Category: Trade deal
‘AMERICAN INVASION’: Flailing Canada PM Mark Carney invokes historical grudge in latest lob at Trump
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney clearly misses the campaign trail.
A year ago he won the election on the promise that he alone could handle Donald Trump and deliver a stronger trade deal under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
The irony, of course, is that in 1812, Canada did not exist as an independent country.
But talk is cheap. When Carney went to Washington, he struck a flattering tone — calling Trump “transformative” — and came away empty-handed.
Now he’s back to his familiar “elbows up” rhetoric, declaring the age of America over. What better way to shift the focus from his utter lack of progress than a little political theater?
So on Sunday, Carney gave himself the biggest stage he could find: a carefully produced video, packaged and presented as a national address.
This is something Canadian prime ministers almost never do outside real national emergencies. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, Justin Trudeau reserved major televised appeals for announcing concrete measures — lockdowns, restrictions, and public health directives.
Familiar message
There was nothing urgent about Carney’s speech. It was less an address than a political ad, polished and prepackaged and paid for by taxpayers.
The message was a familiar one: America is a lost cause, and Canada must move on:
The world … is more dangerous and divided. The U.S. has fundamentally changed its approach to trade, raising its tariffs to levels last seen during the Great Depression. Many of our former strengths, based on our close ties to America, have become our weaknesses — weaknesses that we must correct.
The correction? Carney’s “Canada Strong” plan, which calls for “attract[ing] new investment,” “striking new partnerships abroad,” and “taking back control of our security, our borders, and our future.”
It’s the same argument Carney made in Davos and the same one he repeated at the Liberal Party convention in Montreal. What made it different was a bizarre digression about Canadian history — complete with visual aids and celebrity name-dropping.
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Jung Yeon-Je/Galerie Bilderwelt/Getty Images
Model diplomacy
Brandishing a tiny figurine of General Isaac Brock — the British officer killed defending what would become Canada during the War of 1812 — Carney praised him for his resistance to the “threat of an American invasion.” Noting that the figurine was a recent gift from “Austin Powers” star — and fellow Canadian — Mike Myers, Carney said he keeps it on his desk as a reminder that “when we are united as Canadians, we can withstand anything.”
Even the self-inflicted wound of turning our back on our closest neighbor?
The irony, of course, is that in 1812, Canada did not exist as an independent country. It was a British colony, defended as part of an empire that spanned the globe. Today, Canada is economically, militarily, and geographically bound to the United States in ways that make the comparison absurd.
Empty bluster
The two countries are each other’s largest trading partners. Their industries are integrated, and their defense arrangements are intertwined. Whatever Carney may suggest, Canada is not pivoting across the Atlantic any time soon.
And if it tried, the costs would be immediate.
Carney warns against “nostalgia” while offering nothing but slogans. No major housing breakthrough. No completed energy corridor to global markets. No visible shift that would justify the sweeping language of national reinvention.
In short, Carney has yet to reveal a coherent strategy to replace the relationship he is so eager to downplay. Until then, his anti-American bluster is like the toy soldier on his desk — just for show.
