Dem
47
GOP
53
Historically, Canadian politicians all tried to emphasize how well they got along with the U.S. president. Being buddy-buddy with POTUS was seen by the voters as a huge plus, given how dependent Canada is on the U.S. for defense, trade, and so many other things.
Now, the script has completely flipped. The Liberal Party candidate for prime minister, Mark Carney, is talking about how he will Trump-proof Canada, to make it less dependent on the U.S. and less likely to be taken over as the 51st state. Campaigning on how much you hate the U.S. president and what you will do to keep him at arm's length is unheard of. And if this is how it is going in Canada, America's long-time closest ally, imagine how elections in Denmark or France are going to go. Hating America is going to be a winning position everywhere.
One thing Carney wants to do is beef up Canada's defense, especially in the North, to deter Chinese and Russian over-the-pole incursions. He also wants to break down trade barriers between the provinces, to encourage more interprovincial trade to make up for lost trade with the U.S. Another point is providing support for Canada's farmers, many of whom exported their crops to the U.S. with no tariffs under the USMCA and now face tariffs that seem to change every day.
Another key point in Carney's program is enhancing trade relationships with the E.U. and China, to replace trade with the U.S. He is also eyeing trade with South America and other Asian countries. Once those relationships have been established, they may not be easy to undo.
Carney is even popular in Quebec, despite his French being kind of shaky and his knowledge of the province being very rudimentary. He grew up in Alberta, where French is about as common as it is in Alberta's neighbor to the south, Montana. Despite these things, he and his party now have huge leads in Quebec. Even the separatists are warming to Carney. They reason that the French language and culture have a better chance of surviving in one of ten provinces rather than in one of 51 states.
Carney's main opponent, Pierre Poilievre, is stuck. His schtick is that he gets along great with Trump and would work well with him. That is so 20th century now. Voters don't want to work with Trump. They hate him and want to reduce contact with the U.S. Peepee, as he is known, has a Texas-size problem—OK, a Quebec-size problem. (V)