Andrew Coyne is a Globe and Mail Columnist and one of Canada’s most trusted commentators. He joins us for a far reaching conversation about how the Liberal Party went from having no hope in this election to being the frontrunner, and how the widespread anti-elite sentiment in Canada has been affected by erratic policies south of the border. Andrew and Rudyard then turn their attention to the man pushing these disastrous policies: Donald Trump. Are we witnessing a decline in mental health and increase in erratic behaviour due to his advanced age?

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

Rudyard and Janice open the show talking about the escalating trade war between the US and China. The pace and magnitude of this growing dispute is destabilizing the global economy and forcing both countries down a dangerous path. Instead of talking to China about trade, Trump should be talking to Xi about growing domestic consumption in China so that their exports don't destroy foreign industries. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice predict how this trade dispute will play out: which leader will blink first? Is there another leader - an ally of both countries - who can step in to resolve this? and how will China react to the strangling of their economy? On this point they both agree: we are in a dangerous and unstable period in history, and Donald Trump is the most erratic decision maker that has ever been in charge of a nuclear power.

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

Rudyard and Janice open the show with Trump's "Liberation Day" tariff announcements and specifically China's response: a punishing 34% countervailing tax on all imports from the US. Is this the start of a more dangerous moment between these two adversaries? President Trump is about to find out how vulnerable the US is to China, and how easy it is to start an economic war but how hard it is to end it. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn their attention to Canada, which was conspicuously absent from Trump's Wednesday tariff announcement. What can we expect when CUSMA - our free trade agreement with the US - gets renegotiated after the election?

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.