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'Where does this idiocy stop_' Bob Rae on latest Trump threat · INSIGHT TODAY

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Question we are in a politically significant moment in canadian
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  Speaker 1: history and to sort of understand the significance of it
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  Speaker 1: it can help to have an elder statesman if he
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  Speaker 1: doesn't remind me calling him that we've reached bob ray
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  Speaker 1: former canadian ambassador to the united nations bob good morning
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  Speaker 1: to you.
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  Speaker 2: Uh just for the record and for your viewers and
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  Speaker 2: listeners i'm 78 years old so you guys decide whether
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  Speaker 2: that qualifies or disqualifies me as an.
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  Speaker 3: Elder but you're a young 78 by the way My
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  Speaker 3: health is good, so don't worry about it.
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  Speaker 1: No, that's great to hear. Listen, Bob, look, you have
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  Speaker 1: been around for a while. I don't think you'll mind
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  Speaker 1: me saying that. When you think about this moment, if
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  Speaker 1: we just try to zoom out, what is this moment
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  Speaker 1: right now?
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  Speaker 2: Well, there's nothing really in modern history that compares to
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  Speaker 2: it in terms of the existential attack on our sovereignty
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  Speaker 2: and on our economy by our largest trading partner and
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  Speaker 2: historic ally And so you can't, you know, point to this.
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  Speaker 2: We haven't faced a presidency that was more hostile to
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  Speaker 2: our country in.
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  Speaker 3: Decades, indeed centuries. I mean, tell me the time.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, we really look at the modern era as
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  Speaker 2: being when Franklin Roosevelt was elected in 1932. And he
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  Speaker 2: had a very positive attitude to Canada and he lowered
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  Speaker 2: trade barriers and And we established a very powerful alliance
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  Speaker 2: going into the Second World War with them.
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  Speaker 3: So that's the modern history. That's the modern time.
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  Speaker 2: You know, during the previous administrations, we had high tariffs.
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  Speaker 3: We had smooth holly or whatever. But we had lots
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  Speaker 3: of challenges.
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  Speaker 2: And we were living from Confederation onwards, we were living
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  Speaker 2: in a period of relatively high tariffs and protectionism on
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  Speaker 2: both sides.
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  Speaker 3: So trade wars were not, in a sense, new.
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  Speaker 2: We haven't had free trade in softwood lumber with the
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  Speaker 2: United States ever because their industry is very protected. But
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  Speaker 2: looking at it more strategically and globally, this is not
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  Speaker 2: just about trade. This is not only a trade issue
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  Speaker 2: and an economic issue. This is an issue about our sovereignty,
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  Speaker 2: the level of understanding within an administration of how our
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  Speaker 2: country operates and works, the foundational principles of our constitution
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  Speaker 2: around language and around bilingualism, The fact that we've been
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  Speaker 2: manufacturing cars since the 1890s, that we've now developed since
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  Speaker 2: the 1960s, an integrated market that's been accepted by the industry,
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  Speaker 2: by governments, by consumers, by everybody. I mean, what the
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  Speaker 2: Trump administration is doing is displaying a level of ignorance
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  Speaker 2: and malevolence towards Canada and Canadians and Canadian economic interests
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  Speaker 2: that we have not seen in many, many lifetimes.
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  Speaker 3: This is an historic mess that we're in right now.
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  Speaker 3: And we it may be resolved. It may be the
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  Speaker 3: president will change his mind.
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  Speaker 2: He may say, you know, well, that was this year
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  Speaker 2: and I was that that was last week.
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  Speaker 3: This is this week. We don't know that.
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  Speaker 2: But we should not underestimate how unprecedented this this moment is.
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  Speaker 1: Bob, notwithstanding everything you've said, I do wonder, you know,
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  Speaker 1: when you talk about the auto sector in particular, it
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  Speaker 1: has been around since the 1890s. It is highly integrated.
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  Speaker 1: We've heard that over and over. But is there a
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  Speaker 1: danger in us?
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  Speaker 3: It is true.
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  Speaker 1: But is there a danger in us as Canadians saying
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  Speaker 1: because it has been the past, it should be the
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  Speaker 1: future or he is being unfair and therefore it's his fault?
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  Speaker 1: Is there a risk in us as Canadians saying, thinking
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  Speaker 1: that the way in which we have dealt with the
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  Speaker 1: Americans on a trade level in the past necessitates that
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  Speaker 1: it will be that way in the future, that we
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  Speaker 1: are special status?
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  Speaker 2: Well, we came, both countries came to the conclusion that
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  Speaker 2: a more open trading relationship made sense for both sides.
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  Speaker 3: And that's been in place since the 1980s.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, I was not in favor of the, I
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  Speaker 2: campaigned against the original free trade agreement. But even under
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  Speaker 2: that free trade agreement, even before that time, we had
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  Speaker 2: relative integration of the auto industry. Now, David, I think
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  Speaker 2: you're underestimating the level of contempt that the people like
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  Speaker 2: Howard Lutnick and the president have for the idea that
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  Speaker 2: Canadians would be interested in making cars.
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  Speaker 3: We've been making cars. We have an.
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  Speaker 2: Industrial base in this country. We've had it for a very, very,
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  Speaker 2: very long time. Are we going to have to change, innovate,
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  Speaker 2: create new industries, look at different models of how we
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  Speaker 2: can go forward?
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely not.
