(0:00 - 2:26) Good evening, I'm Will Dove, and these are the top stories for Friday, April 25th. With the election coming on Monday, many of us are concerned with the polls that show Carney's Liberals leading. As of yesterday, 338 Canada shows the Liberals forming a majority government, although 338 is known to have ties to the Liberals. Angus Reid, for which I've been unable to find any evidence of party bias, shows the Liberals with a slight lead and likely to form a minority government, although it should be noted that pollsters often underestimate conservative votes, often by several percentage points. However, given the influence that the Liberals, with their payoffs to legacy media, and often hidden payoffs to pollsters, large polling corporation results are suspect, especially in light of the dichotomy in rally attendance, with Pierre Poilievre drawing crowds of thousands, while attendance at Carney's rallies is reported to be in the hundreds. A user on X, StatCloud, has been doing his own polling and is getting very different results from the main polling companies. StatCloud is using a randomized, automated phone polling system, and the numbers being returned show the Conservatives likely to win, possibly even a majority government. The randomized nature of the polling makes it likely that there is no bias in the results. So far, he's polled over 1,400 people. With Alberta and Saskatchewan almost certain to vote heavily Conservative, StatCloud has focused his efforts on Ontario, B.C., and the Atlantic provinces. His results show the Conservatives with a strong lead at 52% of the vote, the Liberals with 36%, NDP at 7%, 3% for the Green Party, and 1% for Maxime Bernier's People's Party of Canada. With strong support for the Conservatives in Alberta and Saskatchewan, this could predict a Conservative majority. Another poll by Innovative Research also shows the Conservatives leading across most of the country, although some of the numbers seem unlikely. According to the Innovative Research poll, the Liberals have the strongest lead in Quebec, with 38% of the vote compared to the Conservatives' 21%. The poll reports the Prairie provinces with 49% for the Liberals and 32% for the Conservatives, which seems highly suspect unless there was a disproportionate number of respondents from Manitoba. (2:27 - 8:51) While Alberta is a Prairie province, the poll shows those results separately. Not surprisingly, Alberta shows the largest lead for the Conservatives with 57% of the vote, and only 28% for the Liberals. Both B.C. and Ontario show a slight lead for the Conservatives, but the biggest surprise comes from Atlantic Canada, which often votes Liberal, but the Innovative Research polling results show the Conservatives with 52% of the vote there, and the Liberals trailing significantly with 42%. With only days to go until the election, X user StatCloud has stated that he is doubling the number of calls going out, and he will continue to report results. You will find a link to the StatCloud page on X below this report. Mark Carney has been accused of lying about a conversation he had with U.S. President Donald Trump, in which Trump reportedly mentioned his desire for Canada to become the 51st state. Carney had initially described the call as cordial and positive, stating that Trump respected Canada's sovereignty, both in private and public comments, which led to a narrative that Carney was the best person to deal with Trump and negotiate with him on issues like tariffs. However, it has now been revealed that Trump did bring up the idea of Canada becoming the 51st state during the call. Reportedly, the information about Carney denying that Trump had brought up Canada as the 51st state was leaked by an unnamed member of the Liberal Party. When questioned by CBC's Ashley Burke about the discrepancy, Carney attempted to dodge the question, stating that Trump often brings up the idea, but eventually acknowledged that Trump had mentioned it during their call, while still maintaining that the conversation was about negotiating a partnership between the two countries after the election. March 28th, did the President, President Trump bring up the idea of Canada becoming the 51st state during that call with you? As I just said, the President brings this up all the time. He brought it up yesterday. He's brought it up before. There's a difference between the conversation that was held between leaders of government, which was this conversation and a discussion that led directly to an agreement that as sovereign countries, we would have negotiations about our partnership following the election on Monday. When Ashley questioned him directly about the call, referring to a question she asked on March 28th, Carney engaged in further obfuscation. I asked you about this on March 28th after the call, and you said that President Trump respected Canada's sovereignty both privately and in his public conversations. Were you being truthful? He absolutely did. Look, the President has certain things in his mind that he reverts back to all the time, but treated me as the Prime Minister, not as something else. I'm not even going to say the word he used to use about my predecessor. Treated me as the Prime Minister. We had discussions as sovereign nations. We agreed as sovereign nations that these negotiations will begin after the election on Monday. And that is how it was reported back. And that's absolutely accurate. The revelation has sparked criticism with even the CBC, which has been promised a $150 million funding boost if Carney wins the election, calling out Carney for his misleading statements, and has raised questions about Carney's trustworthiness and ability to negotiate with Trump. Meanwhile, Carney has been actively promoting a gender-based policy approach within the Liberal government. The gender-based analysis framework would be applied across all ministries and departments, representing a significant shift in how government policies are developed and evaluated. Critics have questioned the timing of this initiative, suggesting it may be an attempt to distract from the ongoing controversy regarding Carney's statements about Trump. The Liberal Party has not issued a formal statement addressing the allegations about Carney's Trump comments, though sources suggest internal discussions are ongoing about how to manage the potential fallout. For now, Carney appears to be focusing on policy initiatives rather than directly addressing the controversy, a strategy that has drawn both criticism and support from various political quarters. Russia escalated nuclear tensions with the West today, as Secretary of the Security Council Sergei Shoigu invoked Moscow's updated nuclear doctrine, warning that attacks on Russian or Belarusian territory, including conventional strikes, could trigger atomic retaliation. The warning follows stalled U.S.-Russia negotiations on a new Strategic Arms Control Pact. The nuclear saber-rattling coincides with two major developments aggravating the situation. First, President Donald Trump revealed yesterday that his administration's peace plan requires Ukraine to cede all Russian-occupied territories, including Crimea. Trump called this a pretty big concession during talks with Norway's prime minister, while criticizing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's refusal to negotiate. And second, General Lieutenant Yaroslav Moskalik, a key architect of Russia's Ukraine operations, was killed today by a car bomb in Balashikha, near Moscow. Security footage shows the explosion occurring as Moskalik approached his vehicle, with investigators confirming an improvised device containing shrapnel caused the blast. While Kyiv hasn't claimed responsibility, the attack mirrors previous operations targeting Russian military figures. Shoigu's dual messaging emphasized both threat and diplomacy. We reserve the right to symmetrical responses against sovereignty threats, but remain ready to resume nuclear talks. The warning follows Pentagon assessments that Russia has deployed tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. Meanwhile, Trump's proposed deal, involving sanctions relief for Moscow and NATO membership prohibition for Ukraine, faces bipartisan criticism in Washington. The assassination and nuclear posturing come during heightened violence, with Russian strikes killing eight civilians in Kyiv yesterday. I'm Will Dove, and those are the top stories for today, Friday, April 25th.