WATCH: MAGA Bros Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson Panic When They Realize Mark Carney Is About To Torch Trump’s Plan To "Takeover" Canada

MAGA’s media machine is melting down as Carney surges in the polls—and Canadians unite to keep our country.

Mark Carney’s entry into Canadian politics has been nothing short of seismic. In a matter of months, the former central banker went from political newcomer to prime minister, taking the helm of the Liberal Party after Justin Trudeau’s abrupt resignation in March. Now Carney finds himself leading his party into a snap federal election — and remarkably, leading in the polls. It’s a dramatic turnaround for a Liberal government that, only weeks ago, seemed destined for obliteration at the hands of a surging Conservative opposition​. Carney’s sudden ascent has not only reshaped the Canadian political landscape; it’s also sent shockwaves through right-wing populist circles. MAGA-aligned media outlets and influencers are scrambling to make sense of how a buttoned-down, Harvard-educated technocrat has overtaken their firebrand favorite, Pierre Poilievre. Many of these figures are openly alarmed, warning that Carney’s rise represents a decisive rejection of MAGA-style politics in Canada — and a dire threat to their ideological foothold north of the border.

“This election is a test about whether Canada will embrace or reject populism,” says Daniel Béland, a McGill University political science professor. So far, the test results look ominous for the populist right. Carney, 60, has capitalized on his image as a steady, competent adult in the room — the kind of leader many Canadians feel the times require. By contrast, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s Trump-style swagger, once seen as a winning formula, is now looking like a liability in a country increasingly fed up with U.S.-inspired polarization. As Béland notes, without the “Trump effect,” the Conservatives would likely be in a much stronger position – if Donald Trump weren’t in the White House, “it would be hard to imagine the Liberals being the favorites in this federal race” given how unpopular they were a few months ago. But Trump is in the White House, and Carney’s fortunes have risen in direct parallel to growing Canadian disgust at Trump’s antics. The political winds in Canada have shifted dramatically, and Carney has caught that tailwind. Now, even many on the right tacitly acknowledge that Carney has the upper hand — however loath they are to admit why.

Polling and Prediction Markets Favor Carney

For evidence of Carney’s momentum, one need look no further than the polls and betting markets. At the start of 2025, the Liberals trailed far behind. A Nanos poll in mid-January had the opposition Conservatives at 47% support, versus a dismal 20% for the Liberals. Poll aggregators likewise showed Poilievre’s Tories with a towering lead of over 20 points. By late April, after Carney took over and Canadians got a fresh look at the choices, the race flipped on its head. The Liberals now lead the Conservatives by anywhere from 6 to 8 points nationally, according to recent polling averages. The CBC’s poll tracker (powered by 338Canada) confirms a sustained Liberal rebound: a 24-point deficit in January has swung to a mid-single-digit Liberal lead as of this week. In practical terms, that vote swing is enough to take the Liberals from an electoral wipeout to the cusp of victory.

Prediction markets have also moved dramatically in Carney’s favor. On Polymarket – the online betting exchange that crowd-sources odds – Carney was initially a long shot. As recently as February, bettors gave Conservative leader Poilievre a roughly 90% chance of becoming the next prime minister, versus just 10% for the Liberals (before Carney). But as the political ground shifted, so did the money. Today, Carney’s odds are about 83% compared to Poilievre’s 17%, and they are climbing fast.

That’s a 170-point swing.

The Conservatives, once supremely confident, are suddenly on the defensive, even doubting the polls. (At a recent Poilievre rally, supporters sported hoodies emblazoned with “Do you believe the polls?”, a slogan that betrays a whiff of Trumpian denial.) But numbers don’t lie: whether in scientific surveys or betting markets, Carney has gained the upper hand. And that shift is inseparable from one overarching factor that has galvanized Canadian voters in unexpected ways – Donald J. Trump.

Trump’s Shadow and a Canadian Backlash

What changed the trajectory of Canada’s election so dramatically? In a word: Trump. The U.S. president’s aggressive behavior toward America’s northern neighbor has become the defining issue of the campaign, eclipsing even domestic concerns. By most accounts, Trump’s interference has backfired spectacularly, helping Mark Carney and CRUSHING Pierre Poilievre.

