Canada is not Trump's fault

Trump's shenanigans during Canada's last election cycle may have contributed to Canada's on-going Liberal fever problem, Canada's problems were never Trump's fault:

More Canadian stupidity

Really?  REALLY? Talk about shooting yourself in the groin after shooting yourself in the foot...

The Fed gets it finally (way late mind you)

The Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell capitulated; he's admitted he was wrong on the impact of tariffs and the markets responded, positively and strongly.

Last Friday in Jackson Hole, Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell finally – and grudgingly – admitted what the Trump team has been saying all along: tariffs don’t fuel inflation. 

At most, tariffs create a one-time adjustment in prices, not the kind of runaway spiral that demands punishing rate hikes. And even that one-time bump may be negligible if, as we have long argued, foreign exporters – not American consumers – shoulder most or all of the burden. 

The implication is clear: whether the impact is zero or merely a one-time step-up in prices, there is absolutely no justification for the Fed to hide behind "tariff uncertainty" as an excuse for overly restrictive interest-rate policy. 

Now it's time for the Fed to act.  The words themselves are not enough and the U.S. rates are well behind the global curve: 

Global rate spreads underscore just how out of touch the Fed is with the rest of the world. The European Central Bank’s deposit facility sits at 2%. The Bank of Japan holds near 0.5%. China runs its seven-day repo at 1.4%. Against that backdrop, the Fed’s 4.25%–4.50% target range remains a glaring outlier – more than 200 basis points above Europe, nearly 400 above Japan, and triple China. 

It's time to act decisively. If Powell does, watch out; the economic boom will be that much bigger. 

The real reason the U.S. is pushing tariffs; it's not just Trump.

I thought I'd shared this before but I cannot find it.  This video is a MUST watch. It explains completely why the U.S. is focused on tariffs. It's not just Trump.

Inflation? Nope.

Trade deals? Yep.

Tariffs STUN!

Trump tariffs winning on both ends. Government revenue from tariffs, huge:

Consumer prices on imports are tanking. This is not a win, it's a double win.

Courts declare tariffs not legal

So the courts are now the executive branch it would seem...

Trade wins.

Trade wins in the trade winds.

Tariff war pause with China?

Markets are happy this morning. Out of all the trade talks, this is the one that president Trump should be the most aggressive with. China is the most egregious cheater on trade.

Canadian Election Disaster Trilogy

This is not the total disaster I had feared. Liberal, World Economic Forum golden boy Mark Carney was parachuted in to save the Liberal Party of Canada from the disaster known as Justin Trudeau. Notice he wasn't parachuted in to save Canada, but to save the Liberal Party. Pick your theatrical villain, this guy is it: 

Yep, that's him with the associate of you-know-who.

Sadly, Canada is full of uninformed people (due largely to our lock-step Leftist media), weak-willed cowards with a knee-jerk reaction to president Trump's tariffs.  

Going into the election, the Conservative party had a somewhat charismatic (in an understated way) leader unafraid to take on the media, unafraid to talk common sense. He was winning so much support, it looked possible that the Liberal party could be actually wiped out entirely. Less than four months ago, Conservatives were a certainty. Meanwhile the Liberals had historically unpopular Justin Trudeau. A global laughing stock of a leader.  After a decade people tend to tire of the incumbents, that's true anywhere not just Canada. 

There was a lot that went wrong with Canada's populist revival, and it was a perfect storm of sh@% that resulted in a Liberal 4th consecutive term, albeit barely. What happened? Three things mainly.

One - Too soon, too personal

Well the first problem was the Conservative party's strategy worked too well. Once Pierre Poilievre was elected leader of the party the strategy to demonize Justin Trudeau starting years before the election date worked. It worked so well, that along with Justin Trudeau's own contribution of ineptitude and horrible policies,  the Liberals approval ratings were near flatline. The problem though was twofold. Firstly they started way too early. The other problem; it was too Trudeau-centric. The Conservative popularity soared and Trudeau's waned abysmally as he deserved. But because this happened a year before the mandated latest election date, and because it was so closely tied to Trudeau, the Liberal party was able to jettison Trudeau and solve both problems at once.  A 'fresh' 'new' face cleared punted the problem for the Liberals. 

True, nobody wanted Trudeau, not even liberal voters. But he was no longer on the ballot. The Conservatives were a victim of their own early success. Liberals had time to present themselves, along with a compliant media as revitalized and different.  It's not true, as has often been pointed out, but it became the perception. Liberal voters flocked back to Liberal support, abandoning the other parties (mostly the NDP) they had drifted towards.

 

Two - I have to say it; Donald Trump

At one point probably 60% of conservative voters in Canada were very much pro-Trump for America. President Trump coming in and going after Trudeau with tariffs was a real miscalculation. Canadians didn't see it as an attack on the Trudeau they for the most part detested. They saw it as an attack on Canada. We've been a loyal friend to the United States for over a century. This about face made no sense. There are trade issues on both sides for sure, but we're not China.

