Trump floats claims for Canada, Greenland, and the Panama Canal (Update: Trump wants Gaza too) (5 Viewers)

[superchuck500]

Oh, but he's only joking - well, maybe, so they say. Or sort of joking with Canada, and maybe not joking with Greenland - saying that "ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity" doesn't sound like a joke . . . and um, not sure about what the about Panama Canal thing is?

Trump Jokes Canada Becoming 51st US State 'A Great Idea'

US President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday it would be "a great idea" for Canada to become the 51st US state, teasing on social media that "many Canadians" welcome the idea, as Ottawa is wracked by a political crisis.

www.barrons.com

Trump threatens to try to take back the Panama Canal. Panama's president balks at the suggestion

Trump didn't explain how such a takeover would be possible, given that the U.S. relinquished control of the canal to Panama in 1999 under a treaty signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1977.

apnews.com

 

[MT15]

Mike Levin is a Democratic US Rep from California. And his framing was bad in that last sentence.

 

[Optimus Prime]

On a warm March weekend in the American border town of Lewiston, New York, bakery owner Aimee Loughran is putting the finishing touches on a special order: a state trooper badge-shaped cake for a local officer’s retirement party.

It should be the last task of a busy Saturday at her Just Desserts shop, which sits just 20 minutes north of the rushing waters of Niagara Falls.

Dotted with cafes, restaurants and historic buildings from the 1800s, the Lewiston strip is usually catnip for tourists, including the Canadians whose homes can be seen from the banks of the nearby Niagara River.

Local demand for Loughran’s cake and pastries, however, has not made up for a dramatic slump in tourist spending, triggered by a now year-long boycott by Lewiston’s northern neighbours.

Angered by Donald Trump’s hefty tariffs and annexation threats – and compounded by fears of border detentions and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdowns – Canadians have stayed away, refusing to spend their hard-earned dollars in local border towns like Lewiston.

“All of our sales on the strip have gone way down,” Loughran said. That has personally led to a 30% drop in revenues at her bakery, forcing the 41-year-old to cut spending, both at work and at home. “Especially as a single mom, it’s very tough.”

Lewiston’s once-bustling antiques sellers are also suffering. Judy, a 73-year-old former teacher who co-owns Antique to Chic with eight other enthusiasts, is losing hope that sales – which dropped 20% last year – might rebound anytime soon.

“I’m angry that the Canadians don’t want to come here any more. And I don’t blame them. I was thinking yesterday, I wish I didn’t live in this country, because I don’t like it anymore. I don’t like the news that I’m hearing. I don’t like the [Iran] war … It’s too much for me to handle.”

The Canadian backlash is a worry for businesses and politicians across the Niagara region, who have historically relied on visitors from provinces including Ontario and Quebec to shop, sightsee, gamble and watch Buffalo Bills football games. And Niagara’s pain is cascading throughout the country, with Canadians thinking twice about crossing the border and planning trips to the rest of the US.


And with no warming of relations between Washington and Ottawa in sight, and with Trump continuing to call the prime minister, Mark Carney, a future “governor” of a future state of Canada, border town locals are trying to adapt.

For Niagara Falls’ regional tourism agency, Destination Niagara, that has meant making the tough decision to stop advertising to Canadians entirely and instead focus on luring Americans from other states. “Our dollars are so limited,” John Percy, Destination Niagara chief executive, said. “They’re important to us, but we [have to] concentrate on trying to bring visitors in.”

Niagara Falls has heavily relied on Canadian day-trippers and weekend shoppers, particularly outside of tourist season. A favourable foreign exchange rate and much lower sales tax meant Canadians would cross the border regularly for cheaper essentials like milk, bread and gas, as well as to go shopping at US-brand stores.……..

‘Canadians don’t want to come here any more’: anger over Trump squeezes US border businesses

Shops and restaurants once bustling with tourists now struggle for survival as Canadians think twice about crossing the border

www.theguardian.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

 

[Optimus Prime]

In the weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump sparked a trade war with his punishing tariffs, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada's "old relationship" with the U.S. would be "over" soon — and now there's some hard evidence that is indeed happening.

CBC News reviewed datasets on travel, trade, shopping and culture, and all of them paint a similar picture: Canadians are taking a big step back from the U.S.

Months after Trump launched his trade broadside and prompted a national backlash with his 51st state taunts, the Canadian travel boycott is still in full swing with many shunning cross-border travel, prompting airlines to cancel U.S. flights and curb capacity.

Canadian exports to the U.S. have dropped off while those to non-U.S. foreign countries have surged — a pattern that could accelerate further as the government races to cut new trade deals and help businesses capitalize on the ones that have already been signed.

The grassroots "Buy Canadian" campaign has fundamentally reshaped parts of the retail landscape with grocers scrapping some U.S. products entirely while adding dozens of domestic suppliers to fill the void.

