DAVID MARCUS: Trump’s Canada tariffs take toll on would-be Conservative Prime Minister Pierre Poilievre

CALGARY, Alberta – The Calgary Petroleum Club is precisely what you would expect: acheronian woody walls, good decor, and rugged-looking affluent men successful jackets with nary ties who tin astir apt bargain the full West Virginia municipality wherever I live. This is wherever I met up with Gary Mar, a businessman and erstwhile authorities official, to spot however President Donald Trump's tariffs are impacting Canadian politics.

Mar served from 2007-2011 as minister-counselor of the Province of Alberta to the United States of America, and inactive has a manus successful nationalist politics.

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I wanted to cognize astir the surge successful enactment that the Liberal Party, which chose Mark Carney arsenic its caller person this week, has experienced since President Trump began launching tariffs, and however Conservative Party person Pierre Poilievre tin respond arsenic the Canadian predetermination heats up. 

"There are 2 ballot issues," Mar said. "First, who is champion capable to woody with President Trump, and second, who is champion capable to tally the economy?" Obviously, the tariff situation, oregon arsenic Canada calls it, the commercialized war, colors some of these issues.

Columnist David Marcus talks to Canadians astir however U.S. tariffs are affecting politics. (Fox News Digital)

Mar said the cardinal is "to recognize Trump’s motives for the tariffs," and helium offered 4 possibilities: Increase U.S. manufacturing, make gross for taxation cuts, equilibrium the commercialized deficit, and/or make leverage for non-trade issues, successful this lawsuit fentanyl coming implicit the Canadian border.

As a erstwhile diplomat, Gary recovered the 4th usage of tariffs astir objectionable, but what helium was truly asking was, what does Trump privation oregon request from Canada to marque this stop? In the lack of an reply to this question, Poilievre is successful a dicey situation.

Ever since Conservative Party person offered enactment to the anti-vaccine-mandate trucker protestation successful Ottawa successful 2022, helium has been viewed successful Canada arsenic aligned with Trump. But today, Trump is nationalist force No. 1, and Poilievre's enactment has bled 20 points successful the polls successful 2 months.

Carney and Liberals are already showering the Canadian airwaves with ads tying Poilievre to the U.S. president.

I asked Mar if Poilievre would beryllium amended disconnected politically contiguous if Trump were to praise oregon insult him. He didn’t adjacent hesitate, saying "it would beryllium amended if Trump insulted him."

Several women successful Calgary were protesting the Liberal Party's enactment for letting men who place arsenic women service clip successful women's prisons. But issues similar this are being drowned retired by the tariff situation. (Fox News Digital)

Somehow, this Conservative person and would-be premier curate has to find a mode to beryllium frenemies with Trump, similar the younger member who doesn’t instrumentality immoderate guff from the older, to amusement helium tin enactment with Trump portion besides defending Canadian grant against a U.S. president threatening his arrogant nation’s sovereignty.

This is due to the fact that everyone successful Calgary, including Mar, has told maine that Canadian nationalism, until precocious astir an anachronism, is astatine levels they person ne'er seen before. Trump's changeless trolling astir making Canada the "51st state" is undoubtedly different factor.

The election, astatine soonest, volition instrumentality spot sometime successful April. If the tariff contented is resolved quickly, it volition escaped Poilievre up to run connected the issues helium wants to absorption on, and I ran smack into 1 of them accidentally successful Calgary connected Sunday.

As I turned the country amid a greeting constitutional, I saw astir 40 oregon 50 mostly women, with signs demanding Canada nary longer let biologic men successful women’s prisons. There I spoke with Heather Mason, who was incarcerated erstwhile the argumentation allowing men was introduced. 

Mason, and each of the different women there, had a wide message: "It has to stop." Poilievre agrees, and has publically stated helium volition prohibition men from women’s prisons. 

These are the kinds of issues that conservatives successful Canada, similar their cousins to the south, privation to absorption on. But with tariffs sucking each the quality oxygen retired of the media, they can’t.

To beryllium sure, Trump’s occupation is not to triumph elections for conservatives successful Canada, it is to bash what is successful the champion involvement of the American people. But surely, connected immoderate level, America’s involvement is tied to a good, functioning narration with our closest trading spouse to the north.

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The scuttlebutt successful the Great White North is that Liberals privation a caller predetermination ASAP. They consciousness similar they person the mojo, truthful the sooner, the better. Politically they privation this commercialized war, arsenic they enactment it, raging arsenic Canadians formed their ballots.

"There are 2 things that summation Canadian nationalism, warfare and sports, and we person both," Mar quipped, referring to the "trade war," and the USA vs Canada hockey rivalry’s revival.

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In that benignant of environment, Poilievre whitethorn request to punch backmost astatine Trump, but successful a affable way, the mode brothers do. But that is simply a precise good enactment to walk. How helium manages that situation could specify U.S. Canadian relations for a precise agelong clip to come.

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