Trump's Trade Tantrum

 

I was going to write about something else today, but now that Trump has had his predictable tantrum over the above ad, perhaps this will serve as a wakeup call to Mark Carney and his government that any hope of securing a stable, long lasting trade agreement with the U.S. is but a sad delusion.

Trump had this to say:

U.S. President Donald Trump says he is terminating all trade negotiations with Canada over an advertisement by the Ontario government that uses the late U.S. president Ronald Reagan's own words to send an anti-tariff message to American audiences.

In a late-night post to his Truth Social platform, Trump attacked the ad, which he attributed to Canada rather than Ontario, as fraudulent and fake.

"TARIFFS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY, AND ECONOMY, OF THE U.S.A." Trump wrote. "Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED."

In a later post on Friday morning, Trump claimed “CANADA CHEATED AND GOT CAUGHT!!!"

"They fraudulently took a big buy ad saying that Ronald Reagan did not like Tariffs, when actually he LOVED TARIFFS FOR OUR COUNTRY, AND ITS NATIONAL SECURITY,” he wrote. “Canada has long cheated on Tariffs, charging our farmers as much as 400 [per cent]. Now they, and other countries, can’t take advantage of the U.S. any longer."

Clearly, the time is drawing very near when we have to assert both our trade independence and sovereignty, as the mad king will not stop until he has crushed both. Appeasement attempts have been an abject failure, and we need to assert the leverage we have: energy and rare earth minerals come readily to mind. 

The only bright spot that has emerged thus far, marking a departure from our usual supine reaction to the U.S., is the fact that there are going to be tangible penalties for both Stellantis and GM over their ceasing production at two plants in Ontario.

As CBC News first reported, the two multinational manufacturers will no longer be exempt from paying Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on as many U.S.-assembled vehicles as before.

The move is an attempt to put pressure on the companies to reinvest in Canadian production and workers to get this benefit back and avoid a big tariff bill.

"This action follows the automakers' unacceptable decision to scale back their manufacturing presences in Canada, directly breaching their commitments to the country and Canadian workers," the government said in a late-night media release.

And those penalties will be consequential.

 The ministers announced that effective immediately, the government is lowering the amount of American-assembled vehicles GM can import tariff-free by 24 per cent and cutting Stellantis's amount by 50 per cent.

"I think Canadians and the industry want the government to be tough on companies that don't own up to those partnerships that in many cases have been worth billions," said Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association.

"This is a great move."

While these tariffs will raise the Canadian price of GM and Stellantis vehicles, the obvious answer, and likely intent of the penalties, is for consumers to avoid buying their products. Since Canada represents a very important market for American cars, this move will hurt their profits considerably.

Perhaps we are finally deciding that we will no longer give our lunch money to the bully. 

 

UPDATED: All Is Not Lost?

There are many days when it's hard to feel hope. It is especially true when we think about the relentless bullying Canada receives at the hands of the mad king, Donald Trump. High tariffs, or high tariff threats, are  the only arrows in his small quiver, and our economy is suffering as a result. Sadly, in sharp contrast to the rousing, even bellicose, Liberal rhetoric of our last federal election, it seems we are turning over, with nary a word, our lunch money to the fascist and receiving nothing in return, just more abuse. 

Capitulation is never a pretty sight; however, Mark Carney refuses to get tough, even undoing counter-tariffs that he had imposed against the United States. The conclusion I draw is that we are giving up the fight. The soothing promise of better relations in the future with Trump (i.e., a renegotiation of the CUSMA agreement) seems to be the justification for our meekness, but there is nothing at all to suggest a winning strategy is at play here.

Jim Stanford says it doesn't have to be this way. The insufferable insistence by the U.S. that they alone will manufacture North American automobiles cannot be allowed to stand, and Stellantis's announcement that it will commit to a $13-billion American expansion at the expense of its Brampton works demands a strong Canadian response.

[T]he sheer gall of Stellantis’ action is shocking. It is breaking explicit commitments made to all its key partners: its own workers (in a binding labour contract), the federal and provincial governments (in binding covenants attached to various subsidies), and auto parts companies (which invested hundreds of millions in new tooling and capital for Brampton).

Despite the fact that our auto exports to the U.S. are down considerably, Stanford warns of something even worse:

If corporations respond to Trump’s extortion by shifting long-run investment to the U.S., Canada’s industrial capacity will be destroyed.

That’s why the Stellantis decision cannot stand. It would set a precedent that quickly spreads into all other high-tech industries.

It’s no coincidence these 232 tariffs are aimed at every one of Canada’s high-tech success stories: auto, trucks, steel and other basic metals, soon to be joined by aerospace, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, industrial machinery and more.

