What this covers
A rare long-form interview by Pierre Poilievre that offers a candid, unfiltered conversation about what he believes, why he believes it, and the country he's determined to build.
No questions or topics were shared in advance. The episode is almost entirely unedited. The views shared are those of the speakers alone. An invitation to appear on this podcast has also been extended to Prime Minister Mark Carney. Although he personally accepted, he has yet to schedule a recording.
TRANSCRIPT EN: https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast-transcripts/pierre-poilievre-223/ FR: https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast-transcripts/pierre-poilievre-223-francaise/
00:00 Intro 01:41 Headline vs Reality 03:55 From Opposition Party to Unifier 07:05 Parenthood Shapes Priorities 10:05 Differentiating from the #Liberals 15:04 Economic Value Creation in Canada 18:08 WEF Opposition Stance 25:27 Balanced Budget Plan 28:15 Attracting Investments 35:25 Productivity Gap Explained 38:50 #Tariffs Response Tactics 41:10 Reducing US Dependency 44:15 Interprovincial Trade Impacts 45:40 China 47:42 Media Accountability Challenges 51:42 Digital Speech Protection 55:10 Crime - Then and Now 01:02:00 Federal-Provincial Health 01:06:15 Modern Military Vision 01:11:10 Balancing AI & Privacy 01:14:10 Falling Trust in Government 01:15:56 Climate & Economic Growth 01:18:50 Misconceptions about Mr. Poilievre 01:19:50 Future Canadian Success *Shane Parrish* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/farnamstreet/ X: https://x.com/ShaneParrish LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-parrish-050a2183/ Books: https://fs.blog/books/ Newsletter: http://fs.blog/newsletter
*The Knowledge Project* features in-depth conversations with the top CEOs, investors, and business leaders to uncover the timeless principles that drive success. Learn more at https://fs.blog/podcast
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Pierre Poilievre argues that Canada's economic decline and social dysfunction stem from government overreach, regulatory burden, and poor policy choices, and can be reversed by unleashing free enterprise, reducing taxes, accelerating permits, and restoring individual opportunity and hope.
- Canada's productivity gap vs US (53 vs 78 USD per hour) results from capital starvation caused by high taxes and slow permits, not worker quality
- Government spending beyond basic social safety nets transfers wealth from working class to the wealthy through inflation and consulting contracts, not the reverse
- Crime, addiction, housing unaffordability, and loss of opportunity are policy failures that can be reversed through specific regulatory and fiscal changes
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Israel's conscription model creates a 'startup nation' because young people learn technology and advanced skills in military then leave and start businesses, and Canada could do the same by training cadets and reservists in cyber security who could then work in private sector defense roles.
“Look at the Israelis now. They they have conscription... Their young people go into the forces and they learn all about technology and they then leave and they start businesses and they call it the start startup nation... Our young our cadets who are not obviously in the military, but they are obviously being mentored by military and our reservists who are who are still going to university. uh why don't we find a way to give them the best cyber security skills possible”
Canada doesn't celebrate business success or teach children about Canadian entrepreneurial heroes like Timothy Eaton, instead teaching a 'quasi-version of socialism' in schools without stories about people who built businesses and drove the economy.
“my kids, they don't learn about famous Canadians. They don't learn about Timothy Eaton. They don't learn about people who started businesses, who were successful, who who drive the economy. Um they sort of learn some quasi version of socialism in school.”
Wealthy people and asset holders are 'inflation positive'—they benefit from inflation as their assets increase in value, while the working class loses purchasing power, making inflation a wealth transfer mechanism 'from the have nots to the have yachts'.
“The rich are not only inflation proof, they're inflation positive, they benefit, you know, Mr. Carney's CEO, I think you had him on your show, he was talking about how inflation helps Brookfield because they can raise the rent and their asset values go up. So it's an enormous wealth transfer from the working class to the super rich. I like to say it's it's kind of like a taking from the have nots to give to the have yachts.”
Natural resource exports are Canada's single biggest export sector; when the resource sector fires on all cylinders, it brings the dollar up which increases purchasing power and living standards, and resource companies pay an enormous amount of tax that funds public services.
“the answer first and foremost is it is our single biggest export sector. So, when we're selling more of our raw materials or better yet value added um to them and then selling them, it brings our dollar up which means we have more purchasing power um and that means we have a higher quality of life and standard of living. Secondly, they pay these resource companies pay an absolutely enormous amount of tax.”
The rise of social media and internet platforms is an opportunity, not a threat—Poilievre could not have this platform 30 years ago without massive investment; the fact that he has it is because of social media and internet democratization of distribution.
