I want to begin by stating that Tim Hortons brews the best coffee in the world, that while I am not much of a beer drinker when I do partake of Beer Labatt’s Blue is my choice, and that after baseball, hockey is my favorite sport. Having said that, it should be noted that throughout history while Canada is our good neighbor to the north, rough periods appeared in our relationship, much as occurs in a good marriage or a solid long term friendship.

For instance, back in the Eighteenth Century after colonial troops from the thirteen original colonies did yeoman’s work in defeating French Canada the British imposed onerous taxes and regulations on the colonies to pay for the cost of defeating the French. It was these acts passed by the British Parliament between 1764 and 1774 that significantly contributed to the American Revolution. 

These acts included the Stamp Act, (1765) that imposed a direct tax on all printed materials in the colonies. The Sugar Act, (1764) aimed to raise revenue by taxing sugar and molasses imported into the colonies. The Townshend Acts, (1767) imposed taxes on goods like tea, glass, and paper imported into the colonies. The Tea Act, (1773) that guaranteed the British East India Company monopoly on tea sales to the colonies.  Finally there were the Intolerable Acts, (1774), that were a series of measures passed in response to the Boston Tea Party that closed the port of Boston to all trade. It was the harshness and unfairness of these British acts that led to the Revolution.

At nearly the same time in 1774 the British passed the Quebec Act that established the structure of the government of Canada, allowed French Canadian Catholics to freely practice their Catholic faith, allowed Catholics to hold public office and extended the territorial boundaries of Quebec to include the territory of five future states effectively blocking expansion of the original colonies to the west..  The Quebec Act, the taxes levied to pay for the war and the fact that during the Revolution Canadiens, either remained neutral or supported the British Crown colored American feeling about Canada for some time.

The War of 1812 was brought about by several factors, particularly British infringement on United States maritime rights. Canada, a British Colony just across the Niagara River, became a primary battlefield of the war because the Americans saw it as a way of striking back at the British while possibly bringing Canada into the Union. Canadians joined with the British to defend Canada and drove back American attacks.

During the American Civil War Between 33,000 and 55,000 men from Canada enlisted in the war, almost all of them fighting for Union forces.  It is however interesting to note that during this period the Lincoln administration in the person of Secretary of State William H. Seward, expressed an official interest in annexing Canada. Seward believed in manifest destiny and while he seems to have preferred to acquire territory through negotiation rather than aggression, Canadians were not wholly assured of America’s peaceful intentions. In fact, Seward did propose an invasion of Canada, but Lincoln declared he would fight only one war at a time.

After that U.S. Canadian relations settled down as we fought on the same sides in World War I, and World War II. I remember growing up in the 1950s and 60s that our relations with Canada wasn’t something you paid much attention to. Canada was our friend to the north where our service personnel served together on the DEW Line in the Canadian Arctic and manned fighter jets in the defense of North America.

Then Donald Trump and Justin Trudeau appeared on the political scene. Trump whose outlook and methods were formed as a property developer in New York was elected President in November 2016. Trudeau’s father had been a Liberal Party PM, and the magic of his last name was likely the reason the son was elected party leader and later became Prime Minister.

President Trump adopted an “America First” policy while Trudeau seems to see himself as a globalist who favored diplomacy and global cooperation. With different personalities and approaches they never hit it off. After taking office Trump adopted an “America First” policy and criticized Canada’s protectionist trade practices and imposed tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. In response to these tariffs, Trudeau announced retaliatory measures, leading Trump to label him as “dishonest and weak” and “mild and meek” after the 2018 G7 summit and “two-faced” following a video taken at a NATO summit where world leaders seemed to be seemed to be having a laugh at an absent Trump’s expense. 

Trump also pressed Canada to increase defense spending to 2% Gross Domestic Product and matters were not helped when Trump, with justification, criticized Canada for having “just about the lowest” defense spending among NATO members. 

Trump’s remarks about annexing Canada were probably ill advised but were nowhere as serious as Secretary Seward’s desire to annex Canada in 1862 and were only intended as a joke not an actual threat to Canadian sovereignty.

Recently the rhetoric between Canadian and American officials has become harsher. While some on both sides have been upset by this I see it differently. It’s more like the younger brother who finally gets tired of his older brother’s attitude toward him and finally lays it on the line and tells his older brother that he will no longer accept being treated as he has been. The ensuing talk is upsetting to outsiders but now both brothers know where they stand, and the older brother gains respect for his younger brother. In the end Canada and the United States will settle their differences as we always have.

Thomas Kirkpatrick Sr. is a Silver Creek resident. Send comments to editorial@observertoday.com.