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Canada and Mexico haven’t really given Trump anything. These “concessions” are pretty much all things already negotiated during the Biden administration Trump just needed a win so they “gave” him one because he couldn’t actually go through with the tarrifs without crashing the stock market which would’ve pissed off a lot of his friends
That is really completely irrelevant. It’s a win to his voters (and likely to him), and worse it legitimises the negotiation tactic. If Trump threatens Greenland with a potential military invasion, the only correct negotiation tactic is to expel US soldiers from Greenland/Denmark. Why the heck would Greenland host US military when this might be an invasion force?
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There is no possible world where Canada fights a trade war with the US and has a complete and total victory where Trump admits utter defeat. That’s just fantasy. In international political disputes people are always given the chance to save face – that’s just how shit works. The “what about a month from now” argument would also always be true. Even if he announced a permanent end to tariffs he could still announce tariffs tomorrow.
Trump stared down Canada and Mexico and lost. He caved. It was obvious that he was caving when the White House started softening their messaging midday and saying that everything was just a big misunderstanding. The only concession he got was the ability to save face. Mexico re-announced an already in-place commitment. Canada announced some symbolic nonsense. That $1.3B in your original comment was announced more than a month before Trump took office.
He already has Fox News. We don’t need to help polish his losses into victories too.
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Define “win a trade war.” If Trump’s definition is ‘Canada becomes non-viable as a country and agrees to become a cherished 51st state,’ then the US can’t win a trade war either. The US has a much larger economy and can inflict more damage on Canada, but the US still can’t “win” in the extreme way you’re talking about. ‘No one wins and everyone suffers’ is basically a defining characteristic of trade wars.
Just in the auto industry, half a million Canadians would lose their jobs. It’s easy to say that you shouldn’t “concede” symbolism when you’re not responsible for people’s well-being. Again, there was always going to be a face-saving gesture. Your expectation that there wouldn’t be is unrealistic. Agreeing to some border theatre nonsense (to help solve imaginary problems!) that Canada would’ve done anyway had someone just asked nicely is not a big deal. Canada didn’t need an economic threat to… join a task force that was a Canadian proposal to begin with. The only reason that didn’t already exist is because ~0% of the fentanyl getting into the US is coming from Canada.
Well this is always the case everywhere. But 99.9999999% of the time, you don’t have to worry about the US reneging on its end of the deal on a whim. Every country knows that the other country could announce tariffs any time. But they typically have reasonable assurances that they won’t. Trump offers no such assurances beyond “I have altered the deal. Pray I do not alter it further.”
And?
Canada and Mexico have no control over this.
“We’re entering into a trade war because you might in the future go back on not having a trade war and start a trade war!”
And you’re talking about this like there are no costs to Trump or the US for doing this. There are. He blinked because it was going to cost him. As much as he can say, ‘this is a necessary sacrifice,’ he’s not personally willing to sacrifice a goddamn thing. Those costs will increase over time and skyrocket as we approach midterms.
But it was announced and formed based on Trump talking points after the 2024 election.
Yes, they said “this fucking moron keeps talking about imaginary border shit. Let’s just pass this and hopefully it shuts him up.”
But that would’ve happened even if he didn’t sign the tariff order. You’re attributing it to Trump signing the tariff order and saying that Canada has just conceded it. That’s not true.
Sorry but your take is entirely obtuse and ridiculous. Also, you used the word that just makes me want to dismiss everything after it, but I digress.
- This is a country that functions well largely due to well crafted and POLITE diplomacy. They very well understand the “what” of the threat here, but also the nature of “who” is making it.
- If anyone is a “cuck”, it’s Trump hands down. Proven time and time again. He throws tantrums like a child, and backs down IMMEDIATELY because that’s all he knows how to do. He’s a doddering old man with dementia, and an enclave of Wormtongue’s pulling the actual strings. Look at what happened with these bullshit tarrifs. Look back in history and see how many times this dipshit embarrasses himself with threats that have NEVER come to fruition.
- Canada and Mexico literally replied to Trump as if what they are doing is new in response to his threats. It is not. It literally what they agreed to 6 months ago with Biden. They know all they have to do is ACT like Trump made a big boy move, and keep doing the same thing.
- While all of this bullshitting is happening, Denmark, Canada, Mexico, UK, and literally everyone else who Trump keeps threatening are on the phone with each other like High School kids talking about a response if Trump tries something. You now have a bunch of formerly friendly allies against the US n a new coalition.
- Trump won’t do shit because he has no concept of how. This is proven. He makes threats he never follows through on to seem tough, and then does nothing. EVERYONE KNOWS THIS.
So while he’s out here chomping at the bit for this and that, we have a newly aligned group of nations taking their time to figure out what they want to do. That’s it. They’ll win this, and I root for them. Trump won’t engage the military, he’ll kick and scream and wine and then blame somebody else for the fallout. That’s literally all he knows how to do.
As far as his attacks on the US, that’s because he is an abuser and an opportunist. Abusers hit the most vulnerable people available, and have no recourse. Opportunists get in and out for an affect before they are found out, like cowards. Rapists are opportunists, for example.
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I’m not dogging you here, but you’re basically succumbing to “forceful language needs a forceful reaction”. Simply not true.
The US will get left behind while this lazy piece of shit just keeps talking and doing nothing. That’s it.
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No, these countries are actually intelligent, and are doing more than just shouting back at the absolutely mindless void that is the Trump administration. Stalling for time, figuring out an actual response, and delivering alternatives is a thoughtful process. Yelling back at Trump is just inviting more bullshit which they don’t want to deal with.
Fact of the matter is that the US Military will refuse to start WW3 and alienate the few allies it has left. It’s sandwiched between Canada and Mexico, it’s closest allies which Trump wants to alienate hold the Atlantic cross, and nobody in the Pacific gap will work productively with him to allow the grab of Greenland. If he even starts a military incursion, the US is fucked. He doesn’t know this, but they do.
As Trudeau said “Good luck figuring out who provides US with their most needed materials”.
Chill the fuck out.
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You’re confusing all kinds of different things here. The original angle was Greenland. They are stalling to find out who will respond if the US tries an incursion. It’s that simple. It shuts Trump up, and they know he won’t do anything without starting a war.
The US already has a large base in Greenland and if the US actually sent in marines to conquer Greenland there’s fuck all Greenland could do about it with such short notice. This measure may just make the dumb orange man happy and it gives Denmark time to assemble an actual multilateral response (France is already on board but that’s not enough).
I don’t know why you’d consider getting another country to spend a lot of money in your country to be bending the knee. These US soldiers will have to follow the local laws (or cause a massive disruption) just like those already there and the extended military presence won’t significantly impact the ability for Greenland to resist.
Trump lost the tariff exchange. Canada said “We’ll appoint a border czar sure”, Mexico got a lot of border funding they wanted anyways… and Greenland is in a pretty impossible situation but managed to stall any disaster.
So now we’re looking at Greenland and Panama turning into Trump’s Saarland and Rhineland.
Fuck sake.
