Stephen Collinson writes:

Donald Trump is stoking political mayhem in Canada by intensifying a crisis that threatens to oust Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The president-elect’s bullying of an embattled political foe, whom he mocks as the governor of the 51st state in an insult to America’s loyal northern neighbor, is a preview of a belligerent strategy as he scours the globe for big second-term wins before even taking office.

And his willingness to plunge into an ally’s domestic politics ought to be a warning to other strife-torn governments in places like France, Germany and South Korea, where political chaos and internal divides could make it hard to fight back.

Trump’s threat to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian goods to coerce action from Ottawa on border issues saddled Trudeau with fears of a profound recession ahead of an election year which will dawn with him in deep trouble.

It also represents an extraordinarily hardline approach to a nation that has deep diplomatic, cultural and familial ties to the United States, is one half of one of the world’s most lucrative trading relationships and that sent its troops to die in defense of its ally after the September 11 terror attacks in 2001.

Trudeau, the already wobbling Liberal prime minister, may have suffered an existential blow this week with the sensational resignation of Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who delivered an indictment of his rule hours before she was due to deliver a critical budget statement in parliament.

Policy tensions had been simmering between Canada’s two most powerful politicians for months, and the Liberals already looked doomed in an election that must be held by next fall, after consistently trailing opposition Conservatives by around 20 points in opinion polls.

But Trump’s tariff gambit catalyzed for political combustion inside the Canadian cabinet. In a searing resignation letter, Freeland, a longtime Trudeau loyalist, effectively accused him of promoting frivolous policies that would leave Canada badly exposed to Trump.

“Our country today faces a grave challenge. The incoming administration in the United States is pursuing a policy of aggressive economic nationalism, including a threat of 25 per cent tariffs. We need to take that threat extremely seriously,” Freeland wrote. “That means keeping our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war.” Freeland went on: “That means eschewing costly political gimmicks, which we can ill afford and which make Canadians doubt that we recognize the gravity of the moment.” [Continue reading…]