He doesn’t actually believe that and neither does anybody else, including Individual-1. They have to maintain that “reasoning” because that’s how they’re able to impose tariffs on their own. National security is literally defined as whatever the executive branch says it is. One more thing I hope we fix after this disaster is over.
And what Canada has to do going forward is to base all trade decisions and planning on the understanding that the US can and will abrogate any treaty or trade decision at any time based on deluded rantings of a delusional idiot, and the House and Senate will do nothing to stop him.
Despite Individual 1’s claims that the border must be sealed off because of all of the drugs being shipped across, the drug traffickers testifying in the El Chapo case say they brought drugs in via fishing boats, trains, tractor-trailers and ordinary cars that come into the country at legal ports of entry. El Chapo trial: Traffickers say drugs aren't coming into the US through open parts of the border | CNN?
Not so fast, pardner. Historically that would be the case, that the world would know we excise our tumors. But now they know the American electorate, combined with our screwy system, are capable of producing this sort of result. Why would the world have any confidence that we won’t do anything so stupid again?
All future Canadian trade decisions will have to be made with the possibility in mind that the US electorate might prefer a leader who makes insanely stupid decisions, and nothing will be done to reign him in.
Prior to Canada being declared a security threat by the US Government, pretty much all the talking heads assured us that:
Trump would not actually put tariffs against Canada
If he tried, his sane advisers would talk him out of it
If this didn’t work, the Legislative branch would not allow it
Even if it did go through, it would be quickly reversed
Well, guess what? They were wrong. The US can and does treat Canada like a security threat for purely political reasons, and no politician had the balls to do anything about it, nor will they do anything about it even now.
In future, we won’t make the same mistake. And I am telling my elected officials that.
Right. Dean said to Nixon that there was “a cancer on the presidency.” But in this case, the whole presidency itself is the cancer–not just Trump, but a populace that is stupid and/or racist enough to vote for him.
Trump’s own DEA pointed it out in its annual report last November–not just about El Chapo’s operation, but drug smuggling overall mostly happens in those ways.