Over the past couple of months, Trump has directed an unprecedented barrage of provocations at Canada. He slapped tariffs on Canadian steel and autos, hurled insults, joking that Canada should be the 51st U.S. state, while threatening to annex Canada “by Force”. Trump’s “frequent attacks on Canada’s economy and sovereignty have infuriated Canadians and led to a surge in nationalism” that boosted Liberal fortunes. The dominant issue in Canada right now is Trump’s “looming influence in reshaping our politics,” and Canadians are “looking for serious leaders with credible plans who can confront, not accommodate, the U.S.”​

And that ain’t Poilivere…

Poilievre, by contrast, has found himself awkwardly tied to Trump at the worst possible moment. The Conservative leader spent the past year styling himself as a populist renegade in Trump’s mold – embracing anti-woke rhetoric and even adopting the slogan “Canada First,” explicitly echoing Trump’s America First mantra. Earlier, this strategy had energized Poilievre’s MAPLEMAGA base and propelled him to a huge polling lead. But once Trump began treating Canada as a punching bag, Poilievre’s MAPLEMAGA brand turned from asset to albatross. Observers note that Poilievre has lately scrambled to distance himself from Trump’s more extreme positions. He largely dropped the “Canada First” slogan he tried out for a few weeks, aware that it reminded voters of Trump’s influence. When Trump quipped about annexing Canada, Poilievre was forced to push back publicly — “Canada will never be the 51st state,” on a Friday, then on a Monday, said he understood why America hated Canada, referring to Canadians as “Stupid.” ​

The result is a powerful anti-Trump and anti-Poilievre backlash that has fundamentally altered the calculus of Canadian voters. What began as an election about inflation, housing, and government ethics has morphed into something larger: a referendum on Canadian sovereignty and values in the face of Trumpism. As right-wing paid MAPLEMAGA Asshole Ezra Levant grudgingly noted, “polls are showing the Conservatives have squandered a massive lead, with Mark Carney now pulling ahead of Pierre Poilievre” – largely because left-leaning voters have united against the Trump-style populists.

Populist Firebrand vs. Unifying Statesman

The contrast between Carney/Poilievre is widening, too. Pierre Poilievre, a 43-year-old career politician who relishes playing the populist disruptor. Poilievre rose to prominence railing against “elites” and “wokeism,” courting anti-vaccine and anti-establishment protesters, and burnishing an image as a scrappy folk hero for the disaffected. He’s peppered his campaign with Trump-like flourishes: boasting about the size of his rally crowds, lashing out at the “mainstream media” (he even dismissed a respected female journalist as a partisan “protester” when she challenged him)​apnews.com, and promising to “Make Canada #1” with a nationalist economic agenda. Poilievre’s rhetoric of anger and grievance found an eager audience at the height of the pandemic and amid economic frustration last year. At one point, he was arguably the most popular federal opposition leader in decades, igniting hopes among Canadian conservatives that a “homegrown style of MAGA” could finally take root in Ottawa. Then came Mark Carney…

Carney, a 60-year-old economist with an elite resume: former governor of the Bank of Canada, former governor of the Bank of England, and until recently a United Nations envoy on climate finance. If Poilievre is all bombast and insurgent zeal, Carney is deliberative, measured, even technocratic. Far from running away from his establishment credentials, Carney has leaned into them, offering himself as the experienced adult who will safeguard Canada’s stability in chaotic times. In stump speeches, Carney comes across as professorial and composed. His monotone speaking style and banker’s demeanor are a deliberate foil to the noise of populism. “Liberals are banking on bland Carney as an antidote to bombastic Trump,” one strategist observed of his campaign. The strategy seems to be working: voters weary of drama find Carney’s calm competence reassuring. As the Reuters headline put it, Carney is deploying “tough talk and bland competence” in equal measure​ – denouncing Trump’s threats with patriotic fervor, promising a return to normalcy and good governance while turning Canada into a global superpower.

Carney represents a fresh start. He has no electoral baggage; his reputation is that of a numbers guy, a man of integrity who kept banks stable through the 2008 crisis and steered the Bank of England through Brexit turmoil​. While Poilievre sneers that Carney is just another “insider” — noting that Carney quietly advised Trudeau’s government on the economy for years — Carney has successfully painted himself as an outsider to partisan politics, a patriotic technocrat drafted in to fix what’s broken. His campaign emphasizes unity and expertise. “He is calm and cool in a crisis… a clear thinker,” former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson said of Carney, underscoring the respect Carney commands even across party lines. That aura of competence has been a powerful asset. Many Canadians, unsettled by global instability, prefer a steady hand on the tiller, and Carney’s promise of sober leadership resonates with EVERY Canadian.

Poilievre’s appeal, on the other hand, has narrowed as the campaign focus shifted to confronting Trump. His fiery populism played well when Canadians primarily wanted to punish Trudeau for domestic woes. But now Canadians seem less interested in burning the house down and more interested in making sure the existing house stands firm against an external storm. Poilievre’s critics have always warned that beneath his anti-elite rhetoric lies a divisive agenda. Those warnings carry more weight when the U.S. president is actively pressuring Canada, raising the question of whether Poilievre would truly defend Canadian interests or align with Trump’s agenda. Poilievre’s opponents have not hesitated to draw parallels to Trump. Liberal ads and surrogates repeatedly highlight Poilievre’s Trump-esque positions (from attacking the central bank and embracing cryptocurrency schemes, to peddling conspiracy-tinged economic theories, and fighting the Phantom “Wokes”).

