New Canada tariff circus roils NY midterms
A screenshot from the video by YouTuber demonflyingfox titled Canadian Resistance Army — Trade War. Credit: YouTube
The silliest feature so far of President Donald Trump’s bombastic trade clash with Canada has to be his executive order, signed Thursday, to change the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America.” The latest tariff tit-for-tat already had the president threatening this week: “Someone should get these clowns to ‘fall in line’ or the consequences for Canada will be far WORSE!”
The province’s right-of-center premier, Doug Ford, warned of cutting off electricity and mineral supplies to the U.S. after Trump acted to raise tariffs on some goods to 50%. Noting that 1.5 million American homes and businesses get power from Ontario, Ford warned Trump he “better have a pack of batteries.”
With an “elbows up” show of moxie, Ford said, “You won’t get a grain of sand out of Ontario.” His constituents have roared their approval. Resistance has gone viral in the form of a humorous AI-made music video featuring an army of Mountie bears and beavers playing bagpipes, created by YouTuber demonflyingfox.
New York voters, especially upstate, have cause to be embarrassed and angry at all the needless agitation.
Maybe the president was just excited about having hosted UFC Freedom 250 on the White House lawn, and thought it would be fun to coat his erratic trade diplomacy with the banter of a wrestling show. But there are real-life consequences. For however long it may matter, he got Google to label maps of the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, at least for U.S. users, by changing the federal records.
The pending rise in prices on goods from Canada vexes New Yorkers and affects state exports. That part is serious. Trump handed Gov. Kathy Hochul a solid talking point, especially in her support of Democratic House candidates. “This is just another unnecessary war,” she said. “This hostility toward Canada is unprecedented.”
Last year, Trump’s gratuitous alienation of a peaceful neighbor had a profound effect on Canada’s elections. He and Elon Musk, in tart style, supported Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre for prime minister over Liberal Party leader Mark Carney. Trump, ever desiring new lands and resources in the old imperial style, demanded an annexation of Canada as the 51st state. Largely by just underscoring his country’s independence, Carney and his party narrowly won.
Now, Trump’s brandishing of tariffs stands to hit home electorally — on this side of the border. In the deep-red North Country congressional seat being vacated by Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump’s Republican nominee, Anthony Constantino, has a well-known local Democratic opponent, dairy farmer Blake Gendebien. If the trade war and mass deportation of farm labor proves unpopular enough, this could be a horse race. For now Constantino leads in polls.
Nearly two hundred miles of CD21 adjoin Canadian land and waterways, making cross-border trade crucial to the district. Dairy products face tariffs of up to 50%. Agricultural equipment and processed goods are also involved. Upstate tourism has been affected already, and stands to decrease further.
Defenders of the administration claim Trump is trying to prod a better deal for the U.S. But how long the standoff could last, and how it is resolved, are hazy. With election campaigning about to begin in earnest, the White House might wish to back off and characteristically claim victory without achieving one.
Perhaps, if Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman somehow unseats Hochul and, more astonishingly, carries in a Republican legislature, they could all try renaming Ontario County as Tariff County, if only to extend the silliness.
Columnist Dan Janison’s opinions are his own.
Dan Janison is a member of the Newsday editorial board.
