Threats by incoming US President Donald Trump to use “economic power” against Canada and its industries are raising alarm and disbelief.
Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, Trump said he could use economic leverage to push Canada toward becoming part of the United States, while also again raising trade deficit issues and saying the United States does not need to buy Canadian timber, dairy or products. Cars.
Flavio Volpe, president of the Auto Parts Manufacturers Association, said Trump’s comments show he does not understand how interconnected auto trade is between Canada and the United States.
Trump threatened to impose 25% tariffs on goods coming from Canada and Mexico, due to border security concerns.
Volpe said the threat was crazy and would lead to immediate opposition from US automakers and their shareholders through court action and other means.
Volpe said Trump’s broader comments about Canada becoming part of the United States, along with his comments about seizing the Panama Canal and Greenland, show he wants to sow chaos.
“I mean what are we talking about?” Volpe said.
He said the threats raise issues bigger than the Canadian parts sector and the auto sector itself.
“This is much larger than a tool maker in Windsor or a molded plastics supplier in Markham,” Volpe said.
“Some men like to watch the world burn, and I think he’s one of them.”
Trump on Tuesday described the US trade deficit with Canada as a boost, a comment he has made before.
“We don’t need anything they have,” he said.
Get daily national news
Get the day’s top political, economic and current affairs news, headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
“We have more than they have.”
Duane Pratt, a political scientist at Mount Royal University, said Trump’s comments show he doesn’t understand trade.
“(Trump) sees it as a balance sheet. If they don’t need Canadian goods, why do they keep buying Canadian goods? “It’s not a subsidy,” Pratt said.
“Why do Americans buy so many hundreds of billions of dollars worth of Canadian products? Because the product is good, or the price is good, or a combination of the two.”
Finn Hampson, a professor of international affairs at Carleton University and co-chair of the expert group on Canada-US relations, said Canada’s best strategy for now is to take a “wait and see” approach publicly, while avoiding any threats of retaliation.
Canada benefits when it stays under the radar, he said.
“That’s something we weren’t good at; “It doesn’t live up to the taste, tempting as it is,” Hampson said.
“When you’re the smaller party, you don’t make threats, which in the first place won’t be credible because the big guy can trample on you like a mess. So we have to be smarter, we have to be smarter, and our prime minister has to keep his mouth shut.” “.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded to Trump’s comments on Tuesday by saying, “There’s not much of a chance in hell that Canada will become part of the United States.”
“Workers and communities in both our countries benefit from us being each other’s largest trade and security partner,” Trudeau added in a social media post.
Even as he advised caution for now, Hampson said Canada should remain prepared to respond with targeted measures of its own should Trump not shift from his current rhetoric once in office. That might mean responding by imposing tariffs and bans on products like California wine or Tennessee whiskey, Hampson suggested.
The federal government could also tax digital services that Canadians frequently use like Netflix, Amazon or Uber, or go after the US tourism sector by taxing those who vacation in sunny destinations like Florida or California during the winter months.
“They’re going to take notice, especially in Trump’s home state, where Canadians are major contributors to the local economy,” Hampson said.
& Edition 2025 The Canadian Press
