Summary
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau denounced Trump’s sudden 25% tariffs, warning they threaten American jobs and will inflate consumer costs.
He revealed that Trump refuses to take his calls and sharply criticized claims linking tariffs to illegal immigration and fentanyl crossing U.S. borders.
In retaliation, Canada and Mexico imposed matching tariffs, targeting crucial American exports like auto parts, agriculture, and red-state staples like famous Kentucky bourbon.
Trudeau warned American factories may shut, citing integrated supply chains.
This is designed so billionaires can snap up assets in the cheap when the economy craters. They can hold their positions in what they currently have.
This sounds plausible. Billionaires can ride out a slump pretty easily, even if it lasts a decade, confident that they can buy low and sell when Democrats restore the economy[1].
I think the problem is that, this time, there may not be a rebound. Opportunists believe we can intelligence our way out of the extinction event we’ve created, and maybe we could have. I see no indication that we’ll collectively recognize and respond until it’s far too late. Global warming is already affecting economies, and by the time we recover from the economic devastation of Trump’s presidency, global warming may be the defining economic force.
[1] I am in no way a cheerleader for the modern (post 2k) Democratic party, but it doesn’t take much searching to find graphs that chart Republican/Democrat control against economic trends of the time. In the past 30 years or so, there’s been a strong correlation between Democratic leadership and strong economies and reduced national debt.