“I mean, you wouldn't be able to do this. You wouldn't have been able to do this 30 years ago. Um, unless you wanted to, you know, wanted to invest tens of millions of dollars in a production studio and a distribution plan and you'd have to sign deals with a broadcaster to get yourself on air. Um, but the fact that you have this voice is the result of social media and the internet.”
Existing traditional media is not threatened by rising costs or declining readership but by massive competition from new media, with more total media today than ever before—the challenge is not that media is disappearing but that it's no longer monopolistic.
“The existing media is not threatened by rising costs or um uh a diminishing number of people interested in reading news. Their challenge is there's massive increase in competition. There's actually more media today than there ever has been. It's just that it's not the traditional media that we think of.”
Government media subsidies create incentive misalignment: politicians offering subsidies to media outlets creates perception of bias in coverage, and media outlets may favor politicians offering more subsidies, undermining independent press.
“if you know a politician is coming along and saying, Well, I'm going to give more money to this or that outlet than than my opponent will, then obviously that could create the perception of bias in the in the resulting reporting.”
Treatment for addiction works despite being hard and painful, and spreading that through 'virtuous cycle' where treated people help pull others into treatment creates a way to defeat the addiction scourge and bring peace back to streets.
“we know treatment works. It's hard. It's painful, but the the miracles that I hear really inspiring... through that virtuous cycle we can defeat this scourge and and bring um peace back to our streets.”
Regulation and government power can be abused in both private and public sectors, so government must be held accountable when creating new powers—concentrated AI power in government is as risky as in private sector if government isn't constrained.
“Some people say, well, all the powers of AI need to be concentrated in the government to protect us all. Okay? But we have to make sure the government then doesn't abuse those powers either. Uh because if there can be abuse in the private sector, there can be abuse in the government.”
Carbon leakage occurs when Canada increases taxes and burdens on industry to the point where production offshores to jurisdictions with no environmental regulations, resulting in even more global pollution while Canada loses industry.
“we have to remember the problem of carbon leakage which is when you you increase taxes and burdens on Canadian industry to a point where production offshores in more polluting jurisdictions and then you end up with even more global pollution while you have even less Canadian output uh and industry.”
Lack of opportunity, hope, and perceived fairness contribute to drug addiction and crime—if people feel they have no future, can't afford a house, and can't start families, they lose sense that life has meaning and direction, making them susceptible to trying powerful narcotics.
“if you can think you think of yourself as being um 34 years old and you feel like you have no future at all, you can't afford a house. You're not going to be able to start a family. You're run off your legs. You feel life has become pointless and directionless. you can see how you might end up trying out a a powerful narcotic and then getting addicted.”
Inter-provincial trade barriers create higher prices and lower wages because lack of harmonized trucking regulations and pipeline access prevent seamless product movement between provinces.
“Higher prices, lower wages. um things cost more because there are a bunch of hoops to jump through and then lower wages because we can't generate as much uh wealth. You look at the trucking sector, for example, we don't have harmonized trucking regulations across the country. So, you're going over the border between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. There's a weight uh a weight regulation difference. So, you know, you can't move products seamlessly between those two provinces.”
The Liberals claim to have gotten rid of the carbon tax for voters but have only hidden it through regulatory command that they can easily reverse if reelected, while the law remains in place and they openly admit they want to increase it on Canadian industry.
“the Liberals have not gotten rid of the carbon tax that they brought in. They've just uh made it disappear from the gas pumps through a a a regulatory command that they can easily reverse if they're reelected. The law is is still in place and they do admit they want to increase it on Canadian industry”
When government grows beyond a basic social safety net, it massively transfers wealth from the working class to the extremely rich, contrary to stated progressive intentions—described as 'Robin Hood being kidnapped' where government takes from workers to give to aristocrats.
“when government grows beyond a basic social safety net, it actually doesn't benefit low-income people, it starts to massively transfer wealth from the working class to the extremely rich. And uh this is sort of the irony that the you know, I always say I like to say Robin Hood has been kidnapped.”
Canada exports net electricity and has abundant hydroelectric power, while the US doesn't have enough electricity to serve existing demand let alone power more industrial activity, creating an advantage for attracting power-intensive industries like data centers.
“The final advantage is we have this abundance of hydroele electricity. The Americans don't have enough electricity to serve their existing demand let alone to power more industrial activity. We do. We're net exports of electricity and we can produce even more.”
Economist Thomas Sowell's principle that scarcity is the number one rule of economics is often ignored by politicians who externalize scarcity through money printing, taxing, and borrowing, but a hard budget law would internalize scarcity and enforce discipline.
