Let's get realistic about the trade issues with the Americans...

CBC is lying to you and sometimes you should hear out the other side.

Reading Canada’s national media can be infuriating.

This morning, I lost it upon reading a CBC story that claimed, incorrectly, “Washington demanding ‘entry fee’ from Ottawa before trade talks: sources.”

I wrote a column about this issue, you can read it here, and I breakdown why CBC is so wrong on this. Lower down in the newsletter, you can also watch me break this down in detail in a video for the Toronto Sun.

First off, let me say that I am not shilling for the Americans here. They have some valid points in their issues of concern, their trade irritants, and so do we.

Unlike Canada, the United States is required by law to publish their trade goals and trade irritants. They recently published their trade irritants with Canada and while I think some are legit - see dairy - others like complaining about Buy Canadian programs are nothing but crap when they ratchet up their Buy American programs.

Each side should come to the table and hammer out their issues.

What I am hearing from American sources and Canadian sources, and this has been consistent for the last year, is that we don’t really show up. We may send people to meetings, there may be bodies in the rooms, but we don’t show up to negotiate.

We apparently want to wait out the Trump administration…

That’s foolish on a couple of fronts including that he’s still president for another 2 years and 8 months and can inflict damage to our economy. It’s also foolish to think that the protectionist nature in Washington will change when there is a new person in the White House.

The last president to occupy the White House who was close to a free trader was George W. Bush. It may pain some Canadians to hear that but protectionism in the White House really took off under Barack Obama and it’s only gotten progressively worse since then.

Thinking it will get better whether the Democrats or the Republicans win in 2028 is a fools game. So too is waiting for the mid-terms in November to change things.

Listening to the Americans…

Most of my colleagues in the media don’t actually listen to the Americans, they don’t engage with them. Sure, they might watch a committee hearing like the one I’m about to show you but they’re looking for sound bites, not a true understanding.

There is a world of difference between the two - trust me, I’ve done both.

So, out of the four hours and 30 minutes that United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was before the House Ways and Means Committee, I’m only bringing you about 10 minutes, but it’s still more than the other guys.

We really should take time to listen to what the people across the other side of the table as saying so that we can understand how we can get to a win for our side. I get accused of working for the Americans or selling Canada out for suggesting that on some issues they may have a point, but sometimes they do, just as we do with our issues.

First up is Claudia Tenney, a Republican from New York State who represents the 24th Congressional District. It’s an area that stretches from Niagara Falls, NY to just south of Kingston, Ontario.

As you will hear, she knows Canada well, loves Canada, she’s even a curler but doesn’t like us taking booze off the shelves, has issues with dairy, and fresh produce.

Meanwhile, Ontario Premier Doug Ford made clear with a post on social media that he won’t be putting American booze back on the shelves any time soon.

Ford likely has a lot of support from this from his voters, who like Carney voters want to stick it to the Americans. I should point out that above and beyond any alignment between Ford and Carney, anti-American sentiment is usually higher in Ontario because the place was founded by United Empire Loyalists.

Sure, that was a long time ago, but somehow it remains. I don’t get it, but it remains.

Also, we’ve taken American booze off the shelves over the tariff issue and Russian booze off the shelves over the war in Ukraine but Chinese booze is still available for those who want it and China is funding the wars in Russia/Ukraine and Iran.

They also interfere in our elections and kidnap our citizens but I digress.

Americans have lots of different issues with us…

In this clip you will hear Greer respond to questions about CUSMA/USMCA from a Democrat from Massachusetts, Richard Neal and a Republican from Missouri, Jason Smith.

Both have concerns with the deal. This is not just a Trump issue.

None of this is to absolve the Americans, their Buy America policies on public transit and infrastructure are horrible, they have trade policies that block us on any number of fronts.

The point is that we shouldn’t pretend that we don’t have our own issues. Yet, as I wrote recently, Canadians love to tell ourselves sweet little lies.

A grown up in the room…

I know that Janice Charette isn’t everyone’s favourite here. That said, on this file, she is the grown-up in the room.

I know several people who have worked with her when she was Clerk of the Privy Council under Stephen Harper and they sing her praises. Her comments on dealing with the United States on Tuesday while at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce event in Ottawa were truly welcome.

Thanks again to CBC Watcher on X for pulling this clip.

Compared to Mark Carney’s fear mongering and his General Brock figurines, Charette is a breath of fresh air. She’s talking about trade with the United States as an imperative and using stats to defend the agreement on both sides of the border.

I feel much better with her in this role than her predecessor.

More about CBC’s sweet little lies…

As I was discussing above and detailed in my column, CBC isn’t telling you the truth on Canada-U.S. trade talks. In this video, I break down all the problems with this report.