The Line Podcast: Take us with you, astronauts

About this episode

The hosts discuss the emotional impact of Artemis II's launch, the state of the war in the Persian Gulf, and recent political developments in Canada.

In this episode of The Line Podcast , recorded a day early on April 2nd, 2026 ahead of the Easter long weekend, Matt Gurney and Jen Gerson open by saluting the departure of Artemis II on its journey to the Moon. Jen finds herself unexpectedly emotional about it, and the hosts spend some time reflecting on why moments like this matter — and why it’s still important to hold on to a sense of hope. It really is the best side of America (with a little bit of Canada!) on display. And then there is the other side of America! They check in on the state of the war in the Persian Gulf, as well as a recent speech by Donald Trump that neither host found particularly reassuring. The overall trajectory worries them, though Matt does offer some grounded analysis. Put simply, he’s not expecting Canada to be leading any clearance mission through the Strait of Hormuz. From there, Jen provides an update from Alberta, where recent developments have left her feeling vindicated, albeit in a grim way. They discuss at some length why Jen struggles to convince people of things that are quite obvious; Matt pivots from political analysis to therapy and encourages her to be more comfortable accepting that…

People in this episode

Hosts: Matt Gurney, Jen Gerson

Topics covered

• space exploration
• political analysis
• emotional reflection
• war in the Persian Gulf
• federal politics

Keywords

• Artemis II
• Donald Trump
• Persian Gulf
• Mark Carney
• Alberta
• politics
• space exploration

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Artemis II

Places: Canada, Alberta, Persian Gulf

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