EDITORIAL: Carney must show he can deal with Trump

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Beginning with his first face-to-face meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney has a chance to prove to Canadians that he was the best choice to lead them in a trade and tariff war with the U.S.

Despite his “elbows up” election rhetoric, Carney has flip-flopped on his initial position that Canada should respond to Trump’s tariffs on a dollar-for-dollar basis.

While that’s a change in policy we agree with it because, as Carney has said, “there is a limit, given the size of our economies, the extent to which we should match U.S. tariffs.”

Carney has lowered expectations about this meeting, which is fair, but he needs to act quickly given the damage U.S. tariffs are already doing to our economy.

Canada has imposed 25% counter-tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods imported from the U.S. after Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum and automobiles and what he said was Canada’s failure to address fentanyl smuggling, although the federal government created a $1.3 billion security package to strengthen the border.

Carney’s goal is to get Trump to the table to renegotiate the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) which was scheduled for review next year.

Trump signed the CUSMA trade agreement during his first presidency, praising it at the time as a great deal for the U.S., although he’s now changed his mind.

The alternative is an escalating trade war with Trump imposing more tariffs and Canada imposing another $125-billion package of counter-tariffs Ottawa has delayed for now in response to Trump delaying more threatened tariffs.

We suppose it’s a good sign that Trump has described Carney as “a very nice gentleman” and he expects to have “a great relationship with Canada,” although as Canadians know, Trump’s views can turn on a dime.

On Monday, Trump said he didn’t know what Carney wanted to talk about which was, of course, nonsense.

Trump also knows Carney didn’t win a majority government on April 28.

That’s why it’s a positive sign, Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer told CBC News that the Tories will support measures by Carney that protect the Canadian economy and lead to a new trade deal with the U.S.