50% Tariffs, Centre BC Launches & Bots at City Hall | UnSpun Ep. 330

Episode 330 of UnSpun with Jody Vance and George Affleck runs from Trump's new 50% tariff threat to a brand new provincial party — and something strange happening in the Vancouver council speaker queue.Here's what's inside:50% Tariffs and BC's Exposure: Canada's back in Trump's crosshairs, and BC has more skin in the game than anyone: 13.7% of goods exposed, versus roughly 8% for Ontario and as little as 1% elsewhere. Saskatchewan and Alberta want to negotiate harder, Doug Ford wants to punish, Carney wants to bide his time. George asks the real question: how do you negotiate with someone you can't trust?Eby's Zinger Goes Global: "If you're picking fights with Canadians, then you don't have a friend in the world." It landed on every cable news network in America — and got misattributed to the Prime Minister. George notes Eby has a comedian writing his one-liners, and credits the line anyway.Polling the Relationship: Canadian sentiment toward the US has swung from strongly positive to deeply negative, while Americans still view Canadians favourably at around 80%. Meanwhile Adam Schiff wants his bourbon back on our shelves, and Jody has thoughts.Small Business Is Hurting: George's clients are down 30, 40, even 50% year over year — a mix of Trump, AI, and post-COVID whiplash. His warning to Carney: the big global deals pay off in a decade, but people are struggling right now, and that's where the political damage will come from.Centre BC Launches: Mike Bernier takes the helm of a new centrist party. George maps the two possible outcomes: it splits the right and gifts the NDP another term, or it does what Gordon Wilson did in 1991 and wipes out a party from the middle. Jody was in the room for that famous debate moment as a journalism student.Dallas Brodie Recall Fails: The bar for recall is deliberately very high. George's take: that's what elections are for.Bots and Scammers at City Hall: Council started interrogating online speakers about the 17 Villages plan after callers appeared to be phoning in from California, some barely speaking English. George warns the process itself could now be legally challenged — win or lose — and argues online speaking should be replaced by verified recorded submissions.17 Villages, 300 Speakers: Four-to-six storeys with retail below, across 17 new walkable neighbourhoods. A week's worth of speakers and a decision landing right before the election.Paid Trolls and the 67-Day Clock: Jody says her digging turned up accounts allegedly on retainer for mayoral candidates, aimed at intimidating her into silence. With 67 days to the municipal election, that's spending that has to be declared.FreeKitsPool.com Is Live: The petition and the merch launch, thousands have already signed on, and every park board commissioner running in October is getting asked where they stand. Toronto extends pool hours to 11 PM on heat advisories. Vancouver is fighting about opening at all.From the World Cup final to a yellow heat alert over an empty pool, this one's peak UnSpun.Subscribe, comment, and tell us: Should council scrap online speakers? And is Centre BC a real force or just a vote-splitter?📬 Follow Jody: @jodyvance 📬 Follow George: @george_affleck 🌐 sitkamedia.ca