Ahead of the self-imposed August 1st deadline, U.S. President Donald Trump is now claiming there may be no deal with Canada at all:
“We don’t have a deal with Canada. Aug. 1 is going to come, and we will have most of our deals finished, if not all. We haven’t really had a lot of luck with Canada. I think Canada could be one where they’ll just pay tariffs. It’s not really a negotiation.”
Predictably, this caused some prominent influencers to default to a ‘blame Canada’ stance:
There are many untrue statements in that message, and it is important for the truth to be heard.
First, Canada and the U.S. are negotiating. Whether those negotiatons lead to a deal remains to be seen, but it is false to claim negotiations are not happening.
Second, the August 1st deadline was set by Trump, after previous Trump deadlines were unilaterally changed. There is no reason to take Trump’s deadlines seriously at this point.
Third, Prime Minister Carney is not ‘hiding’ in the North West Territories, where he hosted the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee. Ensuring good relations between Inuit & Indigenous communities and the federal government is essential to getting research projects approved and enhancing Canadian sovereignty in the North, both of which are necessary for Canada to reduce our dependence on the United States.
Fourth, Carney has not ‘ghosted’ trade negotiations with the U.S., nor should he be in Washington all the time, given that his job is to govern Canada.
In addition to noting these facts, it should also be said that the influencers who reflexively side with the Trump narrative are choosing to side with someone who regularly changes deadlines and justifications, who doesn’t understand how trade works (trade deficits are not a ‘loss’), and who does not negotiate in good faith.
Adding to the absurdity of taking Trump’s rhetoric at face value is the fact that even the trade deals he’s announced aren’t really trade deals at all. This was noted by Justin Wolfers, a professor of economics at the University of Michigan:
“The British trade deal wasn’t what they said it was, the Vietnamese won’t confirm Trump’s announcement, and the Japanese say they’re not signing a binding agreement. The White House has released the text of ZERO deals, and maybe it’s all just social media posts all the way down.”
Wolfers – citing Financial Times reporting – also noted Japan is disputing Trump’s ‘interpretation’ of their ‘deal’:
“Japanese officials said there was no written agreement with Washington — and no legally binding one would be drawn up”, and surprise surprise, they deny giving Trump $550b to arbitrarily spend however he wants.”
Many are still struggling to accept the depths of Trump’s dishonesty and unreliability. It is unsettling to realize that the U.S. President and the Administration he leads have such a ‘loose’ connection to the truth. So many choose not to accept it, and instead blame those who are targeted by Trump’s lies.
It may feel ‘safer’ to blame Prime Minister Carney and Canada for Trump’s ever-changing whims, but that doesn’t make it true. Ultimately, Trump wants to impose tariffs and is finding whatever excuse he needs to impose those tariffs. He feels unconstrained by past trade agreements – even the ones he signed – and believes he can create new deals even without buy-in from U.S. trading partners by announcing the imposition of tariffs and calling it a ‘deal.’
It should also be noted that previous second-term Trump ‘trade deals’ (truth social posts) have often included lines referencing the ability of the U.S. to change the deals at any time. So, even signing a deal leaves one with little confidence that it will be adhered to.
This is the reality of dealing with the U.S. at present. Stability is absent, making long-term planning incredibly difficult. And so, the Canadian government – like many governments around the world – is seeking to minimize the damage in the short-term while reducing dependence on the U.S. in the medium to long-term.
As this process plays out, we should remember that it is Donald Trump – not Canada, nor other nations that once trusted U.S. trade pledges – who is responsible for this unstable state of affairs.
Spencer Fernando
Image – YouTube
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