“The great Thomas Soul said the number one rule of economics is scarcity. People always want more than there is to have. And um the number one rule of politics is to ignore the number one rule of economics... If you had a law that internalized the scarcity, required the government control itself rather than just going to the taxpayer or to the lending markets that would enforce a value for money discipline”
Canada has historically been reluctant to celebrate success and ambitious people—there's a cultural tendency against the 'tall poppy' that makes Canadians content to go for bronze when they could go for gold.
“I don't know. Like we we don't like the tall poppy, you know? We don't like the people who who stand out or who go for bold ambitions who go for gold, right? And I don't know why.”
Trade jobs in Canada can pay $200,000-$300,000 per year, making them incredible opportunities that should be promoted to young people rather than being looked down upon.
“These jobs can be $200 $300,000 a year. So, let's train up the uh the young trades people to fill those jobs”
Equality of opportunity is declining in Canada—people used to feel they could become anything, but now many have lost that sense of possibility, and Poilievre wants to restore the 'Canadian promise' that hard work leads to success.
“I used to feel like there was more equality of opportunity... like I could do anything and I could be anyone and I I feel like a lot of people have lost that... that's what I call the Canadian promise that just this idea that okay it doesn't matter where you start you can achieve anything you want.”
Canada's productivity gap versus the US ($53 vs $78 USD per hour worked) exists because Canadian workers lack tools and technology: US investment per worker is $28,000 annually vs Canada's $15,000, making Canada capital-starved compared to OECD average.
“Today we generate $53 USD for every hour we work as Canadians. The Americans generate $78... business investment in Canada, divide it by the number of workers. In Canada, we get $15,000 of investment per worker per year. In the States, it's 28,000... We get 65 cents of investment per worker for every dollar an OECD average worker gets.”
Ireland's per capita GDP is now twice Canada's despite having no natural resources and not being next to the biggest economy in the world, because Ireland opened to free enterprise with very low taxes, very fast permits, and lots of free trade, showing that free market policy can transform living standards quickly.
“Ireland was poor that was what it was known for at the time now Ireland's per capita GDP is twice Canada's and why because they opened up to free enterprise they have very low taxes very fast permits lots of free trade and they don't have any of our resources they're not next door to the biggest economy in the world so they shouldn't be anywhere as rich as Canada, but they're twice our GDP.”
Trump's tariffs against Canada actually weaken the US relative to China because they damage both Canadian and US economies while China gains, so the strategy is counterproductive.
“Trump tariffs against Canada actually only strengthen China because they weaken both Canada and the US. So the argument I will make is uh how do we strengthen ourselves as North Americans against the Chinese threat?”
Canada has 20,000 immigrant doctors and 32,000 immigrant nurses who cannot work because they lack Canadian licensing despite being qualified, and many are forced to work as technicians rather than in their professions, wasting human capital.
“we have, for example, u 20,000 immigrant doctors, 32,000 immigrant nurses who can't work because they don't have a license in Canada. It's not cuz they're not qualified. It's just there's no way to prove their qualifications that doesn't involve years of bureaucracy.”
Canadian military needs investment in AI, advanced robotics, advanced aviation, drone technology, and cyber capabilities because future attacks might not be troops or aircraft but malware shutting down power stations, scrambling banking records, or disrupting government data systems.
“we are going to have to invest in in AI, in advanced uh robotics, uh advanced aviation, drone technology... the future attacks uh might not be you know a bunch of troops landing on the shores or a a battalion arriving to invade or even an aircraft with a pilot coming in. could be, you know, uh, a malware that shuts down a power station”
Poilievre will ban and criminalize unauthorized use of people's images in intimate acts created through AI, as this is 'appalling,' and will strengthen protections for children against online luring while preventing government abuse of these new powers.
“I think we we do need to ban and criminalize the unapproved use of other people's images in in u intimate acts. Uh there's this really appalling these AI images that take someone's person and have them performing different acts. That is uh intimate acts. I think that's really appalling.”
Most poverty today in Canada is not caused by lack of government assistance but by government actively tilting the scale against the least fortunate through policy choices.
“most a lot of the poverty we're seeing today is not because of lack of government assistance. It's because government is is is actively tilting the scale against the least fortunate.”
Anti-Jewish hostility and firebombings are not coming from grassroots online speech but from toxic ideology pushed top-down through universities, schools, and government departments granting money to anti-semites, making it a government-enabled phenomenon not a spontaneous one.