Strong government action is required:

Last year Stellantis sold 130,000 new vehicles here — most imported, most of those from the U.S. At present Stellantis mostly avoids Canada’s 25 per cent counter-tariff on vehicle imports from the U.S., thanks to a clever Canadian duty remission program.

 Ottawa should threaten full 25 per cent tariffs on all Stellantis imports (costing $1.5 billion per year), until it recommits to completing the tooling at Brampton, paying interim income support to its workforce and then fully utilizing the plant when it’s finished.

Pushing back against Stellantis will send a signal to companies in every other high-tech industry. If you want access to Canada’s market, Canada’s resources and Canada’s supply chains, you must maintain a full-fledged production footprint here.

That Stellantis made such the decision it did is a testament to the abject failure of the Carney government's appeasement efforts, which included

multiple concessions and personal flattery. While we talk nice, [Trump] races full-speed to steal as many high-tech, high-wage jobs as he can. 

I read this morning that Industry Minister Melanie Joly summoned Stellantis to  Ottawa to explain itself. I'm sure she gave them a stern talking to, and threatened unspecified 'consequences'. However, since the Carney government has raised appeasement to a national level, I have my deep doubts whether anything substantive will be done, and people like Jim Stanford will likely find that his strong, sound advice will be not be taken under advisement. 

UPDATE: Well, another one bites the dust. GM Canada has announced the closure of the Ingersol plant, putting 1200 people out of work. It is the plant that the provincial and federal governments invested $500 million towards retooling to make electrified Bright Drop vans. The company cites low demand, but assured everyone that they "look forward to continuing our discussions with the government and our partners to identify other opportunities."

I'll just bet they do, eh?

UPDATED: A Balm to The Spirit

While I often talk about critical thinking on this blog, I always say that I aspire to the ideal it represents. And there is one offence I regularly commit that is anathema to the spirit of critical thinking: my wholesale condemnation of the 'United' States, which, technically speaking, is a gross overgeneralization.. But that condemnation comes not just because of who leads them; it is also thanks to the ingrained ethos of Americans, that they are the greatest in the world, their guns ensure their safety, etc. etc. ad nauseam.

My friend Gary often points out that there are good Americans, people who are totally opposed to the malignant, narcissistic fascist dictator (I'm not sure there is any other kind) who currently occupies the White House. My stock response is usually something along the lines of, "Yeah, but look who they elected to lead them." To that I might add the legislative body, Congress, so cravenly supine and obsequious in the face of their mad king's depredations.

One thing dictators hate is to be mocked and protected against. Their fragile egos, bolstered by the people they surround themselves with, just cannot accept that they aren't universally loved. I was therefore heartened by yesterday's grand display of opposition to the tyrant. Here are some photos from the No Kings Protests that took place across America and, indeed, the world. Perhaps the spirit of America is not dead yet.

Oh, and this one has to hurt:

UPDATE: I just found some more photos that really pack a punch and show the fury of Americans at Trump and his cronies:

UPDATED: A Pale Reflection, But Still A Reflection

I had a phone conversation the other day with a friend I rarely see. A Canadian by birth, Jon has worked for many years outside of the country, first in Britain and then in United States, where he now resides. Whenever he calls, our conversation inevitably turns to his country of current residence; we both abhor what has happened, and agree that fascism has arrived there.

I told him that even though we have the Trumpian element here, (apparently, about 25% of Conservative supporters like Trump) political sentiments on the whole are far less extreme and far more sane than in his country. Unfortunately, I may have spoken too soon.

PP, or Trump lite, is sounding more and more like the fascist, echoing his language and aims in two key areas.

[T]he federal Conservative party ... has released a new petition taking aim at DEI and what it calls “bloated” bureaucracy and “identity checkboxes.”

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre sent the link out to his X followers on Thanksgiving Monday, imploring them to sign on to end DEI and “restore the merit principle.”

There’s even a new slogan from the party that brought you “axe the tax”: “DEI spending and government waste needs to DIE,” the petition reads.

As we know, Herr Trump has taken it upon himself to end DEI in his country, playing upon the popular, and essentially racist, assertion that such programs hire those who are less qualified than white people, thereby essentially discriminating against the 'beleaguered' white race. I won't bother explaining why this is a foul canard, but if you don't believe me, do your own research from reputable sources.

The second play from the Trump playbook is PP's stance on birthright citizenship.

Poilievre also endorsed what another Conservative MP, Michelle Rempel Garner, was preaching — an end to birthright citizenship. Or, as Poilievre called it in another post, “birth tourism.”

