Emmanuel Macron's Speech and the Trade Wars
Macron addresses Europe's defense amidst Russian threats, as trade wars loom with Canada and Mexico.
We’re days into March but French President Emmanuel Macron held a televised address on Wednesday. He used his address to discuss the Russian “threat to France and Europe.” According to the AP, France will now “open the strategic debate on the protection of our allies on the European continent by our (nuclear) deterrent.”
I never thought I’d see this kind of sentence from a leader of our European allies: “I want to believe that the U.S. will stand by our side, but we have to be ready for that not to be the case.” (NBC News)
The Russian threat cannot be denied:
"Whether we reach peace in Ukraine soon or not, we need to be able to recognize the Russian threat and better defend ourselves in order to deter such attacks. Whatever happens, we need to provide ourselves with more arms, more equipment in terms of defense, to provide a dissuasive force."
EU leaders are meeting this Thursday in Brussels to discuss both Ukraine and European defense. Nuclear deterrence will be one of many topics that they’ll be discussing. It’s sad that it’s come to this since the U.S. has been a longtime member of NATO and ally of its European members. These days, I fear, are gone…at least until 2029 if we’re still having presidential elections.
This year marks 35 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall. It kicked off a few decades of innocence until Vladimir Putin decided to bring back the Soviet Union empire and invade Ukraine.
The convicted felon in DC has recently threatened Europe with 25% tariffs. People may think of it as a distraction from everything else but people need to stop thinking in such a matter. Nothing he does is a distraction as it’s all calculated.
Canada/Mexico Trade Wars
In an interview with Bloomberg, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested the countries could up end meeting “somewhere in the middle.” Nothing that doesn’t get rid of the tariffs altogether is acceptable.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford discussed the tariffs with ABC News on Wednesday. He made his feelings known with Lutnick. Here’s to hoping the points gets across. Trump keeps saying Canada isn’t keeping up on its part of the agreement regarding fentanyl but Canada isn’t responsible for checking vehicles entering the US from Canada. This is the responsibility of the US Customs and Border Patrol! Anyone that has ever done their homework before taking a trip across the border would know this.
Former Michigan governor and ambassador James Blanchard discussed the trade wars on CTV News’ Power Play with Vassy Kapelos. Here are some comments from their interview:
“Donald Trump clearly knows nothing about Canadian politics or the structure of Canadian government, and Howard Lutnick has displayed the fact that he doesn’t know anything about automobile manufacturing.
“We got these two guys in important positions who know less than an average congressman or governor about how the world works. They shouldn’t be in any public office with that lack of knowledge.”
Kentucky distillers are going to be feeling the pain as Canada issues a stop order on American liquor and orders their removal from the shelf.
If Kentuckians are impacted, you can bet that Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is going to say something. Those comments came on Power Play.
“It is going to be incredibly difficult and challenging for our people,” Beshear said. “These tariffs, which are the result of one individual, are going to cause our prices of gas to go up. Are going to cause our prices of groceries to go up. Are going to raise the cost of housing all across the United States.”
Canadians are now canceling trips to the US. This is certain to have an economic impact in the US. Dollars that would have otherwise been spent at American hotels, restaurants, and elsewhere will now be spent in other countries. If my budget works out, I’m planning to attend the Toronto International Film Festival in September. If the economy gets worse, I can always cancel but for right now, the plan is to take in films at TIFF for the first time since 2022.
A readout hasn’t been published on Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s website but he spoke over the phone for 50 minutes with American officials. What we do know is that automakers have been given a one-month reprieve.
As I’ve said before, the convicted felon just doesn’t understand how tariffs work. He looks at them as being a way to make America rich. Economists beg to differ. It’s going to increase inflation and average American households will lose money. As the trade wars continue, look for reciprocal tariffs to hit on April 2.