02.03.2025 04:52 PM

Five quick points

Five things:

1. We still need to continue to expand trade with other countries the European Union.

2. Taking a Buy Canadian approach is still smart

3. Stopping fentanyl is always worthwhile – but we only account for .2 per cent.  This was always about something else.

4. We’ve seen the true colors of the US – we can’t let our guard down again.

5. Trudeau did a good job. Good way to end his tenure.

 

21 Comments

  1. Gilbert says:

    We need to end inter-provicial trade barriers as soon as possible.

  2. St Hubert says:

    Read today that many Canadians were stocking up at the LCBO and other liqour stores.

    It reminds me of a pressing question for our time: why should those who are otherwise kicked around within Canada now stand together against an external threat?

    If this isn’t handled well, I could see Alberta as the 51st state by choice.

    • St-Hubert,

      And I will be the first one to heartily wave them goodbye and wish them the best of luck under the Trump autocracy. Smith should fit in just nicely.

      Vive le Canada!

    • Sean says:

      Partition Alberta. Same as Quebec. The only reason Alberta exists is because the rest of Canada says it does.

      • Winker+dinkson says:

        Alberta did what it did because it knows that when push comes to shove the rest of Eastern Canada will happily sell it out. Ontario and Quebec will not sabotage their energy to punish Trump when the good old oil and Gas is there to beat on.

        • WD,

          Firstly, welcome as a member of our club. I can’t stand Smith but cutoff has to mean everything: oil, gas, ELECTRICITY, HYDRO and nuclear power. If the feds try to limit it to just oil and gas, there is no way in hell that I will support that. Everyone, everywhere, across Canada has to suffer roughly the same pain. No break for any region, province or territory.

      • Sean,

        You can’t partition any geographic and legal entity because that is a definite precursor to a full-fledged civil war in that jurisdiction. Nothing is worth that in this federation. So, if Quebec goes, she goes with her borders—Ditto for Alberta or anywhere else.

        There’s a reason why Canada is the only major western democracy who has never had a civil war. We are too smart to light the match and then toss it into the gunpowder pile. Put another way, far more evolved as a species than people in most other nations. Blood will never flow over mere borders if or when push comes to shove.

  3. And the question of the hour for Warren is: why did Trump “delay”, read choke? Is it the Business Lobby, the spooked stock market or something else? Only weak people choke, or so I have been told by a not-so-reliable source.

    • Martin Dixon says:

      Respectfully, Ronald, the stock market wasn’t really spooked, at least yet. Most of them dropped to where they were the day after inauguration day. Anyone who thinks they were spooked have forgotten:

      1.  October 19, 1987 Black Monday 20.47
      2.  March 16, 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic 11.98
      3.  March 12, 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic 9.51
      4.  October 15, 2008 Global Financial Crisis 9.03
      5.  December 1, 2008 Global Financial Crisis 8.93
      6.  September 29, 2008 Global Financial Crisis 8.79
      7.  October 26, 1987 Black Monday 2.0 8.28
      8.  October 9, 2008 Global Financial Crisis 7.62
      9.  March 9, 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic 7.6
      10.  October 27, 1997 Asian Financial Crisis 6.87

      • Warren says:

        They dropped. Then Mexico announced a pause and they recovered.

        • Martin Dixon says:

          I understand that. I am paying CLOSE attention. Believe me. All I am saying is that at their low yesterday they were down to what they were on the morning of inauguration day. They dropped 2.7%. If someone would have gone to sleep on January 22nd and woke up 12 days later, their portfolio would not have moved and they would have had to check the news to see what happened.

  4. Sean says:

    I think the whole thing is just a ruse to dip the stock market and time up the correction for Trump and his friends to make a killing. Every move he makes is about his own profit and his friend’s profit. Lets not kid ourselves that any of this is about “issues”. Trump doesn’t know about issues, he doesn’t care about issues. His entire political career is just a filthy conveyor belt of grift.

    • Sean,

      Trump can’t prop up markets so Biden shifted that responsibility to The Federal Reserve. Legislation prohibited The Fed Trading Desk from buying stocks so Biden by executive order gave them a pass. In point of fact, had The Fed not intervened when there were no other major stock buyers on at least a handful of occasions, the financial system would have completely collapsed. It’s exactly the same with Treasuries: on numerous recent occasions, The Fed was the only buyer of that government paper.

  5. Citizen, Interrupted says:

    Trudeau didn’t do a good job.

    1. The government clearly had no plan to deal with the well-publicized threat. 17 Dec was their first action on the file.
    2. Mexico had a deal sooner today than Canada. How is it that the country with an actual border problem with the US can get SecState on the phone to work out a deal before we can?
    3. The government has no message for how this storm broke. Did Trump refuse to articulate his demands? Were they too much? Did he state them and then renege? Where was the joint press conference last month where Joly and Rubio came out all smiles saying they had a joint plan for the border?

    This government has failed, failed, failed at diplomacy.

    Yes, Trump is terrible. But the fact that there were deals today clearly indicates that a deal was always possible.

  6. Curious V says:

    Warren’s exactly right – no matter what happens going forward with regards to the tariffs, we have to diversify our trading partners with a laser focus on the EU

  7. Gilbert says:

    Is it possible that PM Trudeau wanted the conflict with the USA? Is it not a good way for him to increase his popularity and gain the support of those who don’t like President Trump? Will they declare a national emergency, send out beautiful cheques, strike a deal with the NDP and delay the next election? Time will tell.

    • Martin+Dixon says:

      Of course. I said on this site that it was ironic that Trudeau was at least one Canadian that was hoping for a T win. And, yes, this could be an opportunity for them to push the election off until 2026.

      • Martin,

        My view is that this would backfire on the Liberals big time. The Liberals are going up partly because Trudeau is a time-limited lame duck but mostly because our government is fighting back. However, a leadership race is on with two debates coming. This isn’t 1979 where people were literally begging Trudeau to come back. That definitely won’t happen with Justin. The leadership candidates won’t suddenly take a pass just because Trudeau might stick around after all.

        • Martin Dixon says:

          Ronald, I am not saying Trudeau will come back but that an unelected Carney will use the T fight to declare an emergency and put the election off. That will backfire too. Trudeau coming back wouldn’t just backfire-it would be the death of the party.

  8. Douglas+W says:

    Trump loves distractions.
    Gaza was a doozy.
    What’s next?

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