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  Speaker 2: And that's something that, you know, I'm talking about in
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  Speaker 2: a book that I'm editing that's coming out next week.
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  Speaker 2: This is really going to be important for Canada to rethink.
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  Speaker 2: What Trump has done is he's created this rupture and
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  Speaker 2: he's forcing us to rethink how we do things. But
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  Speaker 2: I don't think we should underestimate this is not looking
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  Speaker 2: backwards at nostalgia. This is saying, you know, he's directly
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  Speaker 2: attacking the standard of living, the well-being and everything that
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  Speaker 2: goes with that of And I think we've been a
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  Speaker 2: pretty good neighbor to the United States over the last
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  Speaker 2: 200 years. And I'm, you know, frankly, fully in support
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  Speaker 2: of what the prime minister is trying to do here
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  Speaker 2: in response to this unprecedented breakdown in the relationship caused
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  Speaker 2: by the officials and the leaders of the United States
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  Speaker 2: of America.
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  Speaker 1: You mentioned your book. I've read the foreword of it.
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  Speaker 1: Someone gave me an advanced copy. I think I'm actually
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  Speaker 1: interviewing you again in a few days to talk about it.
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  Speaker 3: But....
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  Speaker 1: Listen, Bob, I look at what's happening today. The prime
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  Speaker 1: minister is going to or the Carney government is going
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  Speaker 1: to announce counter tariffs against the Americans. It's also going
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  Speaker 1: to announce supports for Canadian industries. And it's going to
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  Speaker 1: do so as economists are saying what Trump's latest tariffs
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  Speaker 1: will do is cut potentially a half percent percentage point
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  Speaker 1: out of the GDP. If you follow economics, you know
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  Speaker 1: that that's massive. It impacts the ability of just how
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  Speaker 1: much money the government has. Can you underscore the damage
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  Speaker 1: of these particular tariffs?
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  Speaker 2: Well, I learned a long time ago that this is
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  Speaker 2: all about people. We're talking about people, jobs, their livelihoods,
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  Speaker 2: their incomes. Many, many Canadians are living paycheck to paycheck.
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  Speaker 2: And if all of a sudden the paycheck isn't there,
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  Speaker 2: then that creates an immediate issue for us.
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  Speaker 3: We did this with COVID.
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  Speaker 2: We've done it under previous challenges under various tariffs affecting
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  Speaker 2: particular interests or community or businesses. But this is across
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  Speaker 2: the country affecting small business, people who've entirely lost a
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  Speaker 2: market that they've had for decades. hundreds of years in
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  Speaker 2: some cases of companies that have done business in a
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  Speaker 2: particular industry. So I think of this really as what's
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  Speaker 2: happening to people. And I think everyone wants the government
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  Speaker 2: to respond to help people out. Provincial governments, federal governments
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  Speaker 2: have to really cooperate. And we need to understand just
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  Speaker 2: how important it is to support each other as we
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  Speaker 2: go through this.
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  Speaker 3: Really difficult moment.
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  Speaker 2: I really think we need to reach out to our
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  Speaker 2: neighbors and just get through this tough, tough time. I
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  Speaker 2: think there's a lot of resilience in the country, and
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  Speaker 2: I think there's a lot of old-fashioned words, solidarity in
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  Speaker 2: the country. But we really have to reinforce the ties
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  Speaker 2: that bind us, and we have to do everything we
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  Speaker 2: can to sustain each other, to show kindness to one
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  Speaker 2: another and understanding. People are going through a tough time.
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  Speaker 2: For many Canadians, this is going to be a shock
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  Speaker 2: a really tough experience. And we all need to be
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  Speaker 2: showing the kind of sympathy and empathy and support for people.
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  Speaker 2: That has always been a hallmark of our national values
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  Speaker 2: and the way in which we treated one another.
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  Speaker 1: Bob, it's a good reminder for us all to think
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  Speaker 1: about the people who have lost jobs, who are going
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  Speaker 1: to lose jobs, who are going to lose businesses. All
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  Speaker 1: of that is going to happen. But it's, of course,
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  Speaker 1: all going to happen in the midst of the politics
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  Speaker 1: of it all. And as you and I have been talking,
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  Speaker 1: Donald Trump has been out on social media. I wonder
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  Speaker 1: if I could get your thoughts in real time. The
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  Speaker 1: United States is giving serious consideration, says Trump, to changing
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  Speaker 1: the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America, in that
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  Speaker 1: we don't expect doing much business with Ontario any longer.
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  Speaker 2: Well, he can call it whatever he wants, and I
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  Speaker 2: suppose we can call him whatever we want. But no
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  Speaker 2: matter what you say about it, it's still Lake Ontario.
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  Speaker 2: It has been on every map and every agreement and
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  Speaker 2: every understanding. Are we going to change the name of
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  Speaker 2: Lake Michigan? Where does this idiocy stop?
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  Speaker 3: I mean, really.
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  Speaker 2: The president should get a grip, and frankly, the people
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  Speaker 2: around the president should get their grip. We need to
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  Speaker 2: understand that there's a way out of this mess and
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  Speaker 2: there's a way off the precipice. But doing what they've
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  Speaker 2: done is not going to make it any better.
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  Speaker 1: Bob Ray, really great to chat with you. Good luck
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  Speaker 1: with the book.
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  Speaker 3: Thanks very much. Thank you very much. Good to talk
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  Speaker 3: to you.