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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Adam Gabbatt

How to lose Trump’s trade war: test Canada’s resolve with threats to hockey sticks

Side-by-side of two men
Donald Trump in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on 21 August and Mark Carney in Quebec, Canada, on 24 August. Photograph: Saul Loeb,andrej Ivanov/AFP/Getty Images

Earlier this year, a survey found that Canada, along with Switzerland, was the best-liked country in the world. We all know this kind of polling is about as scientific as a high school popularity contest, but at least anecdotally, Canadians have a reputation for being friendly and welcoming, respectful and polite. Many people would find it difficult to dislike Canadians.

But not Donald Trump, who in a “hold my beer” moment this week demonstrated that he, at least, finds it easy to resent Canadians. The US president called the country “difficult and unreasonable”, and in a particularly hysterical moment, threatened to rename a lake, after trade talks collapsed.

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