“a lot of that is not the result of free speech, but it's about a very toxic ideology that has been pushed from the top down. Uh you look at the way the Jewish community has been targeted. Well, governments have pushed ideologies through universities and schools and um even government departments that have given grants to extreme racists anti-semites.”
Government policy has deliberately sought to divide people by identity and category rather than treating them as individuals, which has resulted in group-based hostility and even violence, including firebombings of places of worship and schools.
“there's been this emphasis on dividing people into different categories. And what you naturally get as a result is a lot of hostility, group based hostility and even violence.”
The criminal code already bans incitement to violence and genocide, and this has not harmed free speech, so existing criminal law is sufficient to address the most serious harmful speech without additional regulation.
“The criminal code already bans incitements to violence and incitement to genocide, other utterances that are that are designed to to instruct a violent or um hostile attack against a particular group of people. That is in the criminal code already and that has not harmed free speech.”
Bill C-69 (the environmental assessment law) would strangle businesses' ability to dig mines, build pipelines, and LNG plants, according to major businesses in those sectors, and the Liberals have not committed to substantive permitting reforms needed to speed development.
“all the major businesses that do development say that this law will strangle their ability to dig mines, build pipelines, LNG plants, they just won't happen with this law in place. So, while he makes a lot of kind of hints that he might like to speed things up, when you actually look at the things you need to do to achieve that, he's against them all. He wants to keep C69.”
The World Economic Forum is an organization with a top-down mentality where a group of globe-trotting experts tell people how to live their lives, which industries should exist, what cars people should drive, and how money should be spent, which Poilievre opposes in favor of distributed decision-making and personal freedom.
“it's an organization that has a very top- down mentality. I don't believe in top down. I don't believe that there's this sort of group of globe trotting experts that can tell us how to live our lives that can you know who can tell us which industry should go up and which should go down what cars we should drive and what words we should speak and how our money should be spent. I really believe in distributed decision-m um personal freedom um letting people live their own lives and chart their own course.”
Harmful content can be defined by extremes (death threats, hate speech against groups) which are already illegal, but conspiracy theories are not harmful content and shouldn't be regulated—drawing the line precisely is important to protect legitimate political discourse.
“How do you define harmful content? I think on the extremes, it's pretty easy, right? When you have people marching down the middle of the street saying death to a certain group of people, that's harmful content, right? That's hate speech. Conspiracy theories, on the other hand, I would say, is not harmful content.”
Poilievre proposes a national licensing test for doctors and nurses (like existing trades licensing) recognized in every province and administered federally, which would quickly license immigrant health professionals while respecting provincial jurisdiction and maintaining high standards.
“the answer is to have a national licensing test like we already have for the trades. For 72 years, we've had a licensing standard in the trades that's recognized in every province and administered by the federal government. It still respects provincial jurisdiction because it's voluntary and it still hits our high standards because there's a real test.”
Removing just 40 chronic offenders from Vancouver streets would eliminate 6,000 crimes and save many lives and businesses from destruction, arson, and robbery.
“You take those 40 guys off the street in Vancouver, you eliminate 6,000 crimes. Like that's a lot of lives saved. That's a lot of people's businesses that are not going to be burnt or smashed or robbed if you take 40 guys off the street.”
Poilievre proposes reducing bureaucracy through attrition rather than mass layoffs: 17,000 public servants retire annually and he won't fill every position, achieving smaller government without disruption.
“I would reduce the size of the bureaucracy through attrition. We have 17,000 public servants retiring every year. We don't need to fill every single one of those spaces.”
Bureaucracies naturally seek to survive and multiply like organisms; government agencies never voluntarily admit they've solved problems and should shut down, instead requesting bigger budgets to address 'bigger' versions of the problems they were hired to solve.
“every creature in in nature seeks to survive and multiply, you know, and uh that's the first law of like any organism. And bureaucracies are no different. They they set up and then they expand and they enlarge. And I've never in all my years on the finance committee had a an agency come before us for the budget consultations and say, "You know what? You hired us to solve a problem 5 years ago and we're happy to report the problem is solved so you can shut down our agency and we can move on." That has never happened. They come back and say, "You know, the problem we we we set out to solve, it's bigger than ever before. So you need to double our budget and reward us for the failure that we caused."”
Canada's cold weather makes liquefaction of natural gas 25% cheaper than in warmer climates, and shipping to Asia takes 11 days from BC vs 20 days from US Gulf Coast, providing major cost advantages for LNG export.
“our cold weather makes it 25% cheaper to liquefy. Liqufification is obviously a function of cooling things down. So then the second thing is it's 11 days to ship to Asia from BC. It's 20 days from the US Gulf Coast. So again another massive advantage over the Americans.”
