Some good ideas from Canada in response to the trade war

[Axulus]

For starters, there is the possibility, endorsed by a progressive Canadian think tank, of placing punishing export taxes on Canadian goods for which American demand is both high and inelastic—including crude oil, unalloyed aluminum, and potash, a key fertilizer ingredient.

...

Not to be outdone, the Canadian Labour Congress published its call to action last month under a forthright headline: “Cut Off U.S. Energy and Resources Now: No Electricity, No Critical Minerals, No Oil and Gas.”

“With a smile on my face,” he added in a speech on Monday: “They need to feel pain.”

...

One other possible mode of retaliation, unimaginable just a few weeks ago: intellectual property. A think tank based in Waterloo has advocated suspending U.S. patent rights. An Albertan pundit argued on Monday that by instigating a tariff war, Trump broke “the free trade agreement he signed during his first term, and we should move forward as if the agreement does not exist.” Among other things, she writes, this “frees up a lot of space in intellectual and technological property rights.” Further, “We can also disregard registered trademarks.”

What Fresh Hell Do We Have Today?

Sure, we’ve abandoned Ukraine, launched a trade war with our neighbors, and insulted close allies. But at least we’re screwing over our veterans, too.

open.substack.com

All excellent ideas, they need to follow through with this.

 

[Shadowy Man]

I saw an interview with a Canadian PM candidate who suggested 100% tariffs on Tesla cars.

 

[TomC]

I saw an interview with a Canadian PM candidate who suggested 100% tariffs on Tesla cars.

This makes great click bait. But Tesla is not important.

How about the Canadian government stops recognizing US pharma intellectual property rights. Let anyone who wants to produce and sell health products, as cheaply as possible, do it. Any product. Anywhere.
Tom

 

[hurtinbuckaroo]

I saw an interview with a Canadian PM candidate who suggested 100% tariffs on Tesla cars.

This makes great click bait. But Tesla is not important.

How about the Canadian government stops recognizing US pharma intellectual property rights. Let anyone who wants to produce and sell health products, as cheaply as possible, do it. Any product. Anywhere.
Tom

Trump would probably threaten to invade.

 

[KCFlyer]

This makes great click bait. But Tesla is not important.

Maybe it can help American's by making Tesla hurt enough that Elon has to go back to Texas to deal with his bidness and put government chainsawing on the back burner. Although I think the smartest man in the world might not care about Tesla anymore since Space X is primed to get lots of great corporate welfare.

 

[Shadowy Man]

I saw an interview with a Canadian PM candidate who suggested 100% tariffs on Tesla cars.

This makes great click bait. But Tesla is not important.

I don’t know if you watched the video but the Tesla bit was just a small part of her response.

Elon is going after a lot of stuff that is “not important” in the national budget. So what’s good for the goose…

 

[steve_bank]

CNN interview with Canadian official. Canada moving back to past relations with Europe, workng on ties with Mexico, Japan, and South Korea.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/06/politics/video/melanie-joly-canada-trump-christiane-amanpour-digvid

 

[laughing dog]

I saw an interview with a Canadian PM candidate who suggested 100% tariffs on Tesla cars.

This makes great click bait. But Tesla is not important.

It is to Trump’s bankroller which makes it important to Trump.

 

[Swammerdami]

Kudos to Canada, who are showing balls!

Trump actually imposed the whopping 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, then rescinded them a day or two later! That's not "policy" -- that's a whingeing toddler behaving erratically. He did almost the same thing a month ago: Were those tariffs in effect for a day also? Or did the ADHD crybaby switch to a different whinge before those went into effect?

BUT Canada has maintained its 25% tariffs on several U.S. goods, and will ramp these up until toddler learns a lesson. They're behaving like an adult parent trying to toilet train the bawling and incontinent little monster rather than being jerked around by each little tantrum.

And Canada's liquor stores, many of which are operated by government IIUC, continue not to offer Jack Daniels or other U.S. products. In other news, 99.8% fentanyl imports to the U.S. still do NOT come from Canada. In fact U.S. fentanyl seized by Canada's border police is in the same quantitative ballpark as Canadian fentanyl seized by U.S. border police.

