I guess I’ll write about the Canadian tariffs, as tedious a topic as that is. It looks like they’ll actually go into effect, no TACO right now. That’s even though they’re economically devastating to the US, which is already suffering from Trump’s previous stupid tariffs as well as the war in Iran. Scott sent this in from the American Prospect:
While the price of gasoline gets the headlines, diesel fuel used by most trucks is above $5.60 a gallon. That is an enormous cost pressure on retailers, farmers who use diesel fuel for harvesting equipment (oh yeah, surprise, it’s harvest season), or really anyone who has to ship anything. And there isn’t much relief available, since the problem is refinery capacity. The “crack spread”—a measure of the difference between the crude oil price and what refiners are selling their product at—has come in at record high levels, in large part due to diminished facilities after the Ukrainian campaign of taking out Russian refineries with drones. Hormuz is an added stressor. Low supplies mean higher prices.
Guess where U.S. refiners get a lot of crude product from? Canada. In fact, 63 percent of the crude imported into the U.S. last year came from the Great White North. And with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve near record lows, the Canadian safety valve looms even larger. It does not matter that the U.S. imports a higher percentage of Canada’s exports if Canada has something Trump is desperate for. That is a huge marker that Canada can throw down at any time. (There’s a smaller version of this in Canadian auto parts, without which most U.S. plants cannot make cars.)
As an example, Midwest refineries in particular process Canadian crude. Fortunately for Trump, there aren’t any critical elections in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, or other states in the region.
Since every farmer and trucker and autoworker is also a consumer along with the rest of us, Trump is trying to fix the consumer price side of things. Because there isn’t much to do on oil yet other than to helplessly yell “Prices Down Now!,” Trump started with beef, announcing the precise opposite of the economic sanctions that have been his main domestic and geopolitical tool in the second term. He announced a tariff exemption for 300,000 metric tons of beef imports, which would be sold at 25 percent below the current market price, per a deal with foreign suppliers.
First of all, this is about 1 percent of the total beef sold in America. Second, it fails to address the meatpacking middlemen who are at the root of the high prices. But the president of the United States making a deal with foreign producers to deliberately undercut U.S. ranchers, at a time when those ranchers are struggling with the New World screwworm that got loose in part thanks to Elon Musk, and cattle herds are at historic lows, was enough to send a key element of Trump’s base into a frenzy. Cattle producers and the Republican lawmakers who represent them sharply criticized the plan. You can find stories of lifelong Republicans finally realizing that they elevated a president who only cares about himself.
Even thought we’re all tired of the tariffs, Canadians are certainly activated, united and pissed. Here’s the roundup from the CBC:
Ottawa has announced dollar-for-dollar counter-tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of U.S. goods, which will go into effect Sept. 8. It also unveiled $7.5 billion in support for workers and businesses.
The counter-tariffs target U.S. steel, aluminium, appliances, clothing, seafood and dairy products. The support gives impacted businesses access to loans and financing programs and allows workers more flexibility to apply for employment insurance.
This afternoon, the White House published a statement listing what it says are facts about "Canadian abuse" of its trade relationship with the U.S.
Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. may change the name of Lake Ontario to "Lake America" and accused Prime Minister Mark Carney of lying "to gain political support."
The support measures announced today received praise from Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, B.C. Premier David Eby and NDP Leader Avi Lewis. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre reiterated that Canada should lower taxes during the trade war but did not speak directly about the counter-tariffs or support measures.
However, some business and union advocates expressed concern that the measures won't be enough to help workers and employers hardest hit by the U.S. tariffs.
The CBC also had a story about a lumber mill (plywood manufacturer) in British Columbia that turned its trucks around before they reached the border once the tariffs were officially announced. We already have a housing crisis here, and the lack of building supplies from Canada are just going to make it worse.
Also, Canadians are big mad. Here’s Doug Ford telling Trump to kiss his ass.
Ford is a corrupt asshole, but his sentiments are widely shared by Canadians. The number one story on the CBC as I write this is that Loblaws, a big Canadian grocery chain, has backtracked on dropping labeling of the origin of produce they sell. Canadians have been boycotting US goods and they want to continue to do so, and any effort by grocery chains to obscure where goods on the shelf came from are going to be met with public outcry.
It’s beyond pathetic that the best that Trump can do is a childish jape about Lake Ontario, while Canadians are ready to dig in and fight. There’s nothing very sophisticated to say here, other than this is another own goal by the dumbest shit who ever shat.