100% of Canadian natural gas goes to the Americans and about 95% of oil, creating dangerous dependence where the US could turn off Canada's economy on a tap, requiring pipelines to tide water and LNG export capacity to diversify markets.
“100% of our gas goes to the Americans. About 95% of our oil goes to them. Uh and that is a function of not having any way to get it off our to tide water.”
Poilievre proposes tax breaks for companies producing goods below emission levels, such as for aluminum producers at Rio Tinto plants in Saguenay (2 tons carbon per ton aluminum) versus China (14 tons), bringing production home and reducing global emissions simultaneously.
“I want to bring in a tax break for companies that produce goods below emission levels like uh a tax break for investment over at the aluminum the Riointo plant in Sagune they produce one ton of aluminum with two tons of carbon China it's 14 tons of carbon for every ton of aluminum so by repatriating production of aluminum to Canada from China you're not only enriching our economy you're actually reducing global emissions”
Canada has the second slowest building permits in the OECD and it takes 17 years to get a mine approved, three times longer than the US or UK, demonstrating regulatory capture that blocks investment and development.
“We have the second slowest building permits in the OECD and um it takes 17 years to get a mine approved, three times longer to get approval for a housing develop in in Canada versus the UK or the US.”
Income tax should be lower because it is 'the fine we pay for the crime of hard work'—every time workers put in more effort, they get punished more through higher taxation.
“I call income tax the fine we pay for the crime of hard work. Um every time you go out and put in a little more effort, you you get punished more.”
Bill C-75 (the liberal bail law) requires judges to release accused persons under 'the earliest opportunity under the least onerous conditions,' resulting in people with 60-70 prior convictions being repeatedly released, rather than bail being reserved for first-time accused without prior convictions.
“Bill C75 is the liberal bail law and it requires judges release the accused under quote the earliest opportunity under the least ownorous conditions. That's required by law. Now bail is one thing. If you're a firsttime accused, you know, never been accused of anything in your life, you might not be guilty of anything. That's what bail is for. But what they're doing now is releasing people who have like 60 70 prior convictions.”
In Vancouver, police had to arrest the same 40 offenders 6,000 times (average of 150 times per person per year), with each person arrested once every 2 days and released while paperwork is still being filed, accumulating 16-17 live charges while awaiting trial.
“in Vancouver, the police had to arrest the same 40 offenders 6,000 times. 40 guys. Each one of these guys was arrested on average once every 2 days, 150 times a year for one guy. And the police, they bring him in, the judge gives them bail. Police are still filling out the paperwork. The guy's already out in the street.”
Canada is economically declining like a frog in warming water—getting poorer every year—but this decline is a choice and can be reversed immediately by unlocking the power of natural resources and making Canada the fastest place to get permits.
“without our resource economy, we would be an economic ruin. That's happening slowly. It's kind of like we're the the frog in the warming water, but every year we get poorer and poorer, but we could we can reverse that as soon as we want. Decline is a choice. It's not my choice. My choice is to unlock the power of our resources.”
Poilievre will repeal Bill C-11 (the CRTC content regulation law) which gives extraordinary powers to control what content is seen, boost certain 'Canadian' content while discouraging other content, which he views as a surreptitious way to manage debate in the government's favor.
“I would repeal C11. That's the uh censorship law which gives extraordinary powers to the CRTC to control uh what content uh is seen to boost certain types of content that they deem to be Canadian in nature although there's no real definition of that and then discourage other content. Uh, and I think that will over time be a surreptitious way of trying to manage the debate in favor of what the government wants people to see.”
Poilievre will repeal Bill C-75 (the catch-and-release law), repeal house arrest for serious offenses, and implement a three-strikes rule: three convictions for serious violent crimes make someone permanently ineligible for bail, parole, probation, or house arrest—minimum 10 years jail earned through impeccable behavior, clean drug tests, and learning employable skills.
“I'm going to reverse all of it. I will be repealing the catch and release law, C75. I will repeal house arrest for serious offenses. I'm going to be bringing in a three strikes you're out law. If you get convicted of three serious violent offenses, you will be permanently ineligible for bail, parole, probation, or house arrest... The that such offenders will get a minimum of 10 years”
Poilievre will secure borders with more shipping container scanners and 2,000 additional CBSA officers, treating addiction through treatment of 50,000 people to break the cycle connecting drugs to other crimes.
“We're going to secure the borders with more scanners of shipping containers, 2,000 more CBSA officers. And we're going to treat addiction. Addiction is out of control. We're going to treat 50,000 people who are suffering from addiction.”
