CAN-USA 2025 Tariff Strife (split from various pol threads)

[Halifax Tar]

Looks like Smith is getting support from other premiers. After some reflection they'll generally come around to common sense.

Moe, Legault inch closer to Smith on energy exports, pushing back on major Trump retaliation

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has gained two allies in her push to take energy exports off the table in response to U.S. tariffs.

nationalpost.com

Funny that, eh ?

 

[Kirkhill]

The view from the West

Braid: No, I am not a traitor for saying Smith can talk to Americans

In Trump tariff dispute, Canadians are being called traitors and treasonous for any disagreement with a party line. Trump will eat us alive.

calgaryherald.com

Alberta is suspicious that Ottawa will slap an export tax on oil and gas to offset economic damage from tariffs, especially in Ontario and Quebec.

But that’s not a popular idea, even among leaders elsewhere. Quebec Premier Francois Legault said any money extracted from Alberta should be returned to Alberta.

There’s always a worry that Ottawa and Ontario are cooking up an anti-West deal. It has happened before, believe me.

But Ontario today is deeply, gravely challenged, far more than any other province.

This explains the near-panic we often sense in Premier Doug Ford. He may call an election as early as next week. On Wednesday, he mildly scolded Smith for not being quite onside.

A desperate man, with good cause.

The funny thing about Ontario is that tariffs built it. Sir John A. MacDonald's National Policy guaranteed that Ontario and Quebec would receive raw materials from the West and ship manufactured goods to the West.

Reciprocity (Canadian politics) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Tariffs and trade. Nobody should be listening to Ottawa until we have an election. They just can't be trusted to act in Canada's interest.

 

[Kirkhill]

Davos day three: Donald Trump demands increase in Nato defence spending, and sends oil price sliding – as it happened

New US president shakes up World Economic Forum with call for lower oil price, interest rate cut, increase in Nato spending, and criticised Europe

www.theguardian.com

Trump Criticizes Europe and Threatens Tariffs at World Economic Forum

President Trump doubled down on the prospect of across-the-board tariffs in a video appearance to business executives and politicians gathered in Davos, Switzerland.

www.nytimes.com

My principle take-aways for Canada:

The Green Revolution is dead. Carbon is back.
Coal is back in play.
Our oil, gas and coal aren't worth what they were yesterday.

Rare earths and electrical materials are similarly reduced in value.

We are going to have to find 5% of GDP for defence.

Good news.

It is going to be easier to find 5% of a shrinking economy.

The only way to increase our GDP is to exploit our cheap and abundant energy both by using it domestically and by shipping it abroad to places that don't have it. Places like Asia. Europe still has coal, gas and oil reserves that have not been fully exploited. And they have the technologies to exploit them cleanly and profitably.

....

I see that the Bloc leader is musing about making Quebec more self-sufficient by building greenhouses. Does he want some Carbon Dioxide for those tomatoes?