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So Trump is about to impose a 25% tariff on all goods imported from Canada. This has serious ramifications for both our countries. At least 30 states trade more with Canada than any other country. The US imports 5 million barrels of Canadian oil per day, and no, the US cannot replace that internally. The auto industry has been heavily integrated for decades, with cars and parts crossing the border multiple times in some cases (and yes, I was surprised to hear that). I think one advantage for the US car companies is they can pay Canadians somewhat less and also don’t have to fund their health care. This would take years and billions to unravel. Also, the US imports a lot of steel and aluminum from us, which, again, cannot be replaced domestically.
The ostensible reasons for this are the border and drugs, which is a reasonable concern. In response, our government has allocated billions of dollars and thousands more border patrol agents. I’m not sure what more we can realistically be expected to do, at least in the short term.
Maybe someone should tell him that Canada is about 1% of the influx of migrants and drugs, with most of it coming from Mexico. We also get migrants entering Canada from the US, though I am not sure how the numbers compare.
Trump says Canada has been ripping off the US. Well, we are both operating under the USMCA which replaced NAFTA while not being very different. Trump himself signed that bill and proclaimed it the best trade deal ever only a few short years ago.
It’s clear Trump despises Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland (Finance Minister.) Well, until now they were soon to be replaced by a much better Conservative government led by Pierre Polievre. They were 20% ahead in the polls until just a couple of weeks ago. Trudeau is about to be replaced by Mark Carney, who thinks all the same things Trudeau does but is WAY smarter. Polls are now neck and neck and there is likely to be an election soon, which I believe the Liberals will win.
Trump complains that Polievre is “not MAGA, not a Trump guy.” Of course not, that would be the kiss of electoral death for any politician in Canada, especially now. The Liberals know this, so their ads are all saying that’s exactly what Polievre is, and they seem to be effective.
I am hoping that these threats are being used to throw his opponents off balance and that Trump will not actually go through with it, as has often been the case so far. But I worry that he will use us as an example, “pour encourager les autres.” If he can screw the US’s best and friendliest neighbour and ally like that, then nobody can rest easy.
Discussion (91)
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FIFY
Who knows what he's actually going to do? A lot folk say his advisors are pushing for reciprocating tariffs, not across-the-board tariffs. Again, who knows?
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Why would any foreign politician put "Make America Great Again" at the top of their priority list? That's America's job.
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Not sure what you fixed, that is exactly what I said. And I don't know what you mean by "reciprocating" as any existing tariffs are part of USMCA which he approved of. He's talking unilateral and across-the-board tariffs on top of anything else.
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My heart and my gut instincts are with the Canucks on this one. On Trump's backroom intentions, and the actual results of all this, I don't know.
The bluster over Greenland and Panama are unlikely to be territory grabs, but warnings-with-teeth that the US won't accept a Chinese state-linked presence at strategic chokeholds of North America. Getting tough with Mexico and China was inevitable. Canada's a special case, and even if some softening up for hard bargaining was needed, they are, IMHO, one of the least likely nations in the world to insult. We like the place, we like the people. Even if a better border security deal or tariffs emerge at the end of the process, the abrasiveness was not needed, at least anywhere to that degree.
The second factor pointed out here is the hammering effect this is having on Pierre Poilievre, the one Canadian politician who American conservatives readily understand and admire. How the hell could we derail him and shrug it off as unavoidable collateral damage?
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The problem I have with Canadian caterwauling on this issue is that our northern cousins are some of the most protectionist people on the face of the earth. Everything from the CRTC’s media content rules to protectionist tariffs that predate anything from the Trump Administration.
The Canadian food market is stacked against US imports. And they often dump milk products on the market, angering their trade partners.
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