The US and Canada have experienced a net outflow of $500 billion of investment from Canada to the US over the last 10 years, partly because Canadian taxes are extremely high and Canada is a great place to take money but not a good place to make money.
“There's been a net outflow of $500 billion of investment to the US from Canada. And um that's partly because our taxes are extremely high. Uh this is a great place for businesses to take money, not a great place to make money.”
Trust in government is at near all-time low because government repeatedly promises wonderful things then delivers misery—housing programs doubled costs, increased spending created inflation, and people who are supposed to benefit end up paying the bill.
“the government keeps telling us of all the wonderful things they're going to do for us and then it it it results in misery for the the people who are they claim they're helping like, you know, so they bring in the a monstrous housing program 10 years ago and say, Well, the government's going to get back into housing and that's going to make it affordable. Well, then the housing costs double”
Suntec tomatoes in Manitoba pay carbon tax on CO2 released into greenhouses despite it being absorbed by plants (grade school science), making Mexican tomatoes more affordable than local tomatoes, thus government policy incentivizes fossil fuel transport instead of local production.
“the most obvious example to me is the suntec tomatoes in Manatech. They're paying a carbon tax on the CO2 they release into the greenhouse even though it's absorbed by the plant life. That's you know that's you know that's grade school science. So the Mexican tomato is more affordable in Manateic than the the Manateic tomato. So the government sends a price signal to the consumer to buy a tomato that had to be transported burning fossil fuels from Mexico by truck and train all the way to Canada rather than incentivizing the local purchase.”
To balance the budget, Poilievre would implement a hard dollar-for-dollar law requiring any new spending to be met with equal savings, similar to what Bill Clinton implemented in the 1990s when America balanced the budget, paid off $400 billion of debt, and had a booming economy.
“I would uh bring in a hard dollar for dollar law that says any new dollar of spending needs to be met with an equal dollar of savings. They brought this in in the 1990s in the US under Bill Clinton and uh they balanced the budget. They paid off $400 billion of debt and they had a booming economy at the same time.”
Poilievre will protect the Canada Health Act ensuring no one is denied care due to inability to pay, preserve universal healthcare, and preserve existing federal funding increases while removing bureaucratic barriers that slow innovation and prevent access to advanced treatments available in US and EU.
“we'll protect the Canada Health Act and we'll make sure that no one is ever denied uh a care because of an inability to pay... we need to preserve that universal health care... we need to speed that up as well by by recognizing treatments that are working in other comparable and advanced jurisdictions.”
Teaching young people that entrepreneurs are heroes—people who mortgage houses and lose sleep for 4 years building something with only 10% chance of success—should be encouraged and celebrated rather than treated as bandits for their success.
“we need to tell our young people that entrepreneurs are heroes. That's the guy who mortgages his house and doesn't have a good night's sleep for 4 years uh because he's trying to build something from scratch that has a 10% chance of success and then it breaks through that guy should be given a pat on the back and uh not treated as some kind of a you know a bandit because of the success.”
Truck drivers, mechanics, and farmers are smarter than international elite experts when asked basic nuts-and-bolts economic questions, as evidenced by their accurate predictions of inflation during 2020-2021 when prominent economists like Mark Carney wrongly predicted no inflation despite money printing.
“I find the latter group is actually smarter. Now, they don't use all the same fancy language, but if you ask them just sort of nuts and bolts type questions, uh they're smarter. Like, you know, Mr. Carney, for example, told us in 2021, don't worry about inflation. There won't be any inflation. We should print even more money. Well, he was totally wrong. Like, utterly wrong. Um, you know, it's a jaw-dropping mistake and with huge human consequences. Um, in my writing when the when the money printing started, the quantitative easing, I was getting farmers and small business owners saying there's going to be inflation, there's going to be inflation.”
The French philosopher Bastiat argued for banning windows to sell more candles, and government media regulation resembles this: restricting new voices (internet, social media) to protect legacy media revenue, when the solution is to 'open the drapes and let light in.'
“the government's approach reminds me of uh Bastia, the French philosopher. He said there there are some that believe that we should ban windows so that we can sell more candles cuz then people will have to buy more candles to illuminate their homes instead of letting the sunlight in. And I don't believe that. I think we should open up the drapes and let the light come in.”
Mark Carney incorrectly predicted in 2021 that there would be no inflation and that Canada should print even more money, which proved to be 'utterly wrong' with 'jaw-dropping' human consequences.
