Canada Election: Itll Be Carney or Poilievre Against Trumps Tariffs

Canada chooses a leader to take on Trump Canadians vote on Monday to determine which political party forms their next government.But President Trump’s tariff assault on Canada and his vow to annex the country and make it the 51st state have turned the federal election into a referendum on which of the two contenders — Prime Minister Mark Carney of the Liberal Party or Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservatives — can best handle the American president, Ian Austen writes for DealBook.The only English-language election debate last week opened with the moderator asking Carney, who has been the prime minister for just over a month, what the “starting point” would be for talks with the Trump White House.“The starting point has to be one of strength,” Carney responded.Both candidates have promised a tough response.Trump’s belittling of Canada’s sovereignty and his tariffs, which have already led to layoffs and concerns about factory closings, have prompted a surge of patriotism among Canadians and open hostility toward the United States — the country’s largest trading partner.

In sharp contrast with Mexico’s approach of dealing with Trump, both Carney and Poilievre have vowed to fight back.Here are the strategies they’ve campaigned on:Hit back: Carney has emphasized his commitment to retaliatory tariffs.Poilievre has said that they are necessary to “deter” Trump’s trade attacks.

Canada has imposed tariffs on imports from the United States that are expected to generate about 38 billion Canadian dollars annually, or about $27 billion.Trump has imposed tariffs against key sectors of Canada’s industrial economy: 25 percent levies on autos, aluminum and steel, and a similar levy on goods that are outside the scope of the trade agreement among the United States, Canada and Mexico.A tariff on auto parts is scheduled to take effect on Saturday.Autos and auto parts are Canada’s largest exports to the United States outside of oil and gas.Div...