U.S. President Donald Trump says he has a deal for the U.S. to take over billions of barrels of Venezuelan crude reserves with the potential to replace Canadian exports. Vassy Kapelos is joined by energy expert Heather Exner-Pirot from the Macdonald Laurier Institute for a reality check on what this means.

Listen to The Vassy Kapelos podcast on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Follow us on Twitter at @VassKapelosShow and on Instagram at @VassyKapelosShow.

U.S. President Donald Trump says he has a deal for the U.S. to take over billions of barrels of Venezuelan crude reserves with the potential to replace Canadian exports. Vassy Kapelos is joined by energy expert Heather Exner-Pirot from the Macdonald Laurier Institute for a reality check on what this means.
Listen to The Vassy Kapelos podcast on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Follow us on Twitter at @VassKapelosShow and on Instagram at @VassyKapelosShow.

All the best audio from Vassy Kapelos on CFRA.

All the best audio from Vassy Kapelos on CFRA.

The Vassy Kapelos Show - Sound Bites

Top sound bites from all of 580 CFRA's programming

Top sound bites from all of 580 CFRA's programming

580 CFRA Top Sound Bites

Audio from the Vassy Kapelos Show on 580 CFRA.

Audio from the Vassy Kapelos Show on 580 CFRA.

The Vassy Kapelos Show

580 CFRA

VKS: Is Trump's deal on Venezuelan oil bad news for Canada?

Today marks International Overdose Day – a day to raise awareness about overdose deaths, to highlight that they are preventable, and to reduce the stigma of drug-related deaths. It’s a day that especially hits close to home for the friends and family of loved ones who were taken by drugs. Last year, right here in Ottawa, 74 people lost their lives due to opioid toxicity. Kristy Cameron checks in with Rob Boyd, the CEO of Ottawa Inner City Health, in Hour 2. Meantime, a dramatic scene unfolded at the Fallowfield Train Station on Sunday afternoon, as a car-train collision triggered a massive response from local paramedics. Firefighters rescued the driver of the car, who was trapped inside the mangled vehicle and was pushed dozens of feet into a bush. She was then taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and remains in stable condition. Dr. Lesley Spencer, who used to work as an E.R. doctor in Smiths Falls, was waiting at the train station for her husband to arrive. She recounts what she saw on Sunday. Then, we pick the brain of Daljit Nirman, an Ottawa lawyer who is rekindling a stance he took in 2013. After an OC Transpo bus collided with a train that year – an event that turned into one of our city’s biggest tragedies – Nirman started a petition for an overpass or underpass to go over the Fallowfield train tracks. Is it time to put that plan into action?

Today marks International Overdose Day &ndash; a day to raise awareness about overdose deaths, to highlight that they are preventable, and to reduce the stigma of drug-related deaths. It&rsquo;s a day that especially hits close to home for the friends and family of loved ones who were taken by drugs. Last year, right here in Ottawa, 74 people lost their lives due to opioid toxicity. Kristy Cameron checks in with Rob Boyd, the CEO of Ottawa Inner City Health, in Hour 2. Meantime, a dramatic scene unfolded at the Fallowfield Train Station on Sunday afternoon, as a car-train collision triggered a massive response from local paramedics. Firefighters rescued the driver of the car, who was trapped inside the mangled vehicle and was pushed dozens of feet into a bush. She was then taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and remains in stable condition. Dr. Lesley Spencer, who used to work as an E.R. doctor in Smiths Falls, was waiting at the train station for her husband to arrive. She recounts what she saw on Sunday. Then, we pick the brain of Daljit Nirman, an Ottawa lawyer who is rekindling a stance he took in 2013. After an OC Transpo bus collided with a train that year &ndash; an event that turned into one of our city&rsquo;s biggest tragedies &ndash; Nirman started a petition for an overpass or underpass to go over the Fallowfield train tracks. Is it time to put that plan into action?

Hour 2 of Ottawa Now for Mon. August 31st, 2026

From Loblaws to Scotiabank, some Canadian websites are now displaying maps with Lake Ontario renamed to Lake America. At one point this past weekend, Hydro Ottawa’s Outage Map also said Lake America, but that was corrected this morning. It comes after U.S. President Trump’s latest attempt to stir up a hornet’s nest in the Great White North, signing an executive order last Thursday to Americanize a popular Great Lake. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum oversees the Board of Geographic Names, who regulates names on maps. He expects that Apple Maps will follow Google’s lead as well. Now, even though Google has its own Canadian division, this tech giant remains an American-based company, so any changes that are displayed in America will also be displayed here. How do companies iron out these complex formulas? Kristy Cameron digs deeper with tech analyst Carmi Levy. Meantime, 1-in-5 Ontario students are turning to Artificial Intelligence for emotional support. That’s according to a new study from the University of Ottawa, which surveyed nearly 40,000 Ontario students. In light of these findings, it warns that this pattern could be a major red flag for youth mental health. We check in with Kamilla Bonnesen, a postdoctoral fellow at UOttawa’s Brain and Behaviour Lab. But first, we bring you up to speed on today’s top headlines.

From Loblaws to Scotiabank, some Canadian websites are now displaying maps with Lake Ontario renamed to Lake America. At one point this past weekend, Hydro Ottawa&rsquo;s Outage Map also said Lake America, but that was corrected this morning. It comes after U.S. President Trump&rsquo;s latest attempt to stir up a hornet&rsquo;s nest in the Great White North, signing an executive order last Thursday to Americanize a popular Great Lake. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum oversees the Board of Geographic Names, who regulates names on maps. He expects that Apple Maps will follow Google&rsquo;s lead as well. Now, even though Google has its own Canadian division, this tech giant remains an American-based company, so any changes that are displayed in America will also be displayed here. How do companies iron out these complex formulas? Kristy Cameron digs deeper with tech analyst Carmi Levy. Meantime, 1-in-5 Ontario students are turning to Artificial Intelligence for emotional support. That&rsquo;s according to a new study from the University of Ottawa, which surveyed nearly 40,000 Ontario students. In light of these findings, it warns that this pattern could be a major red flag for youth mental health. We check in with Kamilla Bonnesen, a postdoctoral fellow at UOttawa&rsquo;s Brain and Behaviour Lab. But first, we bring you up to speed on today&rsquo;s top headlines.

Hour 1 of Ottawa Now for Mon. August 31st, 2026

The best of Newstalk 580 CFRA for Monday, August 31st, 2026.

The best of Newstalk 580 CFRA for Monday, August 31st, 2026.

VKS: Is Trump's deal on Venezuelan oil bad news for Canada?

In 3 playlist(s)

580 CFRA

Social links

Recent clips