YORKTON - It is interesting how US president Donald Trump has become the focus of so much discussion – little of it positive of his views outside his die hard constituents and even some of those seem to be wavering in the face of his almost daily outlandish pronouncements.
For example attending a recent junior hockey game in Yorkton where I was chatting with a couple of guys connected to the team’s past, and Trump came up in relation to how important the Connor McDavid goal felt in the recent 4 Nations Cup in relation to national pride and as a snub of Trump’s nonsensical chatter about our fine sovereign nation becoming an American state.
One of those I chatted with did note with a smile that journalists at least are happy because Trump provides fodder to write about on a daily basis. I for one could do without ever having to write about Trump’s vitriol again, but alas here I am once again.
Trump should be relegated to bad caricatures in political cartoons, but the American people have given him near carte blanche powers so his often off-the-wall comments and views are more of a threat than they should be.
For Canada Trump’s rhetoric is of course confusing coming from the leader of a country we have long seen as our trusted neighbour and ally. In a few short weeks Trump has destroyed that illusion.
So tariff threats hang over trade with a major market for Canada exporters, and one senses we should underestimate what Trump might do next as he lays covetous eyes on Canada – along with the Panama Canal, Greenland and the Gaza Strip.
Certainly Canadians need to batten down the proverbial hatches in preparation for rough waters ahead.
A good start is to buy Canadian first when possible – support Canadian business as much as possible. Every extra dollar spent on Canadian products will help buffer the damage tariffs to exports south will cause.
If you can’t find a Canadian product, look for those of our allies in this trade war for example Mexico.
In terms of looking domestically in our purchases it goes beyond just what we chose at the grocery store, or where we vacation.
We as a country must become more united in terms of trade within our own borders.
Business province-to-province in Canada is not as smooth as one might expect.
There are a myriad of rules and regulations which simply do not jive when crossing a provincial border creating a hurdle to domestic trade which frankly should not exist – we are after all, all Canadians.
The federal government said recently it will break down trade barriers between provinces by removing 20 out of 39 exceptions to the Canadian Free Trade Agreement. That is a start.
Now the provinces need to set aside political differences and break down the barriers to facilitate smoother inter-provincial trade – a move frankly long overdue and now critically required.
