Trump, Trudeau and Trade

by Mark Steyn
Steyn on the Oakley Show
August 23, 2018

https://www.steynonline.com/8775/trump-trudeau-and-trade

On Wednesday I checked in with the great John Oakley at Toronto's Global News Radio 640 - but he wasn't there. So the only slightly ever so marginally less great Peter Shurman was holding down the fort, and we talked about illegal immigrants north and south of the border, national leaders berating their citizens, and what Justin should wear to the Nafta signing ceremony. Click below to listen:

A few hours after the interview, it emerged that the employer of Mollie Tibbetts' killer had not been telling the truth about their "undocumented worker" acing the e-verify test. More will emerge in the days ahead, but it would baffle Marx and Engels that the pro-immigrant "left" now colludes with Big Labor in depressing workers' wages. In that sense, cultural Marxism is far more ambitious than mere old vanilla Marxism.

~For that small, brave band who prefer me in visual formats, I'll be back with Tucker Carlson live across America tonight, Thursday, at 8pm Eastern/5pm Pacific.

The Mark Steyn Club is now well into its second year, and, if you're finally getting round to maybe perhaps possibly considering becoming a member, please see here - and don't forget our special Gift Membership. As in our first year, we are grateful for the support of all our friends around the world - from London, Ontario to London, England, via Longueuil, Londonderry, and Long Beach - and look forward to welcoming many more in the months ahead.

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28 Reader Comments

PK33 • Aug 25, 2018 at 08:12

It is interesting that a lot of trouble and strife in Canada has been between or about Quebec and the RoC (Rest of Canada). Quebec has always fiercely defended their culture and has often been mocked by the RoC for it. Well now. On one hand we have a Quebecois being called a bigot, told she doesn't belong in her own country, her ancestors' country, and ushered away by the federal police force - RCMP. On the other hand we have a Quebecois politician standing up to rightfully (in my mind) condemn current politicians and their corrupt ways and to speak up for Canadians.

Perhaps all those transfer payments to Quebec will pay off in the end, when the people of Quebec force the issue of what is best for Canada.

Tom Korte • Aug 24, 2018 at 20:19

I predict that President Trump is going to continue to tighten the screws on Canada as far as trade goes. He's no doubt aware of M. Bernier's departure from the formerly conservative party and can see little if any daylight between Scheer and Trudeau on the issue. President Trump will have no qualms about leaving Canada out in the cold on NAFTA entirely. The current single partner negotiations with Mexico aren't just bluster, they're the new status quo. Until there is a change in the political landscape within Canada, such as what is being proposed by M. Bernier, there's no reason to proceed. Canada doesn't have anything the USA really needs once auto parts manufacturing capacity is brought back up domestically. If he really wants to induce a coma in Canada he could always slap a tariff on Canadian energy. If he did that you'd quickly see what a Canada without an energy sector would look like, and it wouldn't be pretty. Gerald Butts might think that'd be great but it wouldn't be a carbon free economy when people start burning furniture too keep warm. Scheer and Trudeau and Kenney are blind with corruption and have no idea just how vulnerable and weak Canada is. All they can see is a future with themselves in power while what more and more of the people want to see is a future with them out of power.
I've looked at many videos on YouTube about M. Bernier's departure, from many different sources. The comments are overwhelmingly pro-Bernier despite what the media and the Conservative Party are trying to portray. Change is coming, and it might be a rough ride but it's coming.

Ray Winchester

Tom Korte • Aug 24, 2018 at 23:01

Believe me, trump does not want hurt Canada. I actually think you know that.

PK33

Ray Winchester • Aug 25, 2018 at 08:07

Trump does not want to hurt Canada, nor Germany, nor the UK, nor Mexico....

Trump does want the best deal for Americans, full stop. If other countries do not even budge on issues he deems important to the US, like trade, he will not hesitate to inflict pain. I expect Trump would like to see a change in government in Canada and it will likely happen in 2019. As Tom says, it may be a rough ride, real change often is painful, but it is coming. Many Canadians have had enough of the SJW pap. It is proving more ridiculous by the day.

