White House advisors called Ottawa to urge PM Trudeau to help talk Trump down

[Tennis]

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/ca...r-nafta-threat

White House staff called the Prime Minister’s Office last month to urge Justin Trudeau to persuade President Donald Trump not to tear up the North American Free Trade Agreement, according to multiple Canadian government sources.

The unconventional diplomatic manoeuvre — approaching the head of a foreign government to influence your own boss — proved decisive, as Trump thereafter abandoned his threat to pull out of NAFTA unilaterally, citing the arguments made by Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto as pivotal.

But the incident highlights the difficulties faced by governments all over the world when it comes to dealing with a president as volatile as Trump.

On Wednesday, April 26, the Washington Post, Politico, CNN and the New York Times published stories saying that sources within the White House were considering a draft executive order to cancel NAFTA. The rumour knocked almost two per cent off the Mexican peso and a third of a cent off the loonie.

Media reports in Washington suggested a debate was underway within the White House about how aggressively to move on the reshaping of NAFTA, with hardliners pushing Trump to withdraw unilaterally before his 100th day in office. According to Politico, Peter Navarro, the head of Trump’s National Trade Council, and White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon drafted an executive order that, if signed, would have triggered the withdrawal process. It was unclear according to those reports whether the draft order was prepared as a negotiating tactic or in the hopes Trump might actually move forward with it.

The President was said to be persuaded by the argument to kill what he has repeatedly called the “worst trade deal ever,” despite concerns about the economic disruption that might result.

According to Canadian government sources, White House advisers pushing a more cautious approach then called Ottawa to ask for Trudeau’s assistance.

“You never know how much of it is theatre, but it didn’t feel that way,” said one senior Canadian diplomatic source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. “Maybe they’re just learning how to be a government. At least they were open to the conversation, and that stopped them doing something rash and destructive.”

Trudeau called Trump late that afternoon, and around the same time Nieto and Trump spoke by phone. By 7 p.m., the White House had issued a statement saying the President had agreed not to terminate NAFTA.

The diplomatic source suggested that the decision to reconsider was pay-off for the relationships that have been built between the Prime Minister’s Office and the White House.

Pretty cool. It's great to see that a wise decision was made in the end thanks to counsel from PM Trudeau. Hopefully the first of many?

[Glorious Leader]

Unfortunately we have our own dumb ass right wing.fucktards to deal with as well and im sure they will spin this as a negative against the pmo

[Tennis]

Can't spin standing up for Canadians. It's what a good leader does.

[Masark]

Can't spin standing up for Canadians.

Sure you can. Just assume ideology>country and it follows naturally to defend Trumpites over Canadians of other parties.

[Independent voter]

It's like this lumber tarrif thing.

The exchange rate between the US and Canadian dollars make Canadian lumber very cheap in the US, it's killing our lumber industry.

However the housing contractors love it, cheap Canadian lumber means more money in their pockets so you can bet their organization is doing everything they can to get Trump to back off.

[Powerogue]

So we've gotten to such a point in not listening to each other that it's more practical to phone up a foreign government leader and try to convince them to do it instead?

How did it get this bad?

[Mormolyce]

The White House went over the President's head.

Ahahahahahahaha!

[Sky High]

I can only imagine the outrage if this was Obama and not Trump. I guess the bar is just that low with him.

[De Lupe]

So we've gotten to such a point in not listening to each other that it's more practical to phone up a foreign government leader and try to convince them to do it instead?

How did it get this bad?

We put a child in the White House, that's how.

[Mormolyce]

With the events that happened today, Trump has a lot more to worry about than cheap lumber.

He can't get cheap wood or easy D, no wonder he's frustrated.

[GreenJesus]

See? Deep state. lul. Contacting a foreign power without the authority of the head.

[Masark]

We put a child in the White House, that's how.

Children are typically capable of learning and willing to do so.

[Krawu]

Seriously? They had to call a foreign leader to play the adult have a serious word with Cheeto-Man because they couldn't handle him any more and it actually worked?

Fuck, at this point you can't really let Trump receive any more state visits. If Trudeau was able to turn Trumps opinion around and make him break a major campaign promise in a single phone call imagine what happens when you put him in a room with someone like Putin face to face. He'd come out with Russian citizenship.

[Traveler Voltin]

Children are typically capable of learning and willing to do so.

You mean like the left?
Oh wait they threw a tantrum

[cubby]

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/ca...r-nafta-threat




Pretty cool. It's great to see that a wise decision was made in the end thanks to counsel from PM Trudeau. Hopefully the first of many?

No WAY. That is fantastic on so many levels.

Trump just continues to get worse and worse. Now his own staff is seeking out people to help him.

- - - Updated - - -

You mean like the left?
Oh wait they threw a tantrum

I'm not sure you read that before you posted. We're talking about a single man-child in the form of our idiot President. Not a group. An individual. Who can't apparently ever grow up, even when handed literally the keys to the kingdom.

How can you not see what a universal train wreck Drumpf turned out to be?

[Traveler Voltin]

No WAY. That is fantastic on so many levels.

Trump just continues to get worse and worse. Now his own staff is seeking out people to help him.

- - - Updated - - -



I'm not sure you read that before you posted. We're talking about a single man-child in the form of our idiot President. Not a group. An individual. Who can't apparently ever grow up, even when handed literally the keys to the kingdom.

You're just shouting into your own echo-chamber at this point. How can you not see what a universal train wreck Drumpf turned out to be? How can Trumpers be so obtuse?

The left will never understand why they lost

[cubby]

The left will never understand why they lost

Actually, it seems the world will never understand how Trump won.

[purebalance]

No WAY. That is fantastic on so many levels.

Trump just continues to get worse and worse. Now his own staff is seeking out people to help him.

- - - Updated - - -



I'm not sure you read that before you posted. We're talking about a single man-child in the form of our idiot President. Not a group. An individual. Who can't apparently ever grow up, even when handed literally the keys to the kingdom.

How can you not see what a universal train wreck Drumpf turned out to be?

Because the left has become an even bigger train wreck and still can't see it.

[ati87]

The left will never understand why they lost

people know, a combination of a archaic system, onpopulair candidate (clinton) and a silly letter a week before election.

And not because ''OMG @@#@#@#$ PC and @#*#&@^#@ SJWS

[Shibito]

And tennisface keeps thinking canada is relevant.