It takes bravery for people to oppose this Monster, especially in the U.S. where Trump's informal "brown shirts" stand ready to literally assassinate opponents of fascism. BUT if Canada and other democratic countries act bravely and forcefully, they may be able to save Western democracy and encourage American citizens to fight against fascist takeover.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

The Liberal Party was likely to get smacked in the next election and Trump has created a wave of Canadian Pride and along with how the Conservative Party leader has a Trump-esque vibe, the Liberals are polling much better. Trump made fun of Trudeau saying he was using this to stay in power (Trudeau is being replaced this weekend), however, the reality is, Trump gave the Liberals a lifeline that seemed very unlikely two months ago. Conservative Party was looking at a clear majority in the House, now they might need a coalition to possibly not even getting the plurality!

The Liberals aren't as much taking advantage of this as they are benefiting from it because they have decided to tell Trump to bleep off.

 

[Toni]

I do not disagree that the US deserves whatever Canada decides to do to us but we have a raving lunatic in the White House plus demented Donnie. I’m seriously worried that he’ll declare war on Canada. And then the world will justifiably unite against us.

Please let cooler heads prevail

 

[jonatha]

I do not disagree that the US deserves whatever Canada decides to do to us but we have a raving lunatic in the White House plus demented Donnie. I’m seriously worried that he’ll declare war on Canada. And then the world will justifiably unite against us.

Please let cooler heads prevail

Congress has to declare war.

He might try to justify it based on all the fentanyl flooding over the border, but even then he'll need to shoehorn it into an Authorization for the Use of Military Force...

 

[Elixir]

Congress has to declare war.

Used to be the case.
Now presidents can wage war without declaring it.

 

[Toni]

I do not disagree that the US deserves whatever Canada decides to do to us but we have a raving lunatic in the White House plus demented Donnie. I’m seriously worried that he’ll declare war on Canada. And then the world will justifiably unite against us.

Please let cooler heads prevail

Congress has to declare war.

He might try to justify it based on all the fentanyl flooding over the border, but even then he'll need to shoehorn it into an Authorization for the Use of Military Force...

And Congress will stand up to Trump?

I wish I believed that

 

[laughing dog]

Perhaps the Tesla threat worked because Trump backed down on the Canadian (and Mexican) tariff increases for now.

 

[ideologyhunter]

And Canada's liquor stores, many of which are operated by government IIUC, continue not to offer Jack Daniels or other U.S. products. In other news, 99.8% fentanyl imports to the U.S. still do NOT come from Canada. In fact U.S. fentanyl seized by Canada's border police is in the same quantitative ballpark as Canadian fentanyl seized by U.S. border police.

It takes bravery for people to oppose this Monster, especially in the U.S. where Trump's informal "brown shirts" stand ready to literally assassinate opponents of fascism. BUT if Canada and other democratic countries act bravely and forcefully, they may be able to save Western democracy and encourage American citizens to fight against fascist takeover.

Yes, yes, and yes. Not only should the world call The Asshole's bluff, but his treatment of Ukraine should make it unthinkable to buy our goods while this man represents us. He said he would accomplish miracles in his first few weeks, and he has -- the Land of the Free is now hated from one end of the free world to the other. Our day as the flagship of the democracies is over.

 

[ZiprHead]

Perhaps the Tesla threat worked because Trump backed down on the Canadian (and Mexican) tariff increases for now.

And he will bring them back. Then he will stop them again.

First it was 30,000 immigrants to Guantanamo. It was really 170. Now he's shutting the whole Guantanamo migrants deal down.

He's like living with a chihuahua.

 

[BH]

I think Canada and Mexico need to develop their own nuclear weapons. Both are technically able to do it. Canada could have them in a month or two probably, Mexico a little longer. Do the North Korea gameplan. We may not stop you from coming but it won't be worth it if you do.

 

[hurtinbuckaroo]

I do not disagree that the US deserves whatever Canada decides to do to us but we have a raving lunatic in the White House plus demented Donnie. I’m seriously worried that he’ll declare war on Canada. And then the world will justifiably unite against us.

Please let cooler heads prevail

Congress has to declare war.

Sorry, having lived through the Vietnam era, two Iraq wars, and Afghanistan, I have to laugh at that. The last formal declaration of war was WWII.

 

[KCFlyer]

Perhaps the Tesla threat worked because Trump backed down on the Canadian (and Mexican) tariff increases for no

I wish he'd stick with one thing or another. It's no fun watching my retirement account sink lower and lower becasue the "tough guy" backs down all the time. Wall Street doesn't like his tariffs but if he'd just leave them in place, it would adjust sooner rather than later. But all this uncertainty...they're on...no, they're off...wait...they are back on. He's an asshole who hates to be wrong but may have bullied HIMSELF into a corner regarding tariffs.