Robert Bresca • Aug 24, 2018 at 05:29

There is a common thread running through most of the Western World's political issues, especially with respect to Australia and the US. In short, the creation of a central administrating city (Canberra, Washington) was in retrospect a huge mistake. Regardless of the side shows, this needs to be reversed, in fact the creation of a central government may have been a boo boo, especially when you give them so much money. In Australia, the introduction of a GST was a HUGE error. The more money you have, the more trouble you can make. Look at Mark's current troubles, not made by some homeless guy in San Fran but from someone with long pockets.

Robert Bresca • Aug 24, 2018 at 05:03

Julie Bishop came close to snatching the Australian PM's position, however she plays the long game and the next election is lost for the Liberals so the new PM is so much dead meat. I am pretty sure you would have met Julie, Mark? What did you think of her? She seems to have a fair bit of moxie, especially judging from her boyfriend!

Perry Pattetic • Aug 23, 2018 at 22:30

Error 4, but I have the gist of it from the comments.

Ray Winchester • Aug 23, 2018 at 19:13

So Bernier is Nigel Farage.
Scheer is Threason May.
The Canadian conservatives is full of liberals.
All the parties are full of career politicians selling their grannies for a vote.
Same as in US, UK and Oz. The Canadian people must be just ad sick of it as us.
Time for a clear out.
Bernier is going to be called everything without any justification.
The people will soon get sick of it though.

Tom Korte

Ray Winchester • Aug 24, 2018 at 20:22

I just posted about this before I read your comment or I would have posted it as a response to yours. Nonetheless, you can read mine above and just insert it here in your head.

Tom Korte

Ray Winchester • Aug 24, 2018 at 20:26

You forgot to mention that Trudeau is Jeremy Corbyn.

Ray Winchester

Tom Korte • Aug 24, 2018 at 22:45

Tom, 3 days ago. It may of been fran. They typed secion. I was out with dictionary. Then my other Braincell kicked in. Section.
You are the sanity corner. Stormy on the BBC and CNN.
Tom, they had an old white contributing. But not for money.

Ray Winchester

Tom Korte • Aug 24, 2018 at 22:56

Trudeau is a plonker.
I had never heard of him. Old days one yes.
He has admitted to being a female to male transgender.
Don't think the same people that stormed a beach in normandy would be ??

Tom Korte • Aug 23, 2018 at 16:01

So it's looking like it won't really be NAFTA, it'll be SNAFTA - Southern North American Free Trade Agreement.
I'm not sure if they've included unwelcome illegal aliens as part of what's being traded freely.

Tom Korte • Aug 23, 2018 at 15:43

So for those that want the official version of the VERY Honorable M. Bernier's get lost, er.., farewell speech, here's the CTV video of him delivering it in English.
https://youtu.be/MalzT-D4ZEE
M. Bernier touches on almost all of the major issues, diversity, cultural preservation, corporate welfare, corrupt and weak politicians, tariffs, and so on. This one ten-minute speech is probably going to be seen as the turning point in Canadian politics. M. Bernier may not win, but at present it seems highly unlikely that the fake Conservative Scheer won't be winning either. I did mention in some comments earlier this week that I thought there were big changes about to happen on the Conservative side of things.
Here's an article from the Toronto Sun that apparently reveals a plan with the Conservative Party leadership to browbeat M. Bernier during this weekend's convention.
https://torontosun.com/news/national/tories-plan-to-belittle-maxime-bernier-in-meeting
Now I've little experience with political party conventions, but I'm guessing that the schedule of events and topics to be discussed is probably changing as I write this.
My initial thoughts are that M. Bernier will start his own party but that eventually Scheer will resign, hopefully retiring to his rightful place behind a dairy cow in Quebec somewhere. There's still over a year to go before the next election and that's ample time in Canadian politics to put together a leadership bid.
I want to make some hats: MB for PM

Sol Cranfill • Aug 23, 2018 at 11:48

The heart of the rot within the Republican Party is on display with this farmer-gamer Craig Lane who underwrote Tibbetts' killer's stay and let him live on his property. This is just like Paul Ryan: talk the talk, act like a heartland all-American, and sell out your country while milking the cash cow.

"What we learned in the last 24 hours is that our employee was not who he said he was," said Dane Lang, Craig's son. "And, just within the last four hours, we have come to learn that the Social Security Administration's employment verification service is not the same as E-Verify."