Trump created a climate of fear in Canada that permeated the election cycle. It was now about Canadian sovereignty. That gave Pierre Poilievre a no-win hand to play. Endorse Trump and seem anti-Canadian to most of the country or talk tough and say Canada First. He had to chose the latter or get decimated in the election. But choosing the latter meant that he was just like the Liberals. This may have also been a strategic mistake. There was probably a third path; a path of reconciliation with America.  A path of let's address the concerns of both countries. But it would have taken an enormous campaign to get that message through and per point one; the Conservatives went through a lot of budget before the election even got started and probably couldn't muster the resources to carry that off.

President Trump inserted himself into a Canadian election in a way that hurt Conservatives' election chances. It may have been a deliberately gamble to help the Conservatives but if so, it failed. Badly. While addressing trade grievances and fentanyl issues are certainly important and admirable, this was ill-timed and will end up hurting working class and middle class Canadians who are suffering badly already thanks to their Liberal overlords. I know, I am one of them. The Canadian economy for ordinary Canadians is on the ropes. This could spell the death of Canadian middle class. 

Three - Jagmeet Singh

The clown of a leader for the New Democratic Party (socialists), Jagmeet Singh was so self-serving that for years he propped up Justin Trudeau, holding on as long as he thought was possible. If he had had any backbone, Canada could have held an election any time over the last two years. Didn't happen. He kept Trudeau in power long enough to give the Liberals time for an alternative. Singh earned himself enough tenure for a lucrative lifetime government but he lost his own seat in parliament in the election as a result. He decimated his own party to a rump in parliament with virtually no power anymore. And it cost Canada. If he'd been less a Trudeau lacky Canada would have had a conservative Prime Minister and his NDP party would have been better off too. His selfish and progressive ambitions have made Canada a country on life support.

There's your trilogy of reasons for the disaster. There's a trilogy of disastrous outcomes for Canada, we are stuck with more World Economic Forum leftist leadership. We have a squandered opportunity for conservative populism and for a reinvigorated relationship with the United States

Not all is lost

I started by saying this was not the complete disaster it could have been. It's true.  The Liberals do not have a majority government in parliament. Support from the ruined NDP party won't be enough to keep them in power now. They are subject to a non-confidence motion and a snap election at any time. The conservatives and the Bloc Quebecois (who don't like the Conservatives but detest the Liberals) will likely see to it that the government lasts 18 months or less. My gut says 9 - 12 months. People will have time to see Carney is every bit the villain that Justin Trudeau was. A conservative majority is still a looming possibility, perhaps merely delayed.

Tariffs are a smaller threat than China

Megyn Kelly, and Kevin O'Leary discuss tariffs and China.  China is the real problem.

Will the Trump tariffs end the CCP?

I'd like to be optimistic enough to believe that the Chinese Communist Party collapses from the new tariffs. I'm certain it will hurt their economy, but I'm skeptical that it will have that profound an effect. I hope it does, but I'm more convinced that it just hurts the Chinese economy and hurts the CCP. I'm convinced it will help America in the long term more than it hurts China. I hope I'm wrong, I hope it does both.  As the ironically named 1980's band Asia once said, Only Time Will Tell.

Gordon Chang on China tariffs

Gordon Chang on China tariffs:

Full Liberation Day speech

For those who missed it.

More unintended consequences on Trump Canada tariffs

Just an FYI, this is worth the watch from a party that was sincerely and strongly pro-Trump just months ago:

China executes Canadians

I would not be surprised if those executed were fentanyl mules working for the CCP used to sneak the substance into Canada and the U.S.  They happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time; with Canada seeking to appease the Trump administration on stopping the flow of deadly narcotics into the U.S.  Maybe the executions were designed to destroy the chances of potential disclosure of that fact in light of the tariff pressures. 

The execution of foreign nationals is not to be taken lightly, but Canadians (and Americans) would do well to recognize that China is the real enemy here. 

Trump's fallout in Canada is horrible

The Conservative party in Canada as recently as December had a 29 point lead in the polls. This is what has happened since Trump's tariffs pronouncements.

Canadians have rallied around the Liberal government and it's new leader in response to what they perceive as a bully. Canada had the potential to elect a strong leader who would be an effective and strong ally of the United States. That opportunity may now be lost. The leftist Liberals have surged not only back into the race but potentially have enough support to win in a landslide. With a multi-party system, 42% is enough to dominate parliament.

I have been a strong Trump supporter since 2016. I cannot think of any other issue where I would not back him. His approach to Canada is the one area he has been wrong.  Unless Trump did not want an ally and was serious about annexation he's made Canadians' lives, already bordering on miserable, far worse. And I don't think he's serious about annexing Canada. 

I still back Trump. I simply think his approach here has been horribly wrong.

The tariff long game

What is president Trump doing with tariffs? This is the long game.

Ben Shapiro stands up for Canada

I think Trump is going to quietly back off on this with respect to Canada. The unintended consequences have already started, even though the tariffs haven't fully yet.

Keystone XL pipeline vs. Trump's tariffs

The Keystone XL Pipeline was a big priority for president Trump in his first term. In 2025, he's imposing tariffs that would impact the pipeline. These two positions are at odds with each other.