Auchtoon!We’re a Team!
A trade war with …Canada? How? Why? And what the actual eff?
The answer, of course is quite simple: Donald Trump. He thinks the US/Canada trade relationship (like all relationships) is exactly like a 1970s New York City real estate deal and must be treated as such — lie, bluster, threaten, flatter, cajole, schmooze, lie, backstab, crime, belittle, complain, lie, stiff anybody who does actual work, and lie. And then ultimately create a “deal” that you have every intention of breaking at first convenience.
Now to understand why Trump sees the whole world this way, that answer is also quite simple: Roy Cohn. Cohn was Trump’s mentor/lawyer/fixer in his formative years of pulling himself up by the bootstraps of daddy’s fortune. Cohn is the thread that connects McCarthyism to Trumpism. May I suggest:
- Where’s My Roy Cohn? (documentary): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucOtZEu-SKw
- The Mentor: How Roy Cohn taught Donald Trump everything (article): https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/08/10/roy-cohn-profile (paywall)
- American Scoundrel: Roy Cohn’s Dark Journey from Joe McCarthy to Donald Trump (book): https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/American-Scoundrel/Kai-Bird/9781668031575
So before anybody comes at me about Canada possibly being the bad guy, tell me whether you know who Roy Cohn is and if you’re fine with the way he did business. If yes and yes, don’t expect a reply.