Craig Lang is no hayseed. He's been president of the Iowa Farm Bureau and president of the Iowa Board of Regents. This year, he ran for state agriculture secretary - calling for a comprehensive system to track employees' immigration status - like E-Verify, which he skirted.

Sol Cranfill • Aug 23, 2018 at 13:59

This is another fault line in the GOP. The Farm Bureau Board of Regents are part of the old Bush/Clinton/Obama crime syndicate. This episode is extremely instructive to those who wonder why all the big guns left and right are out to scalp this President.

Whole fortunes are on the line in this and every other beneficiary to Business As Usual.

Fran Lavery

CW • Aug 23, 2018 at 16:16

"extremely instructive" I wholeheartedly agree.

Joseph Dornisch • Aug 23, 2018 at 11:41

So, out of curiosity, what do you think would be a more acceptable rate of conviction. I think if it were less than 50% we would think our police force and judicial system was incompetent. So maybe 97% is high, would 90% also be high.

I think I agree more with your objection you frequently make as to how the government can go after you for a whole bunch of charges that have nothing to do with its initial investigation, and if you can only fend off 99% of the charges you're screwed. I imagine this someday will go something like someone runs afoul of some government entity do to their politics, so the government gets a subpoena to get your driving history from Google who maintains your whereabouts for your entire life from your use of google maps for navigation and determine that you were speeding on 10,000 separate occasions. Google also only cooperates because they also don't like your politics.. The government then prosecute you for this and demand you pay them something like 10 million dollars in fines for the speeding tickets you should have gotten plus interest over the last 30 years or go to jail.

Joseph Dornisch • Aug 23, 2018 at 13:54

So how can the DNC rely on support from those most vulnerable to this ongoing scam? They can't.

BLM was founded on the principle that the FBI, and DOJ rigged this game. Yet they are MIA when the system is feeding selective political targets to the wood chipper.

It's understandable that BLM and black heavyweights see this is retribution for years of hollow promises by their supposed advocates on the left.

But there is no rehabilitation for these agencies and their methods in the foreseeable future. Should the DEMS increase their numbers in DC... they will be forced to eat their own at these agencies.

As Charles Ortel said recently - thoughtful insiders left and right know the machinery used for this take down must be crushed and buried - or it will become SOP. BLM has the muscle to force the Democrats to throw their players at the FBI and DOJ to the wolves....

PK33 • Aug 23, 2018 at 09:10

I haven't listened yet, but I will fire it up during my therapy session later today.

For those in Canuckistan, or those watching from outside the porous Canadian borders and wondering what the deuce is going on in the Deranged Dominion and who are these people mentioned in the comments secion, Mark has an excellent interview with Maxime Bernier, while Bernier was running for Conservative Party of Canada leadership. You can see the interview here:
https://www.steynonline.com/7726/mad-max-en-francais

Mark also interviewed Lisa Raitt, who is now the deputy leader for the CPC/official opposition. Like the government in power, Raitt favours increased immigration as her constituency is comprised of a large number of immigrants and of course the first goal of every pol is to get elected, the second goal being to get re-elected. Her interview is here:
https://www.steynonline.com/7727/the-safe-harbour

It is telling that Steyn didn't get around to interviewing the person who actually won the CPC leadership, Andrew Scheer, because he won by being everyone's "second choice" and will probably be the same in the next election. He signed up a large number of CPC members from Canada's Supply Management cartel in Quebec, who have no intention of voting Conservative and wanted to help their Liberal benefactors along to another win in 2019 by electing a dud of a CPC leader. JMHO of course, I do not speak for Steyn.

Scheer promised the Supply Management lobby that he would keep the system in place, even though it costs Canadians hundreds of dollars more per year than it should, to buy dairy, poultry and eggs at artificially-inflated prices. Bernier wanted to remove the Supply Management system and he lives in a riding with a large number of Supply-Managed farmers, but he stood on the principle that it was not fair to Canadians, especially the poorest who pay a larger percentage of their income for said staples. At the time of the leadership race, the trade war with Trump wasn't yet on but Trump has fixated on Supply Management in Canada as unfair to the US yet Canada won't budge on it. Maybe because the Agriculture Minister's chief of staff, Mary Jean McFall, is known as the Burnbrae Farms heiress and owns $140 million in egg quota. That's just the quota. No conflict of interest there? Canada has a swamp too.

