As It Happens

CBC
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Jan 28, 2026 • 55min

Minnesota officials reject U.S. AG’s demands for voter data

While Minneapolis deals with ICE agents on its streets, and two shooting deaths at the hands of those agents – Pam Bondi is demanding Minnesota's state government hand over its voter rolls. The Secretary of State tells us he has no plans to respond to what he calls -- ransom.A rescue organization in the Mediterranean says almost 400 migrants are feared dead -- after they tried to make the perilous crossing into Europe during last week's cyclone. Millions of dollars worth of research equipment is destroyed when pipes burst at an aging Montreal hospital. A researcher there says repairs are long overdue, and it's hard to imagine feeling safe walking back into that building.Families were at a hotel in Canmore, Alberta for a hockey tournament -- but a suspected chlorine leak meant kids wound up at the hospital, instead of the rink. We remember legendary drummer Sly Dunbar -- a revered reggae artist and prolific collaborator. When a San Francisco writer realized a new Taco Bell location was exactly five kilometres away from an existing Taco Bell location, he made an unwise decision: to run the five kilometres from one to the other while eating Crunchwraps Supreme. As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that considers this a worst-quesadilla scenario. 
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Jan 27, 2026 • 59min

In Minneapolis, a local restaurant becomes a field hospital

Another deadly ICE shooting shakes Minneapolis; we reach a volunteer who supported protesters and mourners on Saturday, at a restaurant-turned-field hospital. The government of Yukon slams the federal government's gun buyback program -- saying Ottawa's ban on thousands of firearms shows it doesn't understand the northern way of life. After years without a health-care professional, help is on the way to Change Islands, Newfoundland and Labrador -- where the mayor has been busy answering 9-1-1 calls herself. A reporter in Montana who dug into a local mystery tells us it's still not clear who affixed three bicycles to a giant piece of driftwood in the Missouri River -- but he thinks he has figured out why.The vice-principal of an Ontario school tells us what happened after a golden budgie found its way out of the January cold -- and into a kindergarten classroom.A plush horse made to mark the Year of the Horse is galloping off the shelves in China -- after a factory workers accidentally sewed its smile on upside-down.As It Happens, the Monday Edition. Radio that's throwing in the scowl. 
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Jan 26, 2026 • 21min

Introducing Cross Country Checkup: Canada's weekly town hall

We want to recommend a show by our friends at Cross Country Checkup. Every Sunday, Ian Hanomansing hears directly from Canadians on the most pressing issues. This week, he's joined by experts to analyze how Prime Minister Mark Carney is dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump. Canadians also called in to have their say and gave their grades on the prime minister's strategy so far.
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Jan 24, 2026 • 58min

Olympian-turned-alleged drug kingpin Ryan Wedding arrested

We hear from an investigative journalist who's been covering the story for more than a decade. A Canadian who served in Afghanistan tells us there's no place for the kind of insulting rhetoric the U.S. president is spreading about his country's NATO allies. As Valentino Garavani is laid to rest in Rome, director Matt Tyrnauer tells us about the fashion insight, friction, and friendship...that came with capturing the beloved designer's life and work in the documentary, The Last Emperor. It's a simple enough concept -- but knitters will tell you that it's a game changer. And it exists because of the late Barbara G Walker, who revolutionized the craft.  Canada Post honours pioneering Canadian hiphop artists with their own stamps -- including the groundbreaking Michie Mee. She tells us it's a big deal to be on a small rectangle. Science thought a prehistoric kangaroo was just too gigantic to jump -- but now, new science has changed the old science's mind. As It Happens, the Friday Edition. Radio that finds this whole discussion pretty roo-dimentary. 
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Jan 23, 2026 • 1h 13min

What was Carney saying in two major speeches this week?

After a provocative speech at Davos, Mark Carney returns to Canada with a message of unity. A former Trudeau speech writer tells us if she thinks it hit the mark. Three more journalists are killed in Gaza, adding to a staggering total -- on one of the deadliest days since the ceasefire began. In Minneapolis, some schools have had to pivot -- and quickly -- to online learning. It's to protect students from ICE agents; a teacher tells us she hopes small acts of kindness can counter the fear her students are dealing with.When production was halted at their plant, a family of auto workers made the difficult decision to move to a city hours away, so the whole 18-member-strong clan could get back to work, together. We still don't know how dozens of giant stones got to Stonehenge -- but thanks to new science, we know one way they didn't get there.A Quebec film-maker talks to us about her Oscar-nominated documentary -- which follows a trio of donkeys on a journey to get a glimpse of the cosmos. As It Happens, the Thursday Edition. Radio that hopes they spotted some ass-teroids.
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Jan 22, 2026 • 58min

