Inevitably, but tortured, this unique moment in the history of this country has been understood mainly in terms of hockey.
“His elbows mysteriously disappeared,” conservative leader Pierre Poilievre about Prime Minister Mark Carney. “He has not launched an elbow since he assumed the position.”
A few hours earlier, a journalist warned the prime minister that his critics could say something like that as a result of his decision to Repeal some of Canada’s retaliation rates against US products – That, although Carney had spoken once that Canada put her elbows “above”, now it could be said that those elbows are low.
“There is a moment in a game, in a great game, and this is a great game, when you get hard in the corners with the elbows.
When asked if Canada is now “the elbows”, Prime Minister Mark Carney says that the country has “the lowest rate on average” after showing that he is willing to fight. But he says that this is a ‘great game’ that has now moved to a different stage.
“But there is also a moment in a game in which you want the album, you want to stick, you want to pass, you want to put the album on the network … and we are at that time of the game.”
Carney could be right, that matters now is not how good our elbows exercise, but if we put the album on the network.
Or possibly we have reached the point where events are forcing the limits of hockey analogy.
Where are our elbows now?
“Cubits up” – the Rallying Cry popularized this spring from Mike Myers – It was certainly a brilliant political rhetoric, almost church, almost Churchillian. And Carney later enlisted Both Myers and the slogan. Then, if the prime minister now faces accusations of leaving the elbows down, he has possibly brought him on himself.
But as a strategy for continental commercial negotiations, perhaps it was always for limited use. What would happen if we covered the United States in our teeth and we didn’t change anything? So what?
(Perhaps the problem is that Trump, the former owner of a professional football teamSimply speak a different language).
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that his government will discard many reprisal rates against the United States in an effort to reduce temperature in the current commercial war. Carney says that she will maintain tariffs on steel, aluminum and cars as negotiation continues with American counterparts.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, Carney said that the purpose of retaliation rates was “to protect Canadian workers and encourage a negotiated agreement with the United States.” Those who are more affected by American tariffs in steel, aluminum and cars could still see an urgent need to do such things. But months in this commercial war, it is not obvious that This part of Canada’s reprisals I was registering a great incentive in Washington, DC (Canada will maintain tariffs on steel, aluminum and US cars, although not at the same level as US tariffs).
In that case, it might make sense to let this set of rates, whatever the political risk of looking weak, stop inflicting the additional cost to the Canadians if it no longer seemed to be worth it. And if the fall of these tariffs helps to advance in the negotiations that otherwise seem to be stuck, then dropping the elbows may seem a necessary movement.
Speaking after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the elimination of some retaliation tariffs on US assets, the leader of the Pierre Poilievre Conservative Party said that Carney has broken her largest electoral campaign promise.
Carney could be accused of “capitulation”, as Pailievre did on Friday, and Carney might have to worry that his strength perceived in this issue is at risk, particularly after the digital services tax was sacrificed. But for the moment it is not clear that someone more have better ideas.
The conservative leader told reporters that he would have maintained retaliation rates, with the offer to drop them in exchange for the United States to leave their tariffs. It is enough to say that it is not obvious that Trump would take that deal.
However, by dropping some rates, Carney has increased the pressure on itself to put the disk on the network, to end an agreement with the United States on steel, aluminum and cars and persuade Canadians that it was the best possible agreement under the circumstances.
‘This new reality’
When arguing that Canada currently has the “best” agreement with the United States because the products that meet Cusma are still exempt from American tariff The disposition of the United States to the world has changed fundamentally.
“The amplitude and depth of changes in the United States commercial policy have become more evident,” he said. “Specifically, under the new American approach, countries must now buy access to the world’s largest economy, through a combination of rates, investments, unilateral liberalization of trade and policy changes in their local markets.”
That can speak with the hopes of fading that Canada can ensure a complete repeal of American tariffs. But it also underlines the biggest game that is taking shape.
As tempting that it is a tempting to think of Canada and the United States as competitive hockey teams, they are also intertwined, but unequal, economies. And a century of integration has now put Canada in a difficult place, as Carney said Friday: “Some of our historical strengths have become vulnerabilities.”
“We can and we must adapt to this new reality,” he said. “Canada will go from the dependency to resilience.”
At that broad point, there may be an emerging bipartisan consensus, even if Carney and Pailievre do not agree with how to do it.
In response to Canada’s decision to raise some retaliation rates, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, said Friday that he is “working on something” with Canada, and wants to be “very good for Canada.”
The prime minister said that his government would soon publish an “integral industrial strategy” that “protects Canadian jobs, increases Canadian competitiveness, buys Canadian goods and diversifies Canadian exports.” Pailievre is launching a “Canadian sovereignty law“That would repeal half a dozen large pieces of liberal environmental policy.
Beyond the current commercial dispute, that is the real debate, and where Carney more needs to be able to show action.
Canada’s leaders could still be judged by how and when they use their elbows. But the present and the future demand more than that.
