This past Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada announced that his country was now in a trade war with the United States.
This announcement was in response to President Donald Trump announcing $20 billion in tariffs on Canadian goods imported into the United States. One of the Canadian goods targeted for tariffs is alcohol. Consumers of Labatt Beer and Crown Royal Whiskey had better stock up.
According to USA Facts, Canada is the second largest trade partner of the United States. The United States imports annually 382 billion dollars in goods from Canada and exports $334 billion in goods. We in Michigan will suffer in particular, as Michigan is the state which conducts the most trade with Canada. Statistics Canada reports that Michigan imports annually $39 to $50 billion in goods from Canada and exports $21 to $27 billion in goods.
Officials from the United States and Canada are pointing the finger at each other (insisting the other had changed the terms at the last minute). But what is not in dispute is that the United States, specifically President Trump, initiated the trade war. Carney has vowed to match U.S. tariffs dollar for dollar. With all of this revenue (and employment) at stake, the trade war with Canada is clearly a lose-lose endeavor.
The main dispute reported at the center of the breakdown in trade talks is specific to the French speaking province of Quebec. U.S. trade negotiators were insisting Canada lift the requirement of mandating goods to include directions and contents in French as well as English. But Canada is officially bi-lingual per its Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It’s hardly reasonable of Trump to request Canada to compromise its own sovereignty.
Trump betrays ignorance of Canada’s history and identity. It’s no secret that Quebec nationalism is a reality in Canada (which has posed a separatist threat for generations). Making formal bi-lingualism is essential to Canadian unity. Indeed, bi-lingualism may not itself be adequate to ensure the unity of Canada, as the separatist Parti Quebecois is surging in the polls. Political elements in Quebec go so far as to demand distinct constitutional status for the French speaking province. It remains elusive and its absence keeps separatist forces vibrant.
PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon insists he would not hold a sovereignty referendum as long as Trump is president if he were to become Quebec premier in the coming year. But were the United States to disregard Canada’s language laws, Quebec would move in the direction of sovereignty regardless of Plamondon, which would in turn create problems for the United States as well as Canada.
Premier Christine Frechette of Quebec isn’t a separatist. But she subscribes to Quebec nationalism. And she has weighed in on the issue, insisting U.S. infringement on Canada’s language laws is unacceptable. Indeed, just as a potential Plamondon government in Quebec would be unable to stem the separatist tide were the language laws annulled, so too would the Frechette government be unable to stem the tide.
Concerns over Quebec are not the entire dispute. Trump insists on a laughable clause that Canada is to not enter into trade agreements with other nations absent U.S. consent. This is consistent with Trump’s obsession with making Canada our 51st state. He asserts that Canada wants to reap the benefits of being a state without being an actual state. Truth be told, Canada is most content with its independence (and national health care). Canada has no interest in formal union with the United States.
But at the heart of the dispute are Quebec and Canada’s language laws. These laws don’t infringe on the United States. Indeed, these laws are key to guarantee the unity of Canada, which is in the interest of the United States. Trump should abandon what is just another reckless trade war. Forcing Canada into an adversarial position with the United States is an affront to sensible diplomacy.
John O’Neill of Allen Park writes a twice weekly political column.
John O’Neill