“Mr. Carney, for example, told us in 2021, don't worry about inflation. There won't be any inflation. We should print even more money. Well, he was totally wrong. Like, utterly wrong. Um, you know, it's a jaw-dropping mistake and with huge human consequences.”
Balanced budgets reduce inflation because inflation is caused by government spending more than it takes in, which puts more money chasing fewer goods; stopping deficit spending is the only way to stop inflation.
“What's the effect of a balanced budget? Well, first of all, it means less inflation. Um inflation is the silent thief that creeps up whenever government is spending more than it brings in. And that's because there's just more money chasing fewer goods. Uh we have to stop that... The only way to stop inflation is to stop the deficit spending that sparks it.”
Canada has extraordinary natural resource endowments: third most oil, fifth most gas, first in uranium, first in potash, biggest oceanic coastline in the world, most fresh water, fifth most farmland per capita, fifth most lithium, and abundant hydroelectric rivers—'we should be the wealthiest country in the world'.
“Absolutely. You got the most third most oil, the fifth most gas, the first in uranium, first in pod ash, the biggest oceanic clo coastline in the world, the most fresh water, the fifth most farmland per capita, uh the fifth most lithium, the abundant rivers for hydroele electricity. Like we have so many resources. It should be a cordicopia of wealth and that's what we will be.”
Fentanyl is extremely dangerous—2 milligrams can kill a person; someone at a party with lowered inhibitions from alcohol might try it and die from a single dose, requiring treatment-focused approach to addiction rather than normalization.
“2 milligrams of fentinyl can kill you. So you might be at a party one night and you're you're having a few drinks and people say, Try this and your inhibitions are down and you you take it and your lungs stop.”
Government money printing over the last four years has decimated the poor: poverty has increased, 25% of people are in poverty, food bank lineups have increased by over 100%, and one in four children is going to school undernourished.
“Look at what happened when the government printed money over the last four years. It decimated the poor. Poverty went up. Now, 25% of people are in po poverty. Food bank lineups increased by over 100%. uh one in four of our kids is going to school undernourished.”
During his government, one-page application forms and one environmental review resulted in 23,500 projects completed in 2 years from concept to completion, with an independent environmental commissioner finding zero environmental problems resulted, proving unnecessary bureaucracy.
“our minister of infrastructure said to the bureaucrats, we need the application forms for projects to be one page long. And they wrestled and they fought. They said it can't be done. They got it down to one page. And then he said, we want one environmental review. And they said, "No, this will be a disaster. there'll be species that will go out of existence and water will be destroyed and well they got it down to one review. So what happened 23,500 projects got done from concept to completion in 2 years and the environment commissioner an independent officer went out and did a full study and review and couldn't find a single environmental problem that had resulted from it.”
Poilievre proposes two-for-one regulation cut: initial 25% cut, then two regulations repealed for every one new regulation, overseen by auditor general (not government) to prevent regulatory count-gaming.
“our commitment is cut 25% and then bring in a two for one rule overseen by the auditor general not by the government. And the reason that's important because the current there is a one for one rule right now. So what the government is doing is they've kept the number of the number of titles down but they've merged more regulation under each title. And so if you don't have an independent audit of how much actual regulation there is, not just in rule count, but in compliance cost, then you'll never actually reduce the size.”
The Canadian government is currently spending $21 billion annually on consultants, which is twice what it spent 10 years ago, amounting to $1,400 per Canadian family, and these consultants are very high-priced extremely wealthy people often paid to do work of little or no value.
“the government's now spending $21 billion on consultants. That's twice what it was spending 10 years ago. Are these consultants, you know, waitresses and welders? No. They're very high-priced, extremely wealthy people, often getting paid to do work of little or no value. $21 billion, for context, is $1,400 for every Canadian family.”
Poilievre will cut foreign aid from 7-8 billion dollars and will not give money to multinational companies through corporate grants, directing those funds instead to housing and services for Canadians and First Nations.
“I am going to cut back on foreign aid. I don't think that uh we should be sending seven or eight billion dollars out of our country at a time when we can't house our people or provide drinking water and First Nations reserves. and um we're not going to give money to multinational companies that ultimately take it out of the country”
Poilievre will celebrate Canadian successes and heroes, restore them to passports, build new statues honoring Indigenous heroes, and expand celebration of history rather than tearing down statues, to unite the country through shared accomplishment.
“we're going to put all our heroes back in the passport, for example. Um, no more tearing down statues. I think we should build new statues. I was meeting with some First Nations people and I said, uh, we should build statues in honor of your greatest heroes.”
Government cannot give anything without first taking it away—it has no money of its own—so every government promise is really a promise to take from people; limited government that 'does a few things right' is better than ambitious government doing 'a lot of things poorly'.