Carney vs. Poilievre has come to symbolize center vs. fringe, unity vs. division, authoritarianism vs. democracy in the minds of many Canadians. Carney talks of One Canada and the need to pull together in tough times; Poilievre rails against a “broken” Canada and casts blame on “woke globalist” forces he can’t define, ever. It is perhaps ironic that Carney – often caricatured by critics as an internationalist global elite (given his Davos circuit credentials and advocacy for green finance) – is now seen by a majority of Canadians as the safer guardian of Canadian sovereignty. But Carney has managed to square that circle: he argues that Canada’s strength on the world stage comes from internal unity and responsible leadership at home. That message, combined with Carney’s competent image, has drawn support from moderate conservatives, business liberals, and traditionally left-leaning voters alike. If the polling is accurate, a broad cross-section of Canadians are coalescing around Carney as the antidote to both Trudeau-fatigue and Trump-fueled populism.

MAGA Media’s Villain: “Canada’s New Threat”

None of this has been lost on right-wing media and influencers aligned with the MAGA movement. As Carney’s poll numbers climbed, a palpable panic set in among MAGA-friendly voices who had once seen Canada as ripe for a populist revolution. Suddenly, their narrative flipped: instead of boasting about an inevitable Conservative victory, they are now warning darkly of Carney’s impending win and what it might mean. To hear them tell it, Carney isn’t just a political opponent – he’s an existential threat, a kind of Manchurian candidate for the global elite who will snuff out the populist flame in Canada if given the chance.

Ezra Levant, the asshole founder of fake news and advocacy lobby group “Rebel News” (a far-right Canadian outlet often compared to Breitbart), devoted a recent show to Carney’s “polling surge.” The episode’s very title – “Don’t panic, Canada – it’s not over yet” – betrayed the right’s anxiety about Carney’s rise. Levant acknowledged that “the Liberals, now led by Mark Carney, are rising in the polls” and that polls suggest Carney “could snag the next Canadian election.”

And how do you know Ezra is REALLY worried Mark Carney will win? Ezra tried to disrupt last week’s leadership debate because Carney was “dog walking” Poilievre, and Ezra started a fight in the Media Room to “change the channel” from Poilievre’s ongoing collapse.

As Carney edges closer to power, the MAGAverse rhetoric has intensified. He’s variously been labeled a “socialist central banker,” a “WEF puppet,” and even “Trudeau on steroids.” The last moniker – “Trudeau on steroids” – encapsulates the fear: that Carney will be even more effective than Trudeau in pushing a liberal, globalist agenda because he’s shrewder and not bogged down by scandal. In MAGA minds, Trudeau was a lightweight whom Poilievre could have beaten, but Carney is a different beast – a smarter, more formidable foe. Right-wing bloggers have openly worried that Carney will solidify a left-of-center hold on Canadian politics for the foreseeable future, denying MAGA/MAPLEMAGA populists their long-awaited triumph.

Jordan Peterson’s Warning on Joe Rogan: “Watch Out Cuz Carney Will Win”

Perhaps nowhere was the right’s anxiety over Carney more evident than on the massively popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast. In a recent episode, Rogan hosted Dr. Jordan B. Peterson – the disgraced former Canadian psychologist and conservative commentator – and the conversation turned into a kind of MAGA group therapy session about the situation in Canada. Peterson did not mince words about his disdain for Carney or his concern that Canadians appeared ready to hand Carney the keys to 24 Sussex (the prime minister’s residence).

Peterson, who prides himself on digging into opponents’ intellectual frameworks, revealed that he had recently read Mark Carney’s book “Value(s)” – and what he found alarmed him. “I read Carney’s book, Value(s). I read it twice and I understood it,” Peterson told Rogan, as if analyzing an enemy’s battle plan. He proceeded to summarize Carney’s views with an ominous tone. According to Peterson, Carney is “an advocate of centralized planning” and a “huge ESG advocate” who wants to reshape capitalism to prioritize climate goals. In Peterson’s recounting, Carney believes “every single financial decision that every individual or organization makes has to prioritize decarbonization above all else. Peterson falsely highlighted a line from Carney’s book where Carney argues that 75% of the world’s fossil fuel reserves must stay in the ground to avert climate catastrophe. To Peterson, this was heresy, however hypothetical. “And this is who Canadians are seriously thinking about electing,” he said incredulously, practically spitting out the words. Rogan, who often dry humps anti-establishment views, seemed taken aback that a major political leader would openly take such a stance against the oil industry. Peterson went on to liken Carney’s climate and social justice initiatives to “top-down tyrannical tools” enforced with a zealotry that “doesn’t allow any dissent,” drawing a parallel to COVID-era mandates. In Peterson’s narrative, Carney is not a mild-mannered technocrat but a ruthless ideologue, draping radical ideas in a veneer of respectability.

