I wonder sometimes what 45/47’s followers imagine goes on every morning in blue households across America.
There’s a tendency among Donald Trump’s supporters to justify their allegiance to what, if we’re honest, is an objectively risky, and on some vectors, an overtly crazy, policy agenda by reference to an imaginary disease called “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” or “TDS.”
The rationale goes like this: “Trump’s critics are a demented lot who suffer from a corrosive psychological affliction, so when they say things like ‘Tariffs may drive up prices for cars,’ they’re just manifesting their disease in the same way someone who suffers from Tourette syndrome might blurt out ‘monkey piss!’ in the middle of a business meeting.”
But there’s no such thing as “TDS,” and although I’m sure there are a lot of people who wake up every day irritable that Trump’s president, the breakfast conversation in blue households isn’t defined by overwrought, shrill laments for a Kamala Harris presidency that wasn’t, nor any sort of wailing psychosis, but rather by quizzical looks and bemused astonishment at the absurdity of that day’s headlines.
With that in mind, Trump on Tuesday threatened to slap Canada with more tariffs on top of the ones which went into effect just hours earlier after Justin Trudeau rolled out a 25% tax on tens of billions of US imports, and said Canada would up the ante further if the situation isn’t resolved within three weeks.
In a testament to just how over-the-top ridiculous this is already, Trudeau and Trump on Tuesday traded barbs over what Ottawa apparently now believes is a real threat to Canada’s sovereignty. “The excuse he’s giving for these tariffs today of fentanyl is completely bogus,” Trudeau complained, accusing Trump of attempting to engineer a “total collapse of the Canadian economy because that’ll make it easier to annex us.”
Trump, who floated the idea of absorbing Canada in January, responded. “Please explain to Governor Trudeau that when he puts on a Retaliatory Tariff, our Reciprocal Tariff will immediately increase by a like amount!” he shrieked. Governor Trudeau.
This is completely insane and totally out of hand. Canada isn’t the source of the fentanyl crisis in America, nor the illegal immigration problem. Some trade groups have legitimate complaints to raise with the Canadians, but broadly speaking, there’s no rationale for Trump’s tariffs. This is an unconscionable act of economic warfare on America’s peace-loving, famously congenial northern neighbor, seemingly for the sheer hell of it.
Trump already renegotiated NAFTA. Now he’s relitigating that relitigation on the excuse the Canadians are a major supplier of deadly, synthetic opioids to US street gains, a contention so risible it could only emanate from Trump.
Not everyone’s laughing. Some, Trudeau among them, worry Trump’s at least vaguely serious about annexing Canada. Don’t kid yourself: Trump’s cabinet and allies in Congress, whatever they might say about the idea today (e.g., “That’s completely crazy, the President doesn’t mean that and this is just another example of the liberal media’s penchant for ‘TDS'”), would go right along in the event he decided to try it.
Trump’s plainly enamored with the idea that strong nations can and should project power in their respective spheres of influence. His territorial ambitions aren’t a joke. He’s serious about Greenland, serious about the Panama Canal and, sure I’ll say it, serious about annexing Canada.
Trudeau on Tuesday lambasted Trump for cozying up to a “lying, murderous dictator” in Vladimir Putin, a man who, as it happens, also has an affinity for land grabs and annexations. Instigating a US-Canada trade war, Trudeau went on, is “a very dumb thing to do.”
Well, Justin, if you think this is dumb, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. The good news for Trudeau is that the annexation, unless it happens in the next few days, will be someone else’s problem. The Liberals will name a new leader on Sunday.
Politico, February 23, 2022:
Former President Donald Trump on described Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine as “genius” and “savvy,” praising his onetime counterpart for a move that has spurred sanctions and universal condemnation from the U.S. government and its trans-Atlantic allies.
“I went in yesterday and there was a television screen, and I said, ‘This is genius.’ Putin declares a big portion of the Ukraine — of Ukraine — Putin declares it as independent. Oh, that’s wonderful,” Trump said in a radio interview with “The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show.” “He used the word ‘independent’ and ‘we’re gonna go out and we’re gonna go in and we’re gonna help keep peace.’ You gotta say that’s pretty savvy.”
I think we should all just calm down. Trump obviously has a big beautiful “MONEKY PISS!” plan for all of this madness.
Before people get mad, this was a joke.
From a size perspective, the US military outnumbers the Canadians by about 20 : 1. On paper that makes a potential incursion seem on par with Russia and Ukraine at the time of invasion. However, I expect many of the senior leaders would bail on this idea leaving SecDef beer goggles to plan and execute the invasion. Again, probably about the same as what Russia had going on.
Given the overall supportive nature of military voters towards the mad king, I think there would be enough service members eager to do his bidding.
Even thinking about the idea of this makes me feel exhausted at the sheer stupidity of it. Vets felt abandoned after Iraq, a war we clearly had no business being in. How would Canada look in comparison?
If I were Canadian, I would want to remain a Canadian, but if the US were really serious about wanting Canada to become part of the US then then the US should offer Canada 10 states (i.e., each Canadian province becomes a state) not a single state. Note that 8 of 10 provinces have a population larger than that of Wyoming (i.e., the US state with the smallest population size). If the 10 new states (i.e., former Canadian provinces) voted Democrat the US Senate and House would shift. Republicans wouldn’t like that. It really is an affront to Canada to suggest that it would only be admitted as a single state. I wonder if Republican states would let certain blue states secede and join Canada and let the Red States have the Gulf of America.
