While Republicans continue to insist that Trump’s tariffs will somehow make America rich and respected again, all it’s really done so far is raise taxes on Americans and push the rest of the developed world to work more closely with China. That’s great news if you were hoping China would replace the U.S. as the global economic leader but not so great if you aren’t a fan of the Chinese government and want to see it weakened globally rather than strengthened. Case in point: CBC reports Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will meet with China’s Xi Jinping this week, “hoping for a relations reset.”
Carney is attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea this week and confirmed the meeting to reporters following the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “It’s the start of a broader discussion,” Carney told reporters, reportedly referencing a recent discussion he had with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the United Nations General Assembly:
Carney said the meetings cover “a broad range of issues,” including “the commercial relationship, as well as the evolution of the global system. “So I look forward to the meeting with the president,” Carney said.
No more car tariffs?
Canada’s diplomatic relationship with China has been on pause since 2018, when China responded to Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou’s arrest by arresting Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. If Republicans hadn’t allowed Trump to start a completely unnecessary trade war that was always destined to isolate the U.S. on the global stage, that may not have changed, but here we are, with Canada resuming its relationship with China and potentially even dropping its tariffs on Chinese-built cars:
For his part, Carney didn’t rule out easing investment restrictions placed on Chinese capital by the previous Liberal government under former prime minister Justin Trudeau.
He also left the door open to negotiating a free trade deal with the hardline communist government or lifting tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles that Canada imposed in 2024 at the same time as the United States.
“Relationships rebuild over time when they have been … when they have changed, when they’ve changed for the worse. And so we have a lot of areas on which we can build,” Carney said.
He noted that China is Canada’s second-largest trading partner, the second-largest economy in the world and one of the most influential nations on the world stage.
That isn’t a guarantee, but the fact that Carney wouldn’t immediately reject the suggestion is already a bad sign for the U.S. If Canada decides to drop its tariffs on Chinese-built cars, that would be even worse for our auto industry, and ultimately, Republicans will have no one to blame but themselves.
