Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney came to power promising to stand firm against the United States. But as a fresh tariff threat from Donald Trump looms, critics are beginning to question whether his tough talk is fading into quiet concessions.

 

Trump’s latest salvo came in the form of a letter threatening to slap a 35% tariff on Canadian goods starting August 1—a surprising move as Canadian and American negotiators work urgently toward a new trade agreement. The timing raised eyebrows in both countries, especially after Canada recently made what many saw as a significant concession: backing down on its planned Digital Services Tax (DST) targeting large tech companies after threats from the White House to shut down negotiations entirely.

 

That retreat spurred criticism in Canada. “Maybe Prime Minister Mark Carney's elbows were getting tired,” wrote commentator Robyn Urback, mocking the hockey metaphor Carney had used on the campaign trail, when he pledged to keep his “elbows up” and confront U.S. pressure head-on. She described Canada’s back-and-forth strategy as a “chicken dance.”

 

The criticism hasn’t stopped there. Blayne Haggart, a political science professor at Brock University, wrote in The Globe and Mail that Carney’s approach, especially his push for a comprehensive trade and security agreement, “makes a lick of sense.” On the DST retreat, Haggart concluded it had achieved “less than nothing.”

 

Still, Carney’s government appears undeterred, and many Canadians remain cautiously supportive. Roland Paris, a former adviser on U.S.-Canada relations, told the BBC, “Much will depend on the final agreement,” adding, “If, in the end, Carney appears to have capitulated to Trump and we're left with a bad deal, he will pay a political price at home.”

 

This isn’t the first time Canada has sought to placate the Trump administration. Earlier this year, the Carney government pledged C$1.3 billion to bolster border security and appointed a “fentanyl czar” in response to U.S. claims the drug was flowing north to south. Yet even with these moves, Trump again referenced the drug in his latest tariff letter.

 

Carney’s critics point to another missed opportunity for pushback: when Trump doubled tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium last month, the Prime Minister declined to retaliate. His response to the new 35% threat has also been measured. “Throughout the current trade negotiations with the United States, the Canadian government has steadfastly defended our workers and businesses,” Carney said in a written statement, reaffirming his commitment to talks with a revised deadline now set for August 1.

 

Fortunately for Canada, the 35% tariff would not apply—yet—to goods covered under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which protects a majority of cross-border trade. Still, the threat underscores the volatility of Trump’s approach. The former president has issued similar letters to over 20 countries as part of his broader plan to renegotiate U.S. trade partnerships.

 

In Canada, opposition parties have rallied around a shared resistance to Trump’s tactics. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre vowed to “secure the best deal for Canada,” while British Columbia Premier David Eby called Trump’s latest message “one more reminder of why Canadians need to come together.”

 

Analysts note that Canada, despite its smaller economy, has leverage. Fen Hampson, a Carleton University professor of international affairs, noted that “it is American consumers who are going to pay the tariffs, not us.” Many U.S. manufacturers rely on Canadian inputs, especially in industries such as steel and aluminium, which are already facing a steep 50% tariff.

 

“You can't judge the outcome of negotiations by the last move or the concession that's made,” Hampson added. “You can only judge it by its outcome.”

Carney, meanwhile, has made efforts to diversify Canada’s trade ties, signing an arms deal with the European Union and pushing to eliminate internal trade barriers. Pressed on Friday about Trump’s escalating threats, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly was terse. “We do not negotiate in public,” she said, firmly denying that the government was caving. “We're dealing with a very unpredictable US administration,” she added, “and we're not the only ones.”

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from BBC  2025-07-14

 

 

How can you negotiate with someone who doesn't know how tariffs work and cannot remember what he said yesterday?

Hilarious.

Canada has been very quietly renegotiating deals with the EU, China, and multiple other nations. They've already replaced buyers for their steel, for their highly superior lumber, and for their petro products, so no worries

Canada will become great while America continues to become a diminished nation under the circus clown, with limited access to the goods they need. And America richly deserves that.

