Canada’s Strong Words on Climate Face a Test in Trump’s Nafta Makeover

Trump wins if a deal is signed, all he has to do is tell his base it is a big win. Mexico and Canada have drawn enough lines in the sand for any deal that would make the renegotiating NAFTA a win for Trump's base Pyrrhic at best . There is a specific word for what is happening to America under Trump and the GOP they have been hornswoggled. It is time to start calling Trump and the GOPs base what they are instead of demeaning their intellect. They are the hornswoggled and we have all been hornswoggled at one time or another.

This is what happens when you let children sit at the grown up table. Canada grown ups better take over before this brat they call a prime minister crashes their economy in the name of Liberals. Or not. It's their economy, it's them who have to tell their kids papa is out of a job, but it's all good 'cos it's in the name of global warming.

The basic problem Canada has is we have a Prime Minister who would rather virtue signal than fight for Canada's interests. This is not the first example of Trudeau's nutty government putting virtue signalling ahead of Canada. His foreign affairs minister Chrystia Freelandhas upset the Saudi's so much with her virtue signalling tweets about human rights that they are now boycotting Canada. Canada desperately needs a Prime Minister who puts Canadian's interests ahead of virtue signalling and political correctness.

Dear Lisa Friedman and others who write about our Prine Minsiter Justin Trudeau, here are some hard facts : Justin Trudeau has signed an extremely contentious pipeline deal with the Texas Oil Company and has bought the Trans Mountain Pipeline and will be ramming it through British Columbia at the expense of Canadians tax dollars .. AGAINST their will... that is, if he wins the countless court cases coming up against his Federal Government for approving this project... Mr. Trudeau does like to tout himself as a climate leader to the international community but he's no leader on Climate Change... its already fact that Canada won't come remotely close to their commitments to the Paris Clinate Accord and forcing a pipeline through British Columbia isn't going to make that any better... he's doing this to secure votes in Alberta the Tar Sands of Canada ... please Americans, I am Canadian and live in British Columbia and I will tell you this fact : Justin Trudeau is completely feigning his Climate Change concerns ... he's in this for votes like every other politician in the world, and he's also obsessed with gaining international celebrity... he's NO climate change leader... please NYTimes writers get this correct going forward.. as far as Climate Change is concerned, Justin Trudeau is a fraud.

Canada has a love-hate relationship with the US when it comes to trade, cross-border investment, and other economic matters, and this has been a particular concern since the sixties. And of course the country was founded on John A. MacDonald's protective tariff, so this issue goes back a long way, and is bound up with Canada's feelings of identity and its felt need to protect itself from the economic and cultural power of its enormous southern neighbor. All of which makes the condescending attitude of the Canadian establishment toward the current American administration more understandable, perhaps -- but deeply, deeply foolish. Until this past Monday. Now, you can hear the fear in the Canadian media, smell the odor of Canadian tailfeathers burning, and hear the sound of Trump cackling as he turns up the heat. The Canadians have behaved like idiots in the lead-up to this negotiation, and they well deserve what they are going to get. Smugness and complacency is, unfortunately --and I speak as a Canadian -- a not uncommon failing north of the border, especially among the elite. A little Hillary-like; more than a little, actually. Trip to the woodshed, anyone?

So what is 'Ehxit'. It's Canada's response to the extortion that Trump is practicing on our neighbor to the North. They just don't realize their own strength.

How do we deal with your intractable petulant leader? Congress should hold off on any trade deal until after the midterms. Trump has already destroyed relations with all of America's former allies. How is Trump going to handle things if the Columbia Basin treaty fails. We could withhold our water and power. that might have an effect on Trump's environment.

I hope that Canada tells Trump to take his deal and shove it. Trump won't be President forever, maybe not even to the end of this year.

if Canada does include climate on its "to do" list, that would hypocrisy at its greatest. Canada's recent pledge to build a second oil pipeline from the Tar sands to the B.C. coast, over ruling the province's objections, says that Canada cares more about revenue generated from the oil exports than it does about reducing carbon emissions and protecting the land and water sources along the proposed route. PR image and cheap talk is not what we want; action is needed instead.

Don't hold your breath. Trudeau has zero environmental credibility, as he is all too willing to prop up the disastrous tar sands operations by pushing more pipelines and more tankers through indigenous lands, coastal rainforest, critical salmon habitat, and turbulent rugged coastline. Ignore the rhetoric. He might as well be in the same club as Trump and the anti-science deniers.

