Trumpism Is Backfiring | The Ezra Klein Show

The US-Canada relationship has shifted from a strategic partnership to an adversarial confrontation, driven by the Trump administration's protectionist trade policies and direct challenges to Canadian sovereignty. Chrystia Freeland, former Canadian Deputy Prime Minister and author of *Unreliable Boyfriend*, argues that these policies force allies to diversify their economic ties, inadvertently strengthening China’s geopolitical position. While Canada remains committed to defending its sovereignty through targeted, dollar-for-dollar trade retaliation, the broader global impact is a regression toward 19th-century-style power dynamics. Business elites, once resistant to such transactional, pay-to-play systems, now exhibit a dangerous capitulation that risks transforming the American economy into a kleptocracy. This shift threatens the stability of the rules-based international order, leaving democratic nations to navigate a world increasingly dominated by the competing interests of two predatory hegemons.