Recent developments with both Canada and China have proven what Trump supporters have known all along — that his tough stance on trade works, and his critics need to sit down and take notes. The evidence is overwhelming as these key nations are now falling in line with Donald Trump's vision for fair trade, vindicating his aggressive approach that establishment politicians and media pundits love to criticize.
In Canada, we're seeing political rhetoric crumble in the face of economic reality. Despite campaign-trail tough talk against Trump, newly elected Prime Minister Mark Carney wasted no time reaching out to negotiate just one day after his victory.
"He called me up yesterday. He said, 'Let's make a deal,'" Trump told reporters, confirming what "Shark Tank" star Kevin O'Leary predicted — that Canada would ultimately cave to economic reality. With Canada selling 75% of its exports to the United States, O'Leary rightly called it "economic suicide" to maintain trade tensions.
But the real validation of Trump's strategy is coming from China, where the communist regime is quietly dismantling its retaliatory tariffs one by one. In a stunning reversal, China just lifted its punitive 125% tariff on American ethane, a critical resource that Chinese manufacturers can't live without. This follows Beijing's earlier retreats on semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and aircraft engines, which proves that China needs America far more than America needs China.
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent laid out the stark reality facing Beijing: China could lose up to 10 million jobs if current tariffs persist. The math is simple; they sell almost five times more goods to us than we buy from them. How many years have presidents from either side of the aisle been saying that we need to rein in China? I’ve lost count. But where past presidents have been all talk, Trump is taking long-overdue action.
Meanwhile, Trump’s tariffs are incentivizing American companies to invest in the United States instead of abroad.
"We have more money being spent than at any time in the history of our country. We're up to close to $8 trillion, I think I can say," he told reporters Wednesday during a Cabinet meeting. "And that includes chip companies, car companies. Every form of manufacturing, high-tech companies. Nobody's ever seen anything like it."
Trump added, “What they need is an incentive to come in, and the tariffs — they're building because of the tariffs. And I like to say they're building because of Nov. 5, the election and the tariffs. But I'm going to be a little more blunt. They're building because of the tariffs. And Nov. 5 gave them the tariffs.”
While Biden spent four years appeasing Beijing, Trump's hardball approach is doing exactly what it was designed to do: to show both allies and competitors that America holds the economic cards. The lesson is clear: strength works, and Trump's critics who predicted economic disaster from his trade policies should admit that they were wrong.
The only thing our enemies and allies respect is strength, and Trump is delivering results that speak for themselves. The politicians and pundits who've been wringing their hands about Trump's trade strategy need to acknowledge what's now obvious — he was right all along.