Peterson acknowledged that despite these “allegedly” extreme positions, Carney was on track to win. Peterson suggested Canadians are mesmerized by Carney’s polished image and longing for a return to stability. The catch, Peterson warned, is that Carney’s calm demeanor hides a “radical program” (on climate, on corporate governance) that most voters don’t realize they’re signing up for. “People don’t read his goddamn book,” Peterson lamented, suggesting that if they did, they’d see the fine print of Carney’s world view.

Yet Peterson conceded that the reason Carney’s strategy is working is largely thanks to Trump. In a moment of surprising candor, Peterson admitted that Pierre Poilievre “was gaining steam… he was going to win” – until two things happened: Trudeau resigned and “Trump timed it so badly.”​podscripts.co​podscripts.co Trump’s tariffs and bombast “shifted [Canadians] to the Liberals so radically,” Peterson observed, that Poilievre’s once unstoppable campaign hit a wall. “Is [Carney] gonna win? It seems like he’s… The polls certainly indicate that. And maybe with a majority government,” Peterson admitted to Rogan. Peterson even issued a kind of plea or warning to his fellow travelers on the right: do not underestimate Mark Carney. Carney “showed up just in the nick of time to save the burning damsel” of the Liberal Party, Peterson quipped, and now “once Carney is elected… Trump will not have a more seasoned enemy in the West. Boy.” In Peterson’s eyes, Carney will be a formidable adversary – a deeply connected global player who knows how to wield power. That prospect clearly unnerves those in the MAGA camp.

The Rogan-Peterson conversation encapsulated the growing political divergence between Canada and its southern neighbor. As Rogan’s enormous audience heard, Canada’s election has become a cautionary tale for the populist right: if you push too hard, if your standard-bearer (Trump) alienates a traditionally moderate populace, they may swing the pendulum decisively the other way. Canadians, Peterson observed with some chagrin, have a habit of feeling “morally superior” to Americans,(we are) and Trump gave them ample fodder for that in recent weeks​.

A Rejection of MAGA-Style Politics in Canada

Carney’s potential leadership represents a conscious rejection of “MAGA-style” politics on multiple levels. Stylistically, it favors measured expertise over bombast; Carney is the anti-Trump in demeanor. Substantively, it recommits Canada a set of Canadian values – civility, inclusiveness, multilateral cooperation – that many felt were under threat. The intense reaction from MAGA-affiliated media underscores how significant a Carney victory would be in the broader ideological battle. To the American alt-right, losing Canada (which they once hoped might join the populist tide) is crushing.

Of course, Mark Carney will face enormous challenges if he does become Prime Minister with a full term ahead. His honeymoon could be short, as economic headwinds and regional tensions persist in Canada. And the forces of populism rarely disappear overnight; Poilievre’s Conservatives would likely remain a potent opposition, perhaps doubling down on grievances and waiting for Carney to stumble. But for the moment, Carney’s rise has clearly altered the narrative. A Liberal campaign that once braced for disaster has instead become a rallying point for Canadians determined to hold the country together in the Trump era.

In this fundamental sense, Carney’s entire candidacy has been about restoring a sense of national unity that transcends partisanship. He has been quick to credit Canadians themselves for the Liberal turnaround, arguing that ordinary people refused to countenance Trump’s threats and “flipped” the race by rallying together. Should Carney prevail, he will owe his victory to that public spirit.

For MAGA diehards, Carney’s win (if it materializes) will be a bitter pill. But many others – in Canada and beyond – will interpret it as a hopeful sign that the march of illiberal populism can be halted by democratic means. Canada will have shown that a diverse electorate can unite to repudiate the politics of division. It would prove that even a late-entering, relatively unknown leader like Carney can gain the public’s trust by appealing to reason and patriotism rather than anger. In that sense, Carney’s success would stand as a rebuke to Trumpism not just in Canada, but symbolically on the world stage. And so far, the Canadian answer to Trump has been resounding: GFY.

When the dust settles, if Mark Carney emerges as Prime Minister, the narrative will crystallize: Canada chose the technocrat over the demagogue, the steady hand over the clenched fist. It won’t end the debates or the divides, but it will set a precedent that even in this populist age, a country can step back from the brink and reaffirm moderation. To the MAGA movement, Carney may be a nemesis. But to a majority of Canadians, he appears to represent something far more positive: a chance to turn the page on years of toxic politics and assert that Canadian values cannot be trumped.

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