The Big Five Podcast Trump calls Carney on his cell phone. Plus: The English school secretary that wants her emails in French.
Jan 27, 2026
Raphaël Melançon, Quebec political analyst and founder of Trafalgar Strategies, and Andrew Caddell, columnist and president of the Task Force on Linguistic Policy, discuss a reported Trump-Carney phone call and claims about walked-back Davos remarks. They also tackle a Montreal school secretary demanding French emails and the political fallout of a CAQ leadership contest. Short, punchy takes on politics, language rules, and party dynamics.
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Disputed Readout Of Trump–Carney Call
- The Trump-Carney phone call produced two competing narratives: the White House spin and Carney's public insistence he stood by his Davos remarks.
- Andrew Caddell and Raphaël Melançon both view the White House version skeptically and see Carney's speech as influential abroad.
Tweets Aren't Trade Policy Blueprints
- Trump acts impulsively and orally, often without reading briefing notes, so his tweets and threats can be unreliable signals.
- Trade renegotiation (USMCA/KUSMA) is a long process; immediate extreme measures are unlikely to be implemented overnight.
Use Subsidies As Immediate Relief
- When markets and prices move beyond households' control, government relief becomes the pragmatic option to help vulnerable people.
- Expect targeted subsidies like GST credit boosts while longer-term fiscal and policy fixes remain politically difficult.