 

Trumps plan to make America great again has instead made Canada stronger, more independent, and more competitive than ever before. While

American companies are struggling with higher costs and disrupted supply chains, Canadian companies are accessing new markets, forming new partnerships, 

and building new capabilities that will serve them for generations. This is where the story takes an even more dramatic turn because what happened next proved 

that Canada's transformation wasn't just about economics, it was about something far more fundamental, it was about respect, dignity and the right of sovereign nations 

to determine their own destiny. 

 

When Trump realized that his tariff strategy have backfired spectacularly he did what he always did when faced with failure, he doubled down, instead of acknowledging 

that his approach had been counterproductive, he threatened even more aggressive measures, he talked about 75% tariffs, about complete trade cutoffs, about economic warfaret hat would force Canada to its knees. But this time something was different, this time Canada wasn't afraid, the reality is more devastating than anyone in Washington wants to admit while Trump celebrates his supposed tariff victories, the true cost of his economic warfare is becoming impossible to ignore. American families are paying the price quite literally as companies like Walmart, Amazon and Subaru have increased costs and passed them onto consumers.

 

But here's what makes this story truly remarkable, Canada isn't just weathering the storm anymore, they're thriving in spite of it. Mark Carney's strategic pivot away from American dependency 

has created something unprecedented, a blueprint for economic independence that other nations are now studying carefully, the quiet revolution that began with rejecting American steel, 

has evolved into a comprehensive realignment of global partnerships. 

 

 

Carney is a planner.

 

He won't shout about what he is doing or going to do.  You'll see it in the fullness of time, but Canada will be the winner in this.

 

Anyone who thinks Carney isn't talking to Ursula Von Der Leyen and Claudia Sheinbaum, is living in a dream.  That doesn't mean they'll all take the same approach, but I hope they do.  Mexico is the one with the bigger problem.

53 minutes ago, JBChiangRai said:

Carney is a planner.

 

He won't shout about what he is doing or going to do.  You'll see it in the fullness of time, but Canada will be the winner in this.

 

Anyone who thinks Carney isn't talking to Ursula Von Der Leyen and Claudia Sheinbaum, is living in a dream.  That doesn't mean they'll all take the same approach, but I hope they do.  Mexico is the one with the bigger problem.

Carney is well educated with Master and doctorate in economics and experiences as an investment banker and Governorship in Bank of Canada. He is strategic in his decision making. Less said of Trump's education and failed businesses the better. Carney decision making process is based on consensus while Trump is a solipsist with him as the only point of reference in making decision. Trump is driving US economic to the abyss.

 

 

Would that make him a CACO?

17 minutes ago, Will B Good said:

 

 

Would that make him a CACO?

You haven’t seen his cards yet (to use a Trump expression)

1 hour ago, Paul Henry said:

How can you negotiate with someone who doesn't know how tariffs work and cannot remember what he said yesterday?

Yes indeed, he appears not to have changed since he was governor of the Bank of England.

2 hours ago, Paul Henry said:

How can you negotiate with someone who doesn't know how tariffs work and cannot remember what he said yesterday?

He does know that tariff is the most beautiful word in the dictionary. Surely that counts for something? Perhaps stupidity or low IQ?

7 hours ago, Social Media said:

“You can't judge the outcome of negotiations by the last move or the concession that's made,”

That's a problem with Trump. There is only one outcome, Trump makes NO concessions, moves "the goal posts", and retaliates with childish name calling and denergate Canada's sovereignty (still calling for Canada to become part of the US).

1 hour ago, Thingamabob said:

Yes indeed, he appears not to have changed since he was governor of the Bank of England.

Thankfully he’s Canada’s problem now but they knew that they were voting for Trudeau 2.0 

3 hours ago, JBChiangRai said:

Carney is a planner.

 

He won't shout about what he is doing or going to do.  You'll see it in the fullness of time, but Canada will be the winner in this.

 

Anyone who thinks Carney isn't talking to Ursula Von Der Leyen and Claudia Sheinbaum, is living in a dream.  That doesn't mean they'll all take the same approach, but I hope they do.  Mexico is the one with the bigger problem.

