price hike could also be a blessing in disguise for Canada. David Akin explains how Trump’s move has some University of Waterloo students rethinking their future. | Global National
B.C. union leader becomes latest candidate in federal NDP leadership race
“I talk like I talk at work. I’m not gonna bullshit you,” Rob Ashton said. “I’m honest. I’m gonna tell you what’s what, because I’m tired of politicians telling workers nothing but lies.” | CBC
NDP leadership candidate McPherson defends ‘purity test’ remarks
NDP leadership candidate Heather McPherson isn’t backing down from her claim that supporters of the party shouldn’t have to pass an ideological “purity test,” after a fellow NDP MP said she was “appalled” by her use of the term. | National Post
Carney names new EU ‘personal representative’ to replace Dion in France
John Hannaford, a former diplomat who also served as the highest-ranking official in the public service, will take up the new role as Carney’s envoy. “This new role will prioritize increased trade and investment levels with EU partners, and new and deeper security arrangements that reinforce our already strong ties — ensuring that commitments by Canada and our partners are quickly delivered upon and implemented,” says a Wednesday news release from the Prime Minister’s Office. | | Globalnews.ca
The Provinces
Alberta pushes for new pipeline to B.C. coast
Alberta’s government is leading a push for a new bitumen pipeline to be built to the northwestern coast of B.C. Heather Yourex-West looks at what still needs to happen before it becomes a reality, how B.C. Premier David Eby is pushing back, and why at least one expert doesn’t believe the pipeline will ever get built. | Global National
First Nations University president fired key whistleblower behind scathing review of her conduct
“The Investigator found that [President Jacqueline Ottmann] created a “circle of favor” around and inside her office, which attaches to the individuals whom she favors, and excludes those whom she does not favor from having influence,” said the 200-plus page report by Deloitte Legal, an affiliate of the university’s then-accounting firm Deloitte LLP. “This phenomenon is sometimes termed ‘empire building.” | CBC News
FSIN rejects some claims in federal audit, calls for full review
“[The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations] categorically rejects the suggestion that purchases under COVID lack documentation,” the statement says. “FSIN will directly address any such details once the full report is received. To dismiss this work as ‘questionable’ is baseless and disregards the reality that FSIN’s efforts protected Elders, children, and family.” | Globalnews.ca
B.C. Conservative staffer fired for calling Reconciliation Day flag a ‘disgrace’
Shepherd said in the post that it was a “disgrace that this fake flag flies in the front of the provincial parliament building.” She also wrote that it was a “disgrace” to see an orange shirt marking the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation framed “prominently and permanently” beside the provincial coat of arms inside the legislature, saying “locals and tourists cannot view our insignia without their eyes drawn and redirected to the (shirt).” | CP
Elsewhere
Furloughs, closures and mass firings threats: What’s next in the shutdown fight
Congressional Republicans were quick to dub the funding lapse “The Schumer Shutdown” — in a dig at Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., — and maintain that the government should be reopened before any bipartisan negotiations begin. Senate Democrats remained largely united in opposition to the short-term spending bill passed by the House earlier this month, as they continue to push for an extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at the end of the year. | NPR
H1-B visa shake-up crushes the American dream for Indian students
Out of the 400,000 H-1B visas approved in the 2024 financial year, 71% of the grantees were born in India, according to the Department of Homeland Security. China was a distant second at less than 12%. Among the top H-1B employers are tech giants such as Amazon, Meta and Google, as well as consulting firms such as Accenture and Deloitte, according to the DHS data. U.S. tech leaders who once held H-1B visas include Satya Nadella, the chairman and chief executive of Microsoft; Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google and its parent company, Alphabet; and Elon Musk. | NBC News
Media
1 in 5 Americans regularly get news on TikTok, up sharply from 2020
But it has also become a popular news source for young adults. In our new survey, 43% of adults under 30 say they regularly get news there, up from 9% in 2020. Adults ages 30 to 49 have also increasingly been getting news on TikTok: A quarter now say they do so regularly, up from just 2% five years ago. | Pew Research Center
Science and Technology
Here’s how professors are using AI chatbots in the classroom
One national survey of more than 1,800 higher education staff members conducted by consulting firm Tyton Partners earlier this year found that about 40% of administrators and 30% of instructions use generative AI daily or weekly — that’s up from just 2% and 4%, respectively, in the spring of 2023. | NPR
The Calendar
0815 ET : 415 Wellington - Veterans Affairs (ACVA) | Meeting 4 | Suicide Prevention Among Veterans
0815 ET : 420 Wellington - National Defence (NDDN) | Meeting 5 | Integration of the Canadian Coast Guard into the Department of National Defence and Committee Business
