In Bed with the Elephant

Avi Lewis: Organizing the NDP to Power

After winning a decisive victory in the federal NDP leadership race in March 2026, Avi Lewis is now the head of a party that’s been experiencing hard times. The NDP hit rock bottom in the last federal election and were reduced to just 7 seats in the House of Commons, losing official party status – the worst result in its history. As the new leader, Avi Lewis’ challenge is to reorient and revive the NDP by organizing new and old supporters… and lapsed ones too. A former CBC, Al Jazeera and City TV journalist, filmmaker and activist, Avi Lewis comes from a gilded pedigree. He’s NDP royalty. His grandfather David Lewis was leader of the federal New Democratic Party in the early 1970s. His father, Stephen Lewis, lead the Ontario NDP for nearly 8 years, was Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, and was one of the country’s most renowned orators and respected statesmen. His mother Michelle Landsberg was an influential journalist and pioneering feminist social activist, and his wife Naomi Klein is an internationally acclaimed journalist, public intellectual and best-selling author. Avi Lewis’ leadership of the federal NDP signals an unapologetic shift to the left for a social democratic party that veered to the political centre in the last decade, particularly during the tenure of former leader Tom Mulcair. Under the leadership of Lewis’s predecessor, Jagmeet Singh, the NDP propped up a minority Liberal government in exchange for the passing of progressive legislation including a landmark national dental care plan and an anti-scab law in federally regulated industries. Yet, despite these legislative successes, the NDP saw its seat count collapse in the April 2025 federal election. The beleaguered party has been floundering ever since. Joining me now to talk about his plan to revitalize, reorganize and rebuild the federal NDP, and transform Canadian politics is NDP leader Avi Lewis.

Why Canada's Prime Ministers Matter w/ J.D.M. Stewart

JDM Stewart is an acclaimed educator and historian. His first book is called Being Prime Minister. His most recent effort is a sweeping account of Canada’s 24 prime ministers, from John A. Macdonald, a Scottish born immigrant, to Mark Carney, a native of Fort Smith, Northwest Territories.  The book is entitled The Prime Ministers: Canada’s Leaders and the Nation they Shaped.

Why the U.S. always gets Iran wrong w/ Nader Hashemi

Nader Hashemi is Director of the Al-Waleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, and an Associate Professor of Middle East and Islamic Politics at Georgetown University in Washing ton DC. Born in Hamilton, Ontario he is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario, Carleton University and the University of Toronto . His books include,  The Syrian Dilemma, and Islam Secularism and Liberal Democracy: Toward A Democratic Theory for Muslim Societies.

David Suzuki at 90: On Canada, Climate and the Future

2026 marks a milestone for David Suzuki. In March the renowned Canadian geneticist, academic, author and environmentalist turned 90 years old.  An iconic broadcaster, and uncompromising advocate for the sustainable future of the planet, he’s been Canada’s most charismatic and influential public intellectual on television and radio for the better part of 6 decades.   He and his family were forced to endure the hardship and humiliation of spending the Second World War in an internment camp along with tens of thousands of their fellow Japanese Canadians. Suzuki first gained prominence in the early 1960s as a hotshot Canadian-born but American trained scientist.  He eventually made the transition to become one of Canada’s most articulate and passionate science communicators. In the early 1970s he became a broadcasting superstar as the host of the CBC Radio science program Quirks and Quarks and then CBC television’s The Nature of Things which he hosted for 44 years. For decades David Suzuki has been unwavering in his commitment to speaking out about the unsustainability of the impact of human beings on the biosphere. He’s urged politicians and citizens, alike to act to preserve the earth for the generations to come . While Suzuki has been called one of the greatest Canadians in history, he’s also been pilloried and vilified by his critics who have labelled him Dr. Doom and Gloom.  An enemy of progress.  An economic saboteur dedicated to destroying the country’s lucrative logging and fossil fuel industries. Suzuki insists that the ongoing reckless development of these extractive industries imperils our collective future as a species. For a private person David Suzuki has lived a very public life. His most recent book is a memoir in which he reflects on his remarkable journey. It’s called Lessons From a Lifetime: Ninety Years of Inspiration and Activism.

One Year of Mark Carney: Liberal? Polite Conservative? Pragmatist? w/ Andrew Cohen

Andrew Cohen is a journalist, author, and historian. He was a  professor of journalism at Carleton University's School of Journalism [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carleton_University] and Norman Paterson School of International Affairs [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Paterson_School_of_International_Affairs]. Cohen has writ His books include A Deal Undone: The Making and Breaking of the Meech Lake Accord and Trudeau's Shadow: The Life and Legacy of Pierre Elliott Trudeau [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Trudeau]. He also wrote a biography of Lester B. Pearson. He has worked as a journalist for the Ottawa Citizen [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa_Citizen], United Press International [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Press_International], Time [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_(magazine)], the Financial Post [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_Post], Saturday Night [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturday_Night_(magazine)], and The Globe and Mail [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Globe_and_Mail]. At the Globe and Mail, he was a member of the editorial board and a columnist and foreign correspondent in Washington, D.C. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,_D.C.] Cohen has won two Canadian National Newspaper Awards [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Canadian_National_Newspaper_Awards&action=edit&redlink=1], three National Magazine Awards [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_National_Magazine_Awards], and the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Elizabeth_II_Golden_Jubilee_Medal].