The 2 things that needed to be fixed with NAFTA were not addressed with this negotiation: 1. Fair and equitable working conditions 2. Pollution controls. It is completely fair that both be addressed in a trade deal - neither need to address the country's policies as a whole, but rather manufacture and transport of any goods that are traded, or eg. trucks passing from one side of the border to the other. Climate change is our preeminent risk, and will affect Canada and Mexico even more than us - something that should be considered in ALL of our bills/treaties.

Climate and trade can be separated and should be. The big car makers are all moving to replace their fleets of gas burning cars to electric vehicles beginning in 2019. so a strong stand by Canada at this point would be in vain. Canada should position itself to lead in EV manufacture. A better strategy is to begin the process of reducing the amount of carbon in the environment, not simply slowing emissions. There's already too much carbon in the environment and slowing the increase is not enough. Even without the US engaged in the Paris Accords many states are fully committed to supporting the goals and have pledged to do so. California is one example. Reducing carbon is a do-able thing. I wrote a book about it, "The Age of Sustainability."

Although the Canadian effort to include resolutions on climate change are well intention, it is incredibly presumptuous to insist that climate change provisions be included in the trade deal. Just because the US wants to trade with a country, doesn't give that country the right to dictate our other laws. In this case, Canada wants to include climate change, womens rights & indigneous rights. Trudeau and Freeland over reached. It is the type of mistake which could possibly leave Canada without trade agreement in the post NAFTA era.

In response to @Woof, who writes in defence of Canada's indefensible global pollution The cause of Canada's pollution is OIL PRODUCTION FROM TAR SANDS. While it is correct that : " Canada is spending billions in infrastructure projects that will enable fuel-switching, new transit options in cities and decarbonisation of our grid. It ain't just big words. " This will, if you look at the numbers, make very little difference unless Canada stops oil production from tar sands. Ecologist have argued this for a long time, and Canada for an equally long time has paid no head to it. To see where Canada could and should be : Look at the # for Germany. Her per capita emission is 1/7th of Canada. And it is a far more industrialized state than Canada.

Canada lives an inconvenient truth that it has a resource based economy - hence the pipeline and the political conflicts around it. But by and large there is an environmental consciousness that runs through out communities - individual and corporate endeavours, etc. But then you have mini trumps like Ontario's new premier designate who isn't a believer at all! So yes: environment, complex, but at least we believe in the SCIENCE of climate change and that is a step beyond the current US administration.

Throwing "climate change" into the pot . . . makes no sense. The US has 14 trade agreements, with 20 countries. Should we abrogate them all unless the participants agree to add a climate change clause? The agreement is to be about trade. Only trade. Keep it that way.

The Paris climate change agreement was like NAFTA a bad deal for the US too. It didn’t guarantee carbon reduction it just punished the US. And the just about all the other 200 countries made money on the deal. Glad Trump backed out. If a climate change agreement meant every country pays you would have one country in agreement. That would be the US.

Trudeau needs to stand up to the bully or it will never end.

Canada, STAND YOUR GROUND. Others will recognize now is the time to push this issue front and center.

Trudeau should stick to his guns. Trump can't override the existing NAFTA deal on his own, and Canada is too important. Trudeau should call Trump's bluff and show that he won't be bullied.

As a Canadian, I’m disappointed by Freeman’s stupidity. Why demand something you know you won’t get? Canada is 1/10 the size of the US. Tariffs would put Canada into deep recession. So, climate change v. recession? It’s pretty obvious which will win out. Canada was left out of the US/Mexico side deal and is getting playing by Trump like no other. People laugh at Trump but he is a successful multi billionaire, hard nosed negotiator.

The devastating results of ignoring climate change are here. Politicians and those who know better (but with money / profit as their primary motive) are furiously fiddling while the planet burns...or drowns. Trump's trade dealings on and with all continental leaders misses the main event, the disaster is here, it is in the room. Neither a Trudeau nor a Freeland will dig into climate change. These letters today to your paper echo our grave concerns here in Canada. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/29/opinion/letters/climate-change.html

Climate change is real. https://climate.nasa.gov/ https://www.statista.com/topics/1148/global-climate-change/ http://www.ipcc.ch/ http://uccrn.org/ https://www.iied.org/climate-change-research-group https://climate.mcmaster.ca/ http://www.cgcs.utoronto.ca/ https://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/urgentissues/global-warming-climat...

