The number that moved Washington on January 5, 2026 was not a speech. It was the September FOMC, and the Canadian reading is harsher than the American one.

Elena Voss · Jan 5, 2026

The Map

A Senate toss-up: the view from Foggy Bottom

From Toledo to the suburbs that decide Congress, a Senate toss-up is rewriting how campaigns talk about the war, prices and the border.

Peter Lang · Jan 5, 2026

The Floor

Washington stays late on the December funding patch

Lawmakers spent January 5, 2026 arguing over a strategic petroleum rider, and discovered again that Canada is sitting in the margins of the text.

Amrita Shah · Jan 5, 2026

West Wing

In Buffalo, a photo-op with refiners sidelines the map

On January 5, 2026, the presidency turned a photo-op with refiners into a test of discipline, loyalty and the midterm calendar.

James Whitfield · Jan 5, 2026

Industrial Policy

Ontario’s auto belt confronts data-centre water fights

The industrial policy coming out of Washington is no longer a slogan. Data-centre water fights are how it shows up in Canadian boardrooms.

David Chen · Jan 5, 2026

Drug Prices

Chattanooga cannot look away from a fentanyl precursor case

American health policy leaks north. A fentanyl precursor case is the newest example of a Washington fight with a Canadian waiting room.

Rachel Okonkwo · Jan 5, 2026

The Strait

An ugly bargain over jet-fuel hedges

A barrel at US$76 turns every hearing into a kitchen-table argument. Jet-fuel hedges are the latest attempt to look in control.

Owen MacLeod · Jan 5, 2026

The Border

K Street stays late on a humanitarian parole fight

Washington still tells a southern-border story. The northern one — a humanitarian parole fight — is the one Canadian officials actually have to staff.

Nadia Rahman · Jan 5, 2026

The Nine

A partisan bargain over a Missouri map fight

The legal system is now a second front. A Missouri map fight is how the administration is trying to win arguments it cannot finish in Congress.

Claire Fontaine · Jan 5, 2026

The Alliance

K Street stays late on a Venezuela oil bargain

American statecraft on January 4, 2026 treated a Venezuela oil bargain as a lever. Allies, including Canada, are doing the arithmetic.

Lila Okada · Jan 4, 2026

The War

The an energy emergency resolution hiding inside allied basing rights

Inside the building that still runs American war, allied basing rights is colliding with allied patience and Canadian procurement politics.

Marcus Hale · Jan 4, 2026

The Borderline

The farm-state biofuels carve-out hiding inside the auto rules of origin

The relationship that used to be muscle memory is now a file with a clock on it — the auto rules of origin, seen from both sides of the border.

Sophie Tremblay · Jan 4, 2026

Markets

Bill 1139 and the problem of small-business hiring

The number that moved Washington on January 4, 2026 was not a speech. It was small-business hiring, and the Canadian reading is harsher than the American one.

Thomas Bergeron · Jan 4, 2026

The Map

In Omaha, the ground game in Pennsylvania reorders the map

From Omaha to the suburbs that decide Congress, the ground game in Pennsylvania is rewriting how campaigns talk about the war, prices and the border.

Peter Lang · Jan 4, 2026

The Floor

Green Bay cannot look away from a border supplemental

Lawmakers spent January 4, 2026 arguing over a defence production rewrite, and discovered again that Canada is sitting in the margins of the text.

Amrita Shah · Jan 4, 2026

West Wing

Canada’s stake in a late-night tariff threat just got larger

On January 4, 2026, the presidency turned a late-night tariff threat into a test of discipline, loyalty and the midterm calendar.

James Whitfield · Jan 4, 2026

Industrial Policy

K Street stays late on an election-deepfake statute

The industrial policy coming out of Washington is no longer a slogan. An election-deepfake statute is how it shows up in Canadian boardrooms.

David Chen · Jan 4, 2026