“The government doesn't have any of its own money. So every time they promise these things, they're really talking about taking from you. What we need to do is have a government that is back to the basics. does a few things right rather than a lot of things poorly”
Poilievre proposes a 'Canada First Reinvestment Tax Cut' offering zero capital gains tax when money from selling a business is reinvested in Canada, creating a tax deferral advantage that would incentivize business owners to keep capital in Canada rather than moving it abroad.
“I want to pass what I call the um Canada first reinvestment tax cut, zero capital gains when you reinvest in Canada. So if you're building homes or you're opening a business or buying a CNC machine or a 3D printer, a conveyor belt uh with the money here in Canada, then you get that tax deferral. But if you take the money out of Canada, you don't.”
A BC businessman's plaza application took 7 years in BC but 7 weeks in Dallas after the mayor offered direct negotiation, illustrating how regulatory speed differentials redirect investment away from Canada.
“I was speaking to a really successful British Columbia businessman and he started a a application for a plaza in BC. Took him seven years. He flew down to Dallas and the mayor met him at the airport and uh said, "Uh, what do we have to do to get this done?" And they sat down and hammered it out. He had his permits in 7 weeks. So, where do you think the next plaza is going to go? It's not going to be in in BC.”
The next election might be the last one where legacy media directs attention—the next might be directed by large language models (LLMs), so regulating speech now risks regulating what LLMs can and cannot say, creating new forms of control.
“this might be the last election or legacy media is directing attention. The next one might be LLMs. And if we start regulating free speech, we're going to start regulating what LLM can and can't say. And that's how we'll control.”
Success for Canada would be a place where every kid grows up knowing they can achieve anything—whether becoming an astronaut, starting a business, curing cancer, or just having a nice house with a dog and children playing street hockey—if they work hard.
“I think it's a place where every kid grows up knowing that they can achieve anything they want. Parents sit them down and say, Look, what do you want to do? You want to be an astronaut? You want to start a business? You want to cure cancer? you just want to have a nice house with a dog and have a couple of kids that play street hockey in the front driveway, you can do any of that. All you have to do is work hard”
On tariffs with the US, Poilievre would propose a 100-120 day tariff pause to negotiate USMCA renegotiation with a deal including permanent end to tariffs, protection for Canadian sovereignty, and defense spending that benefits shared continental defense.
“On day one, what I would propose to the president is let's put the tariffs on ice. Let's sit down and renegotiate the KSMA in a very quick turnaround. And in the meantime, let's be tariffree. No chaos, no market ups and downs... Let's try to get a deal. In that deal, I would seek a permanent end to the tariffs, protection for our sovereignty.”
A real-world example: a family from Little Italy came to Canada poor, paid off a downtown Ottawa house in 7 years on the wage of a road construction worker plus the mother making sandwiches at a senior's home, but their grandchildren with more education and better English skills cannot make a down payment in 7 years now.
“I've got a friend who uh who lived uh just a little ways from here in Little Italy. His family came here with nothing and they paid off a house in downtown Ottawa in 7 years on the on the wage of a a road construction worker and his mom making sandwiches at a senior's home, growing vegetables in the backyard, and their grandkids wouldn't even be able to make a down payment in 7 years now, even though they're more educated and have good English language skills.”
The Canadian political system has become dominated by angry sound bites and gotcha moments, losing the ability to explore complex issues with nuance and good faith, which is not just a Canadian problem but happening everywhere.
“Political conversations around the world have become nothing but angry sound bites and gotcha moments. We've lost the ability to explore complex issues with nuance and good faith. This isn't just a Canadian problem. It's happening everywhere.”
Having a child with special needs (non-verbal, with communication difficulties) has given Poilievre more empathy for the different challenges and hardships that families have to fight through, and has made him think about how to build a nest egg for his daughter's future and how other less fortunate families with disabled children pay their bills.
“little Valentina, she has some special needs. Uh she's 6 years old and she's non-verbal right now... what's her life going to be like? How is she going to how is she going to pay her bills when she's older... I think it's given me a lot more empathy to the different challenges and hardships that families have to fight through.”
Pierre Poilievre comes from very humble beginnings, was adopted by school teachers in Calgary, and built his life from that starting point, unlike Trump who came from an extremely privileged background in a wealthy millionaire family.
“I was adopted by a couple of school teachers and Calgary and and yet I've been able to make it here. You know, I don't really share anything in common. I mean, he comes from a extremely um uh privileged background. He you know, he was born into a very wealthy millionaire family.”