As an American citizen, I increasingly feel the need to apologize to our many friends and neighbors across the globe, as if we have just completed a large holiday meal, where a drunken relative or uncle, again over-served, made an ass of himself. That said, that analogy no longer captures the realities of recent U.S. U.S. foreign trade relations and geopolitical matters.
I will just start with a few obvious statements of fact. Canada and its people are among America’s longest and strongest allies and trade partners. We share a peaceful border, nearly 3,000 miles long and militarily we share one of the world’s most integrated defense relationships. Our last period of serious conflict was when the U.S. and Canada fought each other.S. U.S. Colonial forces attempted to seize Quebec City, and subsequent battles during the American Revolutionary War largely saw the Yanks repelled by British forces.
During our Civil War nearly 40,000 Canadian volunteers fought on the Union side of the conflict. During WWI, more than 600,000 Canadians fought on the Allied side, alongside the U.S., British and French forces, with 154,361 casualties and 59,544 fatalities. Canada declared war on Germany on September 10, 1939, days after Hitler invaded Poland, and nearly two-years ahead of the U.S. declaration of war against Japan after the December 7, 1941, bombing of Pearl Harbor. More than 1.1 million Canadians served in uniform during WWII.
Canada, a continuing ally
Canadian forces served alongside U.S. armed service branches in Korea, and later in the first Gulf War and again during Operation Enduring Freedom and during much of our nearly 20-year conflict in Afghanistan. With a current army of roughly 70,000 Canadians (U.S. forces had 1.3 million active duty personnel in 2026), the Canadian military has expanded its budget for 2025 to $49-billion CAD, up 25 percent since 2022, with major expansions and investments in Arctic global security operations, amid concerns of China and Russia staging attacks from the Arctic and North seas. Those investments include 88 U.S. manufactured F-35 fighter jets, 8 icebreaking ships, and 12 under-ice submarines. The U.S. and Canada also share the operations of NORAD. Perhaps a bit over-stated, but Canada is our FRIEND.
Though it was the administration of President Bill Clinton that finalized the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1993, establishing tariff free trade between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico (the world’s largest free-trade zone), the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush were instrumental in laying the groundwork for the agreement.
Before I jump into the lunacy of the recently proposed massive 50 percent tariff hike on nearly all Canadian goods, here are a few more relevant and largely indisputable facts. The economic threat of NAFTA largely forced the creation of the European Union as a competitor. And though as a candidate and first-term President, Donald Trump was very critical of several aspects of NAFTA, he could not have been more enthusiastic about his successor treaty, signed into law on January 29, 2020, by President Trump himself. The new treaty was re-branded the United States/Mexico/Canada trade treaty…or USMCA for short.
“The USMCA is the largest, fairest, most balanced and modern trade agreement ever achieved. There’s never been anything like it. Other countries are now looking at it, but there can’t be a border like that because, believe it or not, that is by far the biggest border anywhere in the world in terms of economy and people. There’s nothing even close.” said by President Donald Trump at the treaty signing ceremony, January 29, 2020.
Countries do not play tariffs
Another quick reminder. Countries do NOT pay tariffs. Importers, wholesalers and corporations do pay tariffs, and typically, they pass those costs on to their customers, predominantly consumers. I am not going to argue that tariffs do not produce revenue for the government—they do—but they also typically penalize the consumers in the country where the high tariffs are charged or paid…and not necessarily the country or company whose goods require payment of higher tariffs.
As a part of the British Commonwealth, few nations have stood beside America longer or more frequently than our Canadian neighbors. Admittedly I love traveling and visiting Canada. Toronto and more recently Vancouver have become two of my favorite cities. Prior to the pandemic, I spent an entire week on Via Rail crossing Canada in the dead of winter from Vancouver to Toronto. The incredible scenery was surpassed only by the continuing kindness and hospitality of the all Canadian crew and my fellow predominantly Canadian passengers.
President Trump also recently attempted to block the opening of the massive Gordie Howe Bridge connecting the twin cities of Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Canada across the Detroit River. The nearly $6.5-billion bridge, funded by Canada and which included the use of U.S. workers and some U.S. steel, was completed on July 24, 2025). Trump blocked the bridge opening for nearly a year, supporting claims by a billionaire campaign donor whose family owned the much older Ambassador Bridge (the only other bridge connecting the two cities) who felt that their bridge (and its high toll) were guaranteed an exclusive franchise in perpetuity. Trump also sought half the toll revenue of the new bridge, to be used to repay the Canadian construction bonds, although the United States contributed no funding for the project..
Bridging this border divide?
Though the new bridge began construction during Trump’s first term in 2018, it did not seem to become important until the superior new bridge and its direct connection to Interstate 75 on the U.S. side and peer Canadian interstates on the Ontario side caused the owners of the Ambassador Bridge to fear that the new bridge would cripple their revenue, traffic and monopoly. The new bridge was viewed by trade advocates on both sides as a potential boon to U.S./Canadian trade, economies and commerce. It finally opened, a year after its completion, on July 27, 2026.
But as if that over-served Uncle during the holidays and his holiday spirits’ impaired logic is running at least one of these two nations at present, facts, logic, and proven economic theory are being repeatedly trumped by whim, petty jealousy, and protectionism. And again, just to be clear, none of those things are synonyms for patriotism.
Thankfully though, like a hangover from a few too many Labatt Blue’s…this too shall pass. To our many Canadian friends, I say, “Guh-Day Ay…” and I look forward to my next visit there and a rousing rendition of “Oh, Canada.”