From what I can gather Carney is a very very  rich former Merchant Banker of dubios character and I think that he thought he could out-smart Trump but Trump holds all the cards.

4 hours ago, JBChiangRai said:

Carney is a planner.

 

He won't shout about what he is doing or going to do.  You'll see it in the fullness of time, but Canada will be the winner in this.

 

Anyone who thinks Carney isn't talking to Ursula Von Der Leyen and Claudia Sheinbaum, is living in a dream.  That doesn't mean they'll all take the same approach, but I hope they do.  Mexico is the one with the bigger problem.

Absolutely correct, Carney has 65 IQ points on Trump no doubt, and he is already changing trading partners, and factoring America out of the equation, which supposedly was the exact opposite of what Trump was planning for.

 

Again, little Don got trumped. Donald Trump is on a daily basis displaying the art of making America less relevant. 

43 minutes ago, wavodavo said:

From what I can gather Carney is a very very  rich former Merchant Banker of dubios character and I think that he thought he could out-smart Trump but Trump holds all the cards.

Carney has impeccable character, he used to be the Governor of the Bank of England.

 

Regarding Trump holding all the cards, he has shown his hand.

 

With all due respect, Mark Carney hasn’t shown his cards yet, he’s still dealing his hand in the background with America’s previous trading partners.

 

IMHO, this is the calm before the storm.

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

Absolutely correct, Carney has 65 IQ points on Trump no doubt, and he is already changing trading partners, and factoring America out of the equation, which supposedly was the exact opposite of what Trump was planning for.

 

Again, little Don got trumped. Donald Trump is on a daily basis displaying the art of making America less relevant. 

A classic post which will age like a crack head street sleeper. I wonder, in the 10 years of your hateful anti Trump rants, have you ever one single time been correct on an issue?

4 hours ago, Thingamabob said:

Yes indeed, he appears not to have changed since he was governor of the Bank of England.

He somehow got the job at the B of E in 2013, got very highly paid plus benefits, left in 2020 having accomplished nothing.

Just now, Thingamabob said:

He somehow got the job at the B of E in 2013, got very highly paid plus benefits, left in 2020 having accomplished nothing.

What is the "nothing".....🤔

11 minutes ago, transam said:

What is the "nothing".....🤔

Nothing means nothing ie the absence of all magnitude or quantity.

The entire world now recognizes TACO syndrome and is adjusting accordingly. Countries are realigning their business practices without including the US as a trade partner.

59 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

Nothing means nothing ie the absence of all magnitude or quantity.

That's no answer, what nothing did he do............😏

1 hour ago, Thingamabob said:

He somehow got the job at the B of E in 2013, got very highly paid plus benefits, left in 2020 having accomplished nothing.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that Carney was (obviously) against Brexit and that you were a card-carrying, shouting from the rooftops, Brexiteer.

Am I right?

2 hours ago, SunnyinBangrak said:

A classic post which will age like a crack head street sleeper. I wonder, in the 10 years of your hateful anti Trump rants, have you ever one single time been correct on an issue?

I think you did a miss type and it should have read thus;

"I wonder, in the 10 years of your hateful anti deluded Trump supporting rants, have you ever one single time been correct on an issue?

48 minutes ago, BLMFem said:

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that Carney was (obviously) against Brexit and that you were a card-carrying, shouting from the rooftops, Brexiteer.

Am I right?

Partly right. Carney was indeed opposed to Brexit. For myself I was 50/50 on Brexit. At the time I was in favour of the UK govt being free to make its' own decisions, but concerned about the implications for trade. 

Carney is calmer and more business like.

Doug Ford the Premiere of Ontario was spitting bullets when all this nonsense kicked off, threatening to cut off electric power to his neighboring states in the US.

He also said he would take all the US alcohol off his LCBO shelves. Apparently the largest purchaser of alcohol in the world.

Canada is not the only country who has to deal with Toxic Trump. Most countries in the world are now avoiding the USA

if they can and are dealing with each other. If the USA wants to be alone and ignored, the can keep tosic Trump

for the next 3 years. I am avoiding all things USA including going there until Trump is gone from his power job.