In Davos with Donald Trump

In Davos, Donald Trump says he won't use military force to acquire Greenland -- which alleviates one worry. But a Danish journalist tells us it is impossible not to be very concerned about what else could come next.70 years after the execution of a Black man convicted of murdering a white woman in the 1950s, the state of Texas publicly exonerates him -- and admits its terrible mistake. As ICE agents continue to occupy Minneapolis, many people are afraid to leave their homes, whether they are immigrants or not. So a local pastor is organizing thousands of food drops for families.An academic researcher has analyzed the way stand-up comics use timing -- and she tells us the silences and hesitations...are as important...as the laughs. I'll speak with a father-daughter duo who started singing together for fun -- and are having more fun than ever now that they're nominated for a Grammy. On a 13-billion-dollar aircraft carrier stationed off the coast of Venezuela, American troops are doing battle with a merciless enemy: constantly malfunctioning toilets.As It Happens, the Wednesday Edition. Radio that really hopes they can get their ship together. 
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Jan 21, 2026 • 1h 5min

If the U.S. invaded, could Canada defend its sovereignty?

A Globe and Mail reporter reveals that, for the first time in a century, the Canadian military has modeled a hypothetical U.S. invasion of Canada.At a tense public meeting, a group of New Brunswick residents expressed serious opposition to a planned new gas plant. A vice-president of the utility tells us public support does matter -- but so does keeping the lights on. A reporter in Chile tells us how fire overcame one coastal community in the blink of an eye -- and shocked locals are now wondering if this is the new normal.The tale of a small, strangely popular boulder in British Columbia called "Portable" -- which is finally heading back to where it belongs, months after it went missing. And.... A new scientific paper introduces the world to a brilliant cow by the name of Veronika -- who uses a broom to sweep away her itches, in an incredible example of bovine tool use. As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that assumes she just started from scratch. 
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Jan 20, 2026 • 1h 6min

What will Europe do about Greenland?

Donald Trump is threatening to hit Europe with tariffs for their support of Greenland, a Swedish Member of Parliament tells us it’s time for the EU to take the gloves off, and launch what's known as the trade bazooka. The U.S. president has invited world leaders to join his new Board of Peace, overseeing the future of Gaza. A former diplomat says he's not sure there's room for all these peace-makers to say their piece. A civil liberties advocate tells us her organization is hoping Canada's Supreme Court will rule that random police stops are unconstitutional -- because they've enabled racial profiling for too long.For about 20 years, the smell from an abandoned fish sauce plant has tormented the people of a Newfoundland town. But the mayor says he's hopeful non-odour will be restored. We'll celebrate the 80th birthday of an artist who's been platinum since she started out: the endlessly quotable Dolly Parton. We'll hear from the man who set a new world record for fastest garbage can -- who says he's scared every time he drives it.As It Happens, the Monday Edition. Radio that guesses the former fastest garbage can is now just a has-bin.
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Jan 16, 2026 • 45min

The ups and downs of a shifting relationship with China

Prime Minister Carney strikes a deal on Canadian canola exports with China; I’ll speak with an Alberta farmer who’s feeling cautiously optimistic -- after losing six figures to the trade war. Canadian auto industry leaders are feeling incautiously pessimistic about a new deal with China, saying a promise to import Chinese-made EVs puts the domestic auto sector on the road to ruin.Hearing the other side from the other side. Our guest says he was talking to Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine just moments before security forces took him away -- further evidence, he says, that the presidential election was rigged from the start. A CBC journalist is heading to Italy -- not to cover the Olympics, but to cover the skis of Canadian biathlon athletes with wax; to make sure everything, and everyone, goes smoothly. A reporter in Florida is being criticized for commiserating with the local NFL coach after a huge loss, instead of questioning him. In one Swedish community, it's an annual tradition for authorities to dismantle a particular sculpture chop-chop -- because it’s a giant, distracting snow penis in the center of a roundabout.As It Happens, the Friday Edition. Radio that guesses it doesn't always help to be a member of the inner circle.
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Jan 16, 2026 • 1h 3min

A former U.S. general’s view on Greenland, NATO and Canada

A former U.S. Army Commander calls on American military leaders to stand up to President Trump. And says if they don't, far more than Greenland's sovereignty is at stake. An Alberta physician tells us his hospital's ER is filled with, quote, "carnage and chaos" -- and says it's past time the province declared a state of emergency. A mayor in British Columbia is relieved after the province cancels a pilot program decriminalizing small amounts of illicit drugs -- and calls for involuntary treatment instead. After Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy system leave residents of Kyiv vulnerable to freezing temperatures, some decide to leave. But our guest says she's staying put in the city.The coach of Norway's ski jump team is suspended for doctoring his athletes' suits -- by making the crotches more aerodynamic. An Irish man is called to respond to an overturned truck -- and is shocked to discover that a) its contents spilled on the road, and b) those contents are 15, 000 live crabs. As It Happens, the Thursday edition. Radio that urges you to stay right there -- don't change that crustacean! 

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