Donald Trump had his ass handed to him by Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney in an excellent speech given in Davos

 

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Prime Minister Mark Carney Is the Crisis Manager Canada Needs

By Stephen Maher published in Macleans Magazine. 

 Over the last few months, Mark Carney seemed to drop his elbows. He gave up on counter-tariffs, expressed regret over Doug Ford’s pro-trade commercial and kidded around about sports in the Oval Office. For a while, it seemed like his strategy for dealing with Trump was a performative bromance.

But something changed. Trump’s musing about annexing Greenland maybe❓ Or a surge of confidence from Canada’s new deal with China❓ In any case, Mr. Carney’s speech at Davos was a historic one, positioning Canada as the leader of a middle-power alliance. “If we’re not at the table,” he said in an instantly famous line, “we’re on the menu.” 

Stephen Maher, who wrote a profile about Carney for Maclean’s last year, calls Carney’s speech “a masterful piece of persuasion, calm and carefully reasoned.”

Maher says: “At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr. Carney showed backbone at a time when the Europeans were being forced to demonstrate that they have spines. The impact was without precedent in Canadian history.”

The speech, which Mr. Carney apparently wrote himself, was a masterful piece of persuasion, calm and carefully reasoned. 

He started with an anecdote from a 1978, essay by Václav Havel—then a Czech dissident, later the first post-communist leader of the Czech Republic—about a grocer hanging a sign in his shop window reading “Workers of the world unite.” This sign in the window, in all the windows, meant that Czechs were “living within a lie.” Carney connected the horrors of Soviet communism with current American imperialism—a message that landed with great force in a room full of Europeans astonished and frightened by the bizarre demands of the American president.

As the central banker for Canada and then the United Kingdom, Carney became comfortable giving speeches at the World Economic Forum and wherever else Davos people gathered.

While I was writing my profile, I made myself watch his speeches and panel appearances—which I found dull, since they mostly had to do with the important but dreary world of bank regulation. It was striking, though, that the other economists, bankers and financial journalists were not bored when he spoke. They hung on every word. Carney was for years the most interesting person in every room at Davos, because he was the smartest person in every room, with deeper insight into the world financial system than literally anyone else alive.

When he entered politics—a demanding career shift to take at 60—I wasn’t certain that those skills would be transferable. Could he connect with people? Could he hide his arrogance? In other circumstances, it might not have worked, but in the fearful atmosphere that prevailed after the second election of Donald Trump, Carney was the calm and experienced crisis manager that Canadians needed.

In a way, Carney has been preparing for that moment for his whole life. Since he was a nerdy, hockey-loving Edmonton teenager hitting the books, he’s had his nose to the grindstone, mastering numbers but also, eventually, communications and power dynamics.

When he entered politics—a demanding career shift to take at 60—I wasn’t certain that those skills would be transferable. Could he connect with people❓Could he hide his arrogance❓ In other circumstances, it might not have worked, but in the fearful atmosphere that prevailed after the second election of Donald Trump, Carney was the calm and experienced crisis manager that Canadians needed.

At Davos, Mr. Carney warned the rest of the world against the “performance of sovereignty while accepting subordination,” showed backbone at a time when the Europeans were being forced to demonstrate that they have spines. The impact was without precedent in Canadian history, says Raymond Blake, author of Canada’s Prime Ministers and the Shaping of a National Identity. “I cannot think of a speech from any other prime minister that had such an impact,” he told me on Wednesday. “Those are rare opportunities to capture international attention, and Carney knew that. He did not disappoint.”

But, apparently, he did disappoint Donald Trump, who responded afterward by saying, with typical imperial narcissism, that “Canada lives because of the United States.” Canadians may come to regret Carney’s leadership if Trump rips up CUSMA (the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement) and destroys our economy, but do we want to live on our knees❓💥🤢

Yet, for the near future, Carney can expect a political boost, which will likely translate, after (right wing) Pierre Poilievre survives his leadership review, in a few more floor crossings, giving him the majority he wants. Poilievre, who has been jammed ever since Trump was re-elected, is struggling to keep the pro-Trump and anti-Trump wings of his base happy, which is a problem he will be dealing with so long as Trump is in office.

In the long run, the triumphant speech will not ensure Carney will be a successful prime minister. Lester Pearson, who filled Canadian hearts with pride when he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957, eventually found that laurels on the world stage did not translate to long-term political success. Everything depends on whether Carney can produce economic results for Canadians. For the moment, it still seems clear that he’s the best-placed person to try.

Maine Writer postscript- Given Mr. Carney's economic experience and international respect, I foresee him filling the leadership void created by the failed Donald Trump corrupt American administration. Merci! Thank you Mr. Carney.