Time to get to the facts. Recent scientific observations are warning us that we have become a threat to our continued existence on this planet. Violent weather aberrations and record global temperatures are now occurring. Ice in the Arctic and Antarctic is melting. High temperatures from a deadly Methane Hydrate Feedback Loop in the Arctic have become more and more a future possibility. Oceans are rising. By the end of this century they will have begun inundating coastal areas inhabited by as much as a quarter of human civilization. www.InquiryAbraham.com

Oh yea,Canada has the largest and most polluted Oil sands project on the Planet,and ,they love it! They broker the tar sands with China ,the other greatest polluter on earth ,next to India. and ,of course he's a Democrat Socialist ,wanna be Muslim ,much ,like our Democrats are. and they 're all remarkable "environmentalists",just ask them .The truth is "I don't think so".

In the long run the US auto industry is toast if it doesn't come on board and fully comply with the realities of climate change. Canada and Mexico are both signed onto the Paris accord and to TPP. Citizens of both countries will be driving electric cars in droves. China is moving on to 2025 and we are moving backwards to 1955.

Trump’s shelf life is limited - Trudeau’s is much longer - if the deal is bad - walk away. Impose tariffs on US imports.

As a sovereign nation with it's own government, principals, ideals and population we stand together as a country first and foremost. Trudeau and his team are negotiating in good faith for Canada, not Liberals, not Conservatives, not NDP, nor Green, but for all Canadians. Trudeau is not weak. His government is dealing in good faith with the people representing the United States interests, and we are doing the same for Canada. The problem here is your President will blow anything up to get attention, especially this week when John McCain is being honoured and laid to rest. What is so galling is the idea that the only country on the planet who's economy needs defending is that of the United States. There is still such a thing as fairness in any fair trade agreement and every nation on earth has the right to seek it. Trump is threatening our industries and our economy and no one should be surprise that the Canadian government's team is defending it. Of course we want a good outcome for all three countries, but most Canadians will agree that bullying is never a good tactic.

They'll probably make a deal for now and save other priorities for better circumstances.

Justin Trudeau, though a more thoughtful, balanced leader than our current one at the White House, has gone back on his own commitments toward addressing climate change, with having the Canadian government literally buy a tar sands pipeline which will be pumping hundreds of thousands of barrels of some of the dirtiest fuel on the planet, insisting with the pipeline to the west coast of Canada, that ‘it will be built’. Supposedly, a 'carbon tax' in Canada will help to offset the additional emissions projected from this enormous project, one which has received condemnation and protest from indigenous people and those concerned with climate change and environmental destruction. It seems a rare politician these days whose words only address the grave dangers of climate change, but do little to address it, as pressure from fossil fuel and mining companies never abates.

If NAFTA discussions with Canada either fail or are significantly delayed and the Trump administration moves to impose tariffs on the Canadian (an thus on the American) auto sector, then the Province of Ontario (capital city Toronto) would be most impacted. The fall-out would be a poorer economic climate in Ontario and pressure on the recently elected (by just 40% of the voters) conservative Ford government. While the Ford government is not directly aligned with the Trump administration its policies are more conservative than liberal so economic pressure might have the opposite affect of pushing voters in Ontario to seek another party ... traditionally, this has been the Liberal party ... and this would mostly likely benefit the current Liberal Party of Canada and its leader Justin Trudeau.

Economic issues will win and the environment will take a back seat; that's the harsh reality. The red line for Canada will be the dispute resolution mechanism. The US refusal to accept it in the first NAFTA negotiation led to our withdrawal from the talks and the US ultimately accepting it. Trudeau must be as resolute in his resolve. If not, he will soon be an ex Prime Minister.

Hmmm, wouldn't a tariff on Canadian built cars be a hit on U.S. carmakers, since many of their cars are made in Ontario?

Canada has strong words , but here are the numbers List of CO2 emissions, tons per capita Canada 15.61 tons of CO2 per capita France 8.28 UK 6.31 Germany 2.07 Denmark 0.06 Canada CO2 emissions per capita are topped in the developed Nations only by the US (16.22)

You need to be clear that only part of the energy industry supports this denialism. Canada and Australia don’t have “strong energy industries” they have strong dirty energy industries. Much of the energy industry deploys renewable technologies, and that sector of the energy industry is typically in favor of dealing with climate-mediated civilization destruction.

Justin Trudeau has shown a remarkable lack of principle or possibly strength of conviction since being elected and what seems evident is that Canada will agree to virtually all American conditions for a trade pact. Climate concerns? Not a real problem for this prime minister, no matter the posturing.