Again, there’s an echo from one of Trump’s first executive orders on taking office.

“The privilege of United States citizenship is a priceless and profound gift,” the order states, going on to explain that citizenship would not be conferred to any child born in that country to a mother or father not lawfully present in the U.S. or there on a temporary basis.

“Canadian citizenship is a honour and privilege, and it must always be treated as such,” Poilievre said in an Oct. 10 post on X, formerly Twitter.

The racists amongst us will refuse to believe that  

[n]either of these seemingly Trump-inspired initiatives by the Conservatives are scourges in Canada. Fewer than 1,500 of the nearly 400,000 children born in Canada in 2024 were born to mothers whose residence was outside Canada. Railing against diversity, equity and inclusion may get some politicians votes, but it can also play into backlash against immigrants — which the Conservatives always hasten to point out, they’d never do.

There can also be consequences for stoking this ugliness:

... in the words of Greg Lyle, a much-respected pollster from Innovative Research, all these echoes of Trumpism from Conservatives in Canada amounts to “playing with fire.”  

Lyle sent me a couple of slides from his big post-election survey, showing that nearly three quarters of voters who believed it was time for a change in Canada also agreed that Poilievre sounded and acted too much like Trump. That sentiment was actually shared by more than half the poll respondents, who included Conservative voters.

PP knows he is popular among young men.  However, if his purpose is to stoke even more discontent with their lot in life, he should also reckon with the fact that older people tend to be the larger demographic in voting, and that younger people are less enthused about going to the polls. Indeed, Canada's Mini-Me may find that there is a heavy price to be paid for his repugnant political calculus.

UPDATE: I just came across an editorial cartoon that seems perfect for both this post and the times:

 

A House Divided

H/t Moudakis

Abraham Lincoln, in a famous address, borrowed a biblical phrase and said, A house divided against itself cannot stand. It warned of the ultimate toll when a nation is divided on key issues. A more fitting quotation I cannot think of for what is going on in Trump's Amerika.

In many ways, Herr Trump seems to have declared war on America's citizens. ICE raids, cities infested with national guard troops, threats to jail those who oppose him, are all part of the sick scenario now unfolding. 

What seems undeniable is that the government's particular targets seem to be those that 'don't measure up.' They include immigrants, 'the radical left,' those dependent upon Obamacare's subsidized premiums, the latter the apparent sticking point that has precipitated the government shutdown, putting millions out of work and promises of massive dismissals.

Last night, NBC News put the question of health care premiums under the microscope. A surprising opponent of the "let them eat cake Republicans" who refuse to extend subsides is well-known MAGA enthusiast Marjorie Taylor Green. 

Begin the following at the 10:20 mark.

The plight of 22 million Americans facing such huge premium increases without the subsidies seems to epitomize an Amerika that cares not for its people (tech bros and other billionaires excepted). It is a recipe for disaster.

And scenes like the following, Americans fighting Americans, are becoming increasingly common.

Now, Trump is threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act, claiming Chicago police are not doing enough to protect ICE agents. The act would allow military troops to storm American cities.

The Insurrection Act can essentially override the Posse Comitatus Act, passed in 1878. That law generally bars the federal branches of the military from engaging in the law enforcement, responsibilities that rest with local authorities.

Under the invocation of the Insurrection Act, troops can perform searches or make arrests. 

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said this week it was his view that the Trump administration's goal is to "make it seem that peaceful protesters are a mob by firing gas pellets and tear gas canisters at them ... to create the pretext for invoking the Insurrection Act."

To close out  this post, here is a brief clip of Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker as he compares the Trump regime to its historical predecessor, the Nazis:

No Chocolates and Flowers?

Mark Carney's latest visit to Washington yielded some fine bon mots.

“Pretty fancy entrance, eh?” Trump told Carney, after the prime minister drove up to the White House, with the driveway flanked by flag-carrying guards. 

“It’s amazing,” Carney replied, beaming. “I wore red for you,” the prime minister added, stroking his tie.

But it didn't stop there:

Sitting next to Trump, Carney once again praised him as a “transformative” president. He said he’d transformed the U.S. economy, got unprecedented commitments from NATO partners on defence spending, praised him for getting “peace” between Pakistan and India, and between Azerbaijan and Armenia, for “disabling Iran as a force of terror,” and for making the prospect of peace possible in the Middle East.

Maybe I'm just getting old, and the world has moved on, but I find Carney's latest visit, which saw both leaders lavish praise upon each other,  off-putting, to put it diplomatically. And given that the times spent ego-stroking yielded no tangible results, it is right that the Prime Minister's behaviour toward the fascist Trump was not well-received by many.

