When the tyrannical Prime Minister of Canada oozed his way down to Mar-a-Lago to flash his teeth and try to prevent major tariffs on Canadian goods, Donald Trump — like the rest of the world — apparently had a hard time taking Little Fidel seriously.
At the end of November, Trudeau and Trump had dinner together at Trump’s Mar-a-Lego estate, as the Canadian PM became one of a number of world leaders already to reach out to and coordinate with the incoming president as Joe Biden is increasingly and obviously out of the picture. Trump humorously posted on Truth Social on Dec. 9, “It was a pleasure to have dinner the other night with Governor Justin Trudeau of the Great State of Canada. I look forward to seeing the Governor again soon so that we may continue our in depth talks on Tariffs and Trade, the results of which will be truly spectacular for all! DJT.”
It was a pleasure to have dinner the other night with Governor Justin Trudeau of the Great State of Canada. I look forward to seeing the Governor again soon so that we may continue our in depth talks on Tariffs and Trade, the results of which will be truly spectacular for all!…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) December 10, 2024
This follows Trump‘s previous joking that if Canada does not want to have major tariffs imposed, it could simply become the 51st American state.
“The dinner followed a threat Trump made to impose a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian imports to the U.S.,” CBC reported at the time. “This means U.S. companies would have to pay a hefty tax to bring Canadian products into the U.S. Trudeau said the dinner was productive, but the threat of tariffs still looms.”
Trump and his commerce secretary pick Howard Lutnick plan to impose significant tariffs on certain goods from some other countries, not only to make money for America but also, importantly, to induce manufacturing to return to America and create more jobs for U.S. workers. It has often been true since the World War II era that certain other countries, including Japan and European nations, have been allowed to oppose egregious tariffs on American goods while their goods freely enter America. That is obviously unfair to Americans. It might have made sense in the limited context of the post-World War II era, as the United States generously sought to build up other decimated economies, but such a system has long outlived its usefulness.
Related: Trump’s Commerce Pick: Tariffs Will Make US Money, Protect US Workers
Donald Trump certainly thinks so, but, of course, foreign leaders like Trudeau, whose authoritarian policies, incompetence, and cozying up to Communist China have already made him unpopular at home, are worried. Trudeau might not actually be Fidel Castro’s son, but like Castro, he is a Marxist whose dictatorial policies have sabotaged his country’s freedom and prosperity. He did his worst to set Canadians up for failure.
As the CBC noted, Canadian companies make a significant profit off trading with the United States, hence the concern over Trump‘s proposed tariffs. Ultimately, of course, Trump has an obligation to protect American manufacturing and businesses first, but Trudeau is sitting on the hot seat as Trump is turning up the temperature. There’s one thing we can be sure of, that the next four years will see a resurgence in American power and an increase in entertaining comments from the president.
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