0845 ET: Ottawa - Health Minister Marjorie Michel and LPC MP Mona Fortier speak about the Canada Dental Care Plan.
0900 ET : B45 Senate Building - Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry : The growing issue of wildfires in Canada and the consequential effects that wildfires have on forestry and agriculture industries
0930 ET: 135B West Block: CPC MP Garnett Genuis, LPC MP Karim Bardeesy and BQ MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe speak about Tibet and Chinese residential schools.
1030 ET : C128 Senate Building - Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs : CUSMA and Canada’s Trade relationship between the United States and Mexico. Canada-US Trade Min Dominic LeBlanc testifies
1030 ET : W110 1 Wellington - Senate Committee on Banking : Study matters relating to banking, trade and the economy
1030 ET : B30 Senate Building - Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs : S209
1030 ET : B45 Senate Building - Senate Committee on Social Affairs : S201
1030 ET : 135B West Block - Representatives of the Montreal Economic Institute speak to reporters.
1100 ET: West Block - PM Carney meets with NS Premier Tim Houston.
1100 ET : 420 Wellington - Environment and Sustainable Development (ENVI) | Meeting 5 | Committee Business and Effectiveness, Potential Improvements and Capability of Canada’s 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan
1100 ET : 430 Wellington - Health (HESA) | Meeting 3 | Briefing by Health Canada Officials and Briefing by the President of Public Health Agency of Canada
1100 ET : 135B West Block - NDP MP Gord Johns speaks about fur farming.
1100 ET : 415 Wellington - Public Accounts (PACP) | Meeting 7 | Report 3, Current and Future Use of Federal Office Space, of the 2025 Reports 1 to 4 of the Auditor General of Canada
1100 ET : 035-B West Block - Procedure and House Affairs (PROC) | Meeting 4 | Report on the 45th General Election of April 28, 2025
1230 ET: HoC Foyer - LPC MP Marie-France Lalonde speaks about a private members’ bill.
1300 ET: NPT - The Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections (SITE) Task Force speaks to reporters about the 45th General Election.
1400 ET: Montreal - BQ Leader Yves-François Blanchet attends a tribute for Guy Rocher.
1530 ET : 415 Wellington - Agriculture and Agri-Food (AGRI) | Meeting 5 | Government’s Regulatory Reform Initiative in Agriculture and Agri-Food Sector
1530 ET : 035-B West Block - International Trade (CIIT) | Meeting 4 | Canada and the Forthcoming CUSMA Review. Internal Trade Min Dominic LeBlanc and International Trade Min Maninder Sidhu to testify.
1530 ET : 225-A West Block - Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) | Meeting 5 | C-3. Immigration Min Lena Metlege Diab to testify.
1530 ET : 125-B West Block - Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE) | Meeting 4 | Canada’s Arctic Strategy
1530 ET : 425 Wellington - Justice and Human Rights (JUST) | Meeting 5 | Bail System, Sentencing and the Handling of Repeat Violent Offenders in Canada
1530 ET : 025-B West Block - Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) | Meeting 5 | Drafting report
Issued this day …
… in 1995. Sc 1583b booklet pane of 10. Comic Book Superheroes. Design: Louis Fishauf
