Doug Ford did some potentially useful things on Tuesday in Washington in his capacity as premier of Ontario. He spoke in the morning to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which is nothing if not influential on Capitol Hill. It spent a whopping $76.3 million on lobbying last year, behind only the National Association of Realtors, according to the political-spending research group Open Secrets. (The National Rifle Association spent just over $2 million, to give you an idea of the scale.)
The pitch, as ever: Canada and the United States should be working together to secure our magnificently intertwined economic and security interests, not least against our common enemy in China. Ford calls the concept “Fortress Am-Can.”
Instead of a partnership, we’re getting chaos, apparently for its own sake. ”The world is watching carefully. A lot of the world is saying. ‘we’re next’,” Ford said. Meanwhile China, he argued, is “sitting back and laughing” at the instability Trump is creating. “China’s … thinking we couldn’t ask for a better plan than this.”
Somewhat provocatively, Ford suggested Trump doesn’t have all the support he thinks he has for his trade war against Canada. “I’ve met and spoken with senators, congressmen and women (and) governors from every region of America and from both sides of the aisle. And I’ll tell you what they say, (though they) won’t say it publicly.
“They say, ‘this is the craziest thing I’ve ever heard’. No matter if it is a Democrat or a Republican, I have yet to hear one elected official down here and say, ‘that’s a great idea. Let’s attack Canada economically’.”
Just how many important Americans heard Ford’s Tuesday-morning message is an open question. Two Queen’s Park reporters on site, CTV’s Judy Trinh and CBC’s Mike Crawley, reported that they were struggling to find a single proper American (as opposed to Canadian) businessperson in the room to interview.
But later in the day Ford was scheduled to meet with Michigan Rep. Lisa McClain and North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer, both Republican Trump allies representing border states, and thus (at least in theory) unable to ignore the potentially devastating effects of Trump’s tariffs on American workers and consumers. (Canada is the No. 1 export market for both states, and many others besides.)
If chaos is Trump’s primary goal, as it seems to be, then it might not make much difference. But border-state Republicans are exactly the ears Canadian politicians should want to be bending. (Maybe whisky-state Republicans too: Republican Kentucky Rep. Andy Barr, another staunch Trump ally, pledges nevertheless to “advocate for our bourbon producers to ensure they are not unfairly impacted.” Ford can (and briefly did) order liquor-store shelves cleared of Yankee hooch with a snap of his fingers.)
The image Ford always wants to project is that he’s a “business guy,” as he told the Chamber of Commerce audience — adding that he’s “not a politician,” which is kind of a strange thing to say when you’ve been premier of Ontario for seven years and you’ve just triggered an election in the middle of an unprecedented crisis.
And that’s the weird bit about this junket, which continues Wednesday and comes roughly halfway through a weird provincial campaign. Ford was only semi-officially in D.C. in his capacity as premier of Ontario. The Progressive Conservative party campaign paid for the private jet and the hotels, we are told, though other expenses may fall on the taxpayer … which would be perfectly fine, of course, if there weren’t an election on.
If Ford is so indispensable to Ontario’s economic prosperity, why would Captain Business roll the dice on an election with 18 months left in his majority government?
Ford’s opponents are in a tough spot, campaigning to win an election that they insist shouldn’t be happening. They can only hope some kind of backlash will develop — a fate that occasionally befalls politicians deemed overly opportunistic, though it’s very difficult to predict or foment. Ford’s Washington trip certainly lends more credence to their charge. Especially since the parties disagree so little on how to handle the Trump threat, Ontario elections really should be fought in Ontario.
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