Fran Lavery

PK33 • Aug 23, 2018 at 10:24

Thanks, PK! This is helpful. I'm constantly wondering who's on first across our northern border.

Chris Hall

PK33 • Aug 23, 2018 at 11:56

I second the recommendation of the interview with "Mad Max". He was easily the most sane of the contenders and for a long time was leading in the convention, right up until Scheer stole it at the end. Maybe Maxime should change his name to Winston.

I understand there are even bigger rumblings now going on in the Second Dominion. It appears that Mark will be able to make even more jokes about the short half-life of Australian PMs.

Chris Hall

PK33 • Aug 23, 2018 at 13:29

Update: Max just quit the CPCs. Looks like we might see Reform Party II (Electric Bugaloo), with conservatives out in the wilderness for another decade. Oh joy.

PK33

Chris Hall • Aug 23, 2018 at 13:42

I partly blame Kevin O'Leary for Bernier's loss, as well as Scheer's back room sellout. O'Leary captivated many supporters who would probably have been in Camp Bernier if O'Leary was not in the race. Near the end O'Leary dropped out and many people still sent in ballots with O'Leary as their first choice. O'Leary did endorse Bernier upon exit and after the vote O'Leary wanted a recount because a significant number of members, including a former cabinet minister, did not receive their ballots until the 11th hour, but the CPC would not oblige.

Starting with a corrupt process does not bode well.

PK33

Chris Hall • Aug 23, 2018 at 13:45

YESSSSS!!!

I will donate and even run as a candidate, if one is needed. We have two homes, one city, one country, so either riding will do.

Fran Lavery

Chris Hall • Aug 23, 2018 at 16:02

He struck me as sane, as well. I saw these two interviews (Bernier and Raitt) when Mark first posted them a year ago this past spring, but they were much more meaningful to me this time around after reading a year's worth of comments from fellow Canadian clubbers.

Tom Korte

Fran Lavery • Aug 23, 2018 at 17:12

Well Fran, I can tell you it's the Canadian people who have been kept off the playing field for the last few decades. The same kind of thing that was going on in the US and that President Trump is working to fix.
In Canada they have a system called 'Transfer Payments'. This is basically the Federal Government playing Robbing Hood to buy itself votes by transferring wealth from enterprising and hard working provinces to deadbeat ones. Most of the money flows into Quebec and Ontario because they have the majority of the electorate. However, a lot of money consistently flows to the Eastern Seaboard provinces ("The Matitimes" in Canadain vernacular) and I believe that it's because there are a few old families there that have immense fortunes and consequently wield pretty much all of the political power in their regions. The Irvings are an example of this, owning so much f the large industry and resources that they basically run the place. Another rich family that's well connected is the McCains, with the current Finance Minister being married to one of the family members; but I'm sure there's no conflict.
So the Western province of Alberta generates a disproportionate amount of GDP because it's an energy powerhouse, yet the money is siphoned off to support the East. A recent pipeline project, Energy East, was proposed to carry discounted Canadian crude to a refinery in an Eastern province and that refinery just happened to be owned by the Irving family. The project was scuttled by Quebec though and that's probably because they couldn't skim enough cash from the deal so they wouldn't let it go ahead. The Irving family also controls most if not all of the forestry industry, and their shipyards are constantly given government work at prices well above market value. They control the industry so they get the government money then they support the corrupt politicians that enrich them and the circle goes round.
The corruption goes on and on and on.

Fran Lavery

Tom Korte • Aug 23, 2018 at 20:14

Well, this is something that i'll have to read over again, Tom. The puzzle pieces are falling into place. This is what interested me in Bernier: it seems like he gets it that the big companies can't always get the support through the taxes from the small businesses. I know first hand what it feels like when the people in politics who you put your trust in aren't there for you in the tough times. The reality for us was that we lost nearly all of our wealth in the financial collapse of '08. It was hard to watch as Bush bailed out big banks but nobody came to our door to see how they could be of assistance. We supported a web of other businesses in town and they supported us. They depended on banks and the banks just weren't lending. We had to rebuild our business from square one and believe me, in New Mexico, that is not an easy thing to do. This state is a wealth drainer if you aren't on the ball.