Source: The Standard
On a windy hotel rooftop, positioned between the Rainbow Bridge, American and Canadian Horseshoe Falls, Liberal Leader Mark Carney was unequivocal in his belief the long-standing relationship between Canada and the United States is over.
But there’s an opportunity for a “better,” new economic and security relationship, he said at Sheraton Fallsview Hotel in Niagara Falls Friday.
“This is a difficult time for Canadians, especially in border communities where the ties are even deeper — ties of blood and workplaces,” said Carney.
“The situation is very fluid. It will not fully go back to where it was. The U.S. has changed its priorities — this is not a little thing and we have to be clear-eyed about it.
“What is going to get the best result for Canadians is to be strong and the best way for us to be strong is to be strong at home, so our focus is on building at home and building a new relationship, a new economic security relationship with the United States. It will be better than it is now, but it won’t go back to what it was before.”
Carney later visited Canalside Restaurant in Port Colborne for lunch with incumbent Niagara South Liberal candidate Vance Badawey and his wife, Leanna. He mingled with patrons and Liberal supporters.
He also faced several protesters in the street outside the restaurant, with one carrying an “F—- Carney” flag.
In Niagara Falls, Carney described the current situation between Canada and U.S., created by U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade policies, as the “biggest crisis of our lifetime.”
“Canada and America have been friends for a long time and like any sets of friends, we don’t always see eye to eye, but when push has come to shove in the past, we’ve always been there for each other,” he said.
“For over 150 years, we found a way and when those differences have come along, we’ve found … in a Canadian fashion to disagree agreeably.”
Carney said the “kinship” between the two countries is symbolized in Niagara Falls, where they share a river and two cities with the same name.
“We share a stake in each other’s success — Niagara Falls and between Canada and the United States. Unfortunately, that attitude, that approach is changing and it wasn’t us that has done the change,” he said.
Carney said Trump is trying to “fundamentally restructure” the international trading system.
“In the process, he is literally rupturing the global economy and he’s putting in jeopardy … the livelihoods of millions of Canadians, including in communities such as Niagara Falls,” he said.
Carney said it’s a “tragedy” the long-standing relationship between Canada and the U.S. is “over.”
“But it’s also a reality and the key question in this election is who is best placed to respond, who will stand up to President Trump, who will stand up for Canadians and who will manage through this chaos, this chaos that has been created across that border, this chaos that’s coming into our lives — not just manage through it but to create a better future for all?” he said.
Carney said he has managed crises for nearly all his professional life.
“I helped us manage through the 2008 financial crisis. I helped guide the U.K. through the Brexit turmoil. I think I know not just what it takes to survive a crisis, get through a crisis but what it takes to emerge stronger than before.”
Carney said when in a crisis, “you don’t hope for the best, you have to plan for the worst. In this current crisis, it means preparing for America’s threats to our very sovereignty. It’s clear the U.S. wants our land, wants our resources, wants our water, wants our country.”
He said Trump is trying to “break” Canada, so that American “owns us. That will never happen. Canada is not America. It will never be part of America. But we need a plan to deal with this new reality. A plan provides direction in the fog of uncertainty, a plan provides purpose, it rallies the team, it drives action.”
Carney said in a crisis, leaders need to act with “overwhelming force. We need that force to overcome the anxieties that I think we all feel. We need that force to break through uncertainty and you need that force to replace what a crisis takes away,” he said.
“It’s said that there are no atheists in foxholes, there should be no libertarians in a crisis.”
Carney said what happens in a crisis, is the private sector “retreats,” which means governments need to “step up” and incentivize private investment.
“Canadians are ready to step up and Canadians don’t want to just resist, Canadians are determined to win and our task over the next weeks, months and years is to think big and to act bigger,” he said and added he will unveil his platform Saturday.
“That’s what my government’s platform, our strategy, our plan will do because we are Canada — we’re a free, sovereign, independent and ambitious country. We have agency, we have power, we’re masters of our own moment.”