Has anyone told the Orange Menace that he will have to make French our second official language?
The 51st state thing is Trump’s inside joke. It would be a Territory like Puerto Rico. He would never allow the Canadians to vote.
Hell, if the Lord of the tiny hands and his followers had their way they would take away all the rights of women. Two bills to that effect have been discussed in Kansas. The newest Senator in that state has declared it toxic because of all those liberal feminists who disrespected him in a recent town hall, forcing him to stomp out.
“Ahh, but the strawberries!”
I am Canadian. I appreciate the realistic viewpoints often expressed in these pages. Still, all Americans need to understand the seething anger in my country about the actions taken against Canada – and our determination to defend ourselves and our country.. Please do not stand by and let it happen.
We understand how Europeans feel about Russians. Nothing evokes emotions like when a friend and neighbor turns on you for no good reason. I remember being bullied in public school by someone like Trump. I was small but that guy never forgot my relentless campaign, to make him pay in ways he could never imagine applying my strengths to his weaknesses. Will can sometimes overcome weight.
I lived in Canada, played for the Roughriders 1973. I loved Canada and Canadians, almost didn’t come back to American, now second guessing the decision. I have friends in Vancouver, Regina, Ottawa, etc. I’m so disgusted with what is happening. DL, I too am Seething…
I apologize to all our Canadian and European friends for this bully “we” elected and all his sycophants. Many (but not enough) of us feel ashamed about what is happening. I feel worse right now than I did after 9/11. That said, the writing has been on the wall for a very long time. Please stand your ground and don’t give in to this bully. Let’s hope this populist fire burns out sooner rather than later. Until we have an educated populace we are doomed — and Redneck America hates the educated. Hopefully the coming fire opens their eyes and educates them in a different way since they obviously didn’t read their history books. We definitely need a leader(s) to step forward and guide the Rebel Alliance. At a minimum we need to document the injustices and corruption that is going to happen.
I think Canada should start training, and arming, its people to fight a guerilla war.
This Administration is rapidly converting more and more if its marginal and even dedicated supporters to the “opposition,” while never-Trumping Democrats and others find themselves increasingly tolerant of the GOP’s disasters and chaos as the price to be paid to yield an ultimately self-defeating comeuppance.to the Administration. To me, this is the true Trump Derangement Syndrome – I hate what he’s doing so much, that I will allow myself and others to suffer to prove the point. In other eras, this would be called peaceful protest, so it’s fitting that a foundation of our democracy is now considered a derangement.
Anyway, since nothing means anything anymore, in light of the above, I wouldn’t mind it if Canada and Mexico explored a security agreement with China, as long as everyone is “just negotiating.”
https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/what-trump-tariffs-could-mean-americas-beloved-pickup-truck-2025-03-05/
Trump’s whole circus is based on the fact that the executive, judicial and legislative branchs are owned by our oligarchs and the assumption that all of our citizens are so blindly in love with the USA, that they will tolerate any abuse inflicted upon them and say “thank you sir, may I have another”. I question the validity of that assumption more every day as Musk sends more would be patriots to the unemployment office.
Wouldn’t it be cool if “Trump Derangement Syndrome” caused the states of Washington, Oregon, California and the blue northeast to simultaneously secede from the union and join Canada in the Commonwealth? That would make them part of NATO once again. Ha! The ramifications are mind-boggling. Think I’ll have another beer…. Oh Canada, Oh Canada….The True North strong and free!
And thus far the legislative branch is proving him right. The judicial is proving to be more of a challenge but just wait until SCOTUS makes it all better.
If there is any reason to this madness perhaps it lies in the Manifest Destiny notions we used to justify the genocide visited upon the Native Americans in creating this empire.
Extend that notion to its ends and we’d take the total landmass of the continent.
And I suppose the deal might include China getting Taiwan, Guam, the Philippines, etc.
Mr Putin taking Ukraine, the Baltic nations and who knows what else.
It’s a crooked piece of time that we live in indeed.
This all boils down to a Trump vanity project. Renaming the gulf, Gaza-Lago, Space Force, and any country he steals land from will have his name attached to it. The tariffs, the pain you feel from losing government services, the people dying in 3rd world countries, all of it is because he said so.
Vanity.
H-Man, I have to believe that even the most ardent 45/47 followers are asking themselves “Why are we beating up our friends and kowtowing to dictators?”
That would be logical, but I have strong doubts. If they haven’t come round by now, I hate to think what it might take.
Even if the administration is seriously considering an annexation, has anyone inside of it considered the negative impacts that a hostile Canadian population would have on the US if Canada were annexed?
I think Trump is drawing inspiration from McKinley’s imperialist conquest of the Philippines while forgetting the quagmire the U.S. found itself in for nearly a decade and a half following our occupation of the country. How many times do we have to learn that you can’t subjugate an unwilling populace? People who don’t learn from history are bound to repeat it. Indeed.
I can assure you that Drumpf hasn’t read a single page of the history you are alluding to 🙂
If all US trading partners coordinate counter-tariffs, will Trump be able to hold out? Their populaces will blame Trump, not their own leaders, and the US populace will similarly blame Trump. Their countries have better social safety nets, and better debt dynamics, than the US. Trump has a thin majority in “his” legislature, (most of) them do not. The EU + CAN + MEX are a significantly larger trading entity than the US, add a couple LatAm and APAC countries. I’d start by kicking the US out of WTO, and might as well boot China while you’re at it.