There are even signs Canadian cultural consumption patterns have shifted in the wake of Trump's economic assault with viewership and sales up for homegrown content. Canadian-authored books in particular are getting a big lift.

Polls suggest support for some Canadian institutions is also on the rise as more people shun U.S.-style republicanism and back the monarchy, especially after King Charles's high-profile visit.

Carney has described Trump's actions as a "rupture" to the global order that demands a new way of thinking. Canadians themselves are leading the way.

And the Americans are noticing.……..

Canadians are taking a big step back from the U.S. — and here's the data to prove it​

 

[camdudetenger2018]

in the words of pam blondie

 

[Optimus Prime]

A new research tool that tracks cell phone activity has found a 42% drop in visitors from Canada to big metropolitan areas in the US that is much higher than official border-crossing data, suggesting Canadians during the second Trump administration are avoiding US cities in particular.

Researchers from the University of Toronto said the tool showed a “year-over-year median decline of approximately 42% in Canadian visits to US metropolitan areas – significantly higher than official border-crossing data, which showed a roughly 25% decline”.

The economies of US border towns reliant on Canadian traffic have been slammed as their northerly neighbours think twice about travelling to the US, put off by immigration enforcement operations and border crackdowns, and anger at Donald Trump’s tariffs and his threats of making Canada “the 51st state”.

But the researchers said that their data also showed steep declines in Canadian visitors to cities, in states such as New York, New Hampshireand Vermont.

It also found declines to major tourist destinations such as Las Vegas and Walt Disney World, and to winter recreation areas, including in Florida – typically a central destination for overwintering Canadians.

The researchers analyzed Canadian devices travelling to US metro areas between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2026.

As potential explanations of why the 42% figure is so much higher than border crossing estimates, they noted that cell phone data also captured freight traffic, which border crossings do not, and could also track changes in Canadians previously living in the US who left.

On the blog that accompanies the tool, the researchers said they were struck by “the marked decline in visits to large metropolitan economies”.……..

Researchers find 42% drop in Canadians visiting US metro areas amid Trump 2.0

Data from University of Toronto suggests Canadians are avoiding US cities during the second Trump administration

www.theguardian.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

Greenlandic and Danish officials have reportedly grown worried about President Donald Trump’s interest in exerting influence over Greenland through U.S. military expansion and foreign investment interference.

Over the last four months, senior Trump administration officials have held closed-door talks with negotiators from Greenland and Denmark, which oversees Greenland’s foreign affairs, about the future of the semi-autonomous island, the New York Timesreported Monday.

The meetings, which began after Trump threatened to take over Greenland, sparking an international furor, center on the president’s desire for the U.S. to take a more active role on the island because its position in the Arctic Circle makes it a valuable place to bolster U.S. military presence, dig for natural resources and control shipping lanes.

But Greenlandic officials are reportedly not pleased with the proposed expansion, which includes allowing the U.S. to approve or reject foreign countries’ investment deals in Greenland to box out China or Russia.……..

Trump still secretly trying to exert more control over Greenland: report

President has expressed interest in bolstering US presence in Greenland because its location in the Arctic Circle makes it valuable for national security and natural resources

www.independent.co.uk

 

[bird]

Greenlandic and Danish officials have reportedly grown worried about President Donald Trump’s interest in exerting influence over Greenland through U.S. military expansion and foreign investment interference.

Over the last four months, senior Trump administration officials have held closed-door talks with negotiators from Greenland and Denmark, which oversees Greenland’s foreign affairs, about the future of the semi-autonomous island, the New York Timesreported Monday.

The meetings, which began after Trump threatened to take over Greenland, sparking an international furor, center on the president’s desire for the U.S. to take a more active role on the island because its position in the Arctic Circle makes it a valuable place to bolster U.S. military presence, dig for natural resources and control shipping lanes.

But Greenlandic officials are reportedly not pleased with the proposed expansion, which includes allowing the U.S. to approve or reject foreign countries’ investment deals in Greenland to box out China or Russia.……..

Trump still secretly trying to exert more control over Greenland: report

President has expressed interest in bolstering US presence in Greenland because its location in the Arctic Circle makes it valuable for national security and natural resources

www.independent.co.uk

I get the interest. I also think it would be possible to reach an agreement (as opposed to a forking “deal”) regarding security in the arctic. The problem lies with Trump and MAGAfied Republicans. The world to them, it appears, is a zero-sum game. That is not how world political negotiations work.

 

[Dragon]

I get the interest. I also think it would be possible to reach an agreement (as opposed to a forking “deal”) regarding security in the arctic. The problem lies with Trump and MAGAfied Republicans. The world to them, it appears, is a zero-sum game. That is not how world political negotiations work.

It is not about security. It is about gold, minerals and oil and those stupid right wing billionaires that dream of creating a independent city state on Greenland