Health-care needs at forefront as we welcome war refugees

Waiting for Cormier verdict the ‘calm before the storm’

As the jury room door closed behind the seven women and four men who are now deliberating on the evidence against Tina Fontaine’s accused killer, Thelma Favel rose from the chair she’s occupied for most of Raymond Cormier’s second-degree murder trial.

Almost every day over the past three weeks, Favel, the woman who raised 15-year-old Tina, has sat right up front, directly across from the jury box, listening, sobbing and soaking in disturbing details of the teen’s last days that have come to light over the course of Cormier’s second-degree murder trial.

On Wednesday afternoon, after Court of Queen’s Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal instructed the jury and sent them off to be sequestered until they decide whether 56-year-old Raymond Cormier is guilty of killing Tina, Favel got up and hugged Crown prosecutor Breta Passler. It was one of many moments, this one shielded from jurors, that have long since proven the emotional impact of the case and the lasting power of Tina’s legacy.

Tina’s death sparked a public outcry that renewed calls for a national inquiry into disproportionately high rates of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls across Canada, and the criminal trial for the man accused of killing her hasn’t happened in a vacuum.

Trump touts USMCA win in state of the union

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump declared his scorched-earth political style an unmitigated success Tuesday in a fiercely partisan, made-for-TV state of the union speech that made it clear he expects to be back in the White House next year on the strength of the U.S. economy and his trade deals with Canada, Mexico and China.

Trump, addressing a joint session of Congress in the very chamber where House Democrats voted to impeach him less than two months ago, became only the second president in American history — Bill Clinton was the first — to deliver a state of the union while standing trial in the Senate.

Unrepentant, he pointedly refused to shake the offered hand of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the dais before singing the praises of what he billed as "the great American comeback," pointing to strong job growth, a soaring stock market and low unemployment as evidence of his leadership. And when he was done, Pelosi ripped up the speech in full view of the television cameras.

"America's enemies are on the run, America's fortunes are on the rise, and America's future is blazing bright. The years of economic decay are over," Trump declared, taking full credit for the country's "roaring economy," including what he billed as seven million new jobs and the lowest jobless rate in half a century — a "blue-collar boom" that he's counting on to help his re-election chances in November.

Brian Bowman wins mayoral battle

In the end, it wasn’t even close.

A mayoral race that was supposed to be a head-to-head battle between privacy lawyer Brian Bowman and former NDP MP and MLA Judy Wasylycia-Leis turned into a rout on election night. Wasylycia-Leis, the experienced politician, had held what looked like an unassailable lead for months, but Bowman, the outsider who promised Winnipeggers a better, prosperous future, chipped doggedly away at it.

“I’m excited to tell you that positive change is coming to city hall,” Bowman told roaring supporters at the Inn At The Forks after making his way into the small ballroom accompanied by his wife and two young sons.

He said he hadn’t expecting such a landslide victory, but had believed that the campaign was building momentum.

Neo-Nazi group members plotted to kill Free Press reporter

Disturbing details of a plan to kill a Free Press reporter who had infiltrated a white nationalist hate group were revealed for the first time Wednesday.

Manitoba RCMP report ‘deeply concerning’ spike in fatal collisions this year

Manitoba RCMP are boosting traffic enforcement after a spike in fatal vehicle accidents this year.

Thus far in 2026, 73 people have been killed in 65 collisions, a 28 per cent increase from 57 deaths in the same January-October period last year, the Mounties said in a news release Friday, adding the spike in deaths is 28 per cent above the province’s five-year average.

“The high number of fatal collisions that have occurred this year is deeply concerning,” said RCMP traffic services enforcement commander Staff Sgt. Jon Greer.

There will be an “increased emphasis” on traffic enforcement over the coming weeks and months, the news release said.

Fawcett promises growth in second term as Brandon mayor

BRANDON — Jeff Fawcett promises “incredible opportunities” for Brandon over the next four years.

The incumbent was handily re-elected for a second term as Brandon mayor Wednesday evening, receiving 54 per cent of the vote. He defeated his only challenger, former councillor and MLA Len Isleifson, by 907 votes.

“The next four years presents incredible opportunities for our city,” Fawcett told supporters after the victory. “We’ll continue to support responsible growth, strengthening our neighbourhoods, investing in infrastructure, supporting local businesses, and ensuring Brandon remains a place where families and future generations can thrive.”

Isleifson, a Brandon councillor from 2010 to 2014 and Brandon East Tory MLA from 2016 to 2023, called the result disappointing but said he wouldn’t change anything about his campaign.