In the Commons, the opposition spent the day noting that the Liberals had campaigned on ‘elbows up’ but backed down on reciprocal tariffs, the digital services tax, and appeared to be willing to trade away dairy concessions, too. For all of Carney’s efforts to strike a deal, the Conservatives charged, all Canada has gotten in return are more tariffs.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford urged Carney to take a tougher stand. But the prime minister doesn’t have Ford’s luxury. He has repeatedly told Canadians he’d rather sign no deal than a bad deal.

“We can’t just keep rolling over to President Trump. As he strengthens his case, we seem to be weakening our case by continuously pulling off tariffs,” Ford said.

 Later, United Steelworkers’ national director Marty Warren said the lack of tangible progress on Tuesday was a “big letdown” for the sector struggling under 50 per cent import duties into the U.S.

“The last time Trump said what good friends we are, a week later he increased the steel tariffs,” Warren said. 

The union head added that the chummy atmosphere in the Oval Office also rubbed him the wrong way. “I know that’s a strategy, but as a Canadian, it disgusted me,” he said.  

Since nothing was resolved in the tariff war, Canadians are right to be disappointed in the lack of results from this 'charm offensive.' The only thing, perhaps, that might have turned the tide in Canada's favour was chocolates and flowers. Oh well, perhaps the next time Mr. Trump summons Mr. Carney to Washington, they will be included to bookend what will likely be another visit marked by obsequious deference to the 'leader' of the free world.

A Vexing Plague

Stupidity and ignorance are things I spend a great deal of time thinking about. Although the conditions know no national boundaries, I find the Americans easy to single out for their profound inability or refusal to think. But here at home, the same condition, although less widespread and deep, is also to be found. We see it reflected in our leaders, who frequently ignore empirical evidence with no negative impact on their standing with the masses. Doug Ford, Ontario's premier, is a good case in point.

Ford, ever the populist, has declared war on speed cameras, promising legislation to ban them, dismissing them as ineffective and mere cash grabs to augment municipalities' coffers. 

Despite study findings and the opinion of police associations and municipalities to the contrary, Ford said speed cameras don't slow people down...

Others beg to differ. 

Automated speed cameras have reduced speeding around Toronto school zones by nearly half, according to a new study.

The study, published in the journal Injury Prevention and led by researchers at The Hospital for Sick Children and Toronto Metropolitan University, looked at the effect of automated speed enforcement cameras deployed across 250 school zones around Toronto from July 2020 to December 2022.

Looking at speeding data in these areas before and after speed cameras were installed, it found that cameras have reduced the proportion of speeding vehicles in urban school zones by 45 per cent. 

While the proportion of drivers going 10 km/h over the speed limits decreased by 74 per cent, the study found the proportion of drivers going 15 km/h over the limit decreased by 84 per cent. Drivers going 20 km/h or more over the limit fell by 88 per cent, the study found.

Statistics, indeed, most things empirical, mean nothing to people of Ford's ilk, so 20 Ontario mayors are trying to get him to change his mind with compromises and the opportunity to save face.

"For most of us, the intention has always been to install cameras in school zones to protect our most vulnerable residents — our children," says the leaders' letter.

"A total ban on ASE would reverse years of progress on safety in school zones. It would place more pressure on police, increase enforcement costs, and most critically, endanger lives," it says.

The letter lists compromises the municipalities are willing to make to keep ASE measures in school zones, including the following:

• Warning tickets for a first-time offence.
• Setting cameras at a reasonable threshold of speed before a ticket is issued.
• Cameras only operate during school and community use times.
• Blackout on additional fines for seven days after a driver receives the first ticket to allow them to change their behaviour. 

Perhaps Burlington Mayor  Marianne Meed Ward said it best:

"Our letter is really our plea. It's an SOS to the premier. A 'save our schoolkids.' When you get hit by a car at 30 (km/h you have a chance of surviving that. When the speeds go to 40 or 50, your chances of surviving that impact drop dramatically," she said.

Will any of this be enough to move the Premier? I have my doubts, but there is something else that might persuade him to change course. 

A Canadian Automobile Association South Central Ontario survey, conducted by market researcher DIG Insights and released Wednesday, finds 73 per cent of respondents support automated speed enforcement in certain areas.

The survey, which was conducted from March 7 to 19 and surveyed 1,500 Ontario drivers 18 or older, also found 76 per cent of respondents believe cameras deter speeding. The survey's margin of error is listed as +/- two per cent. 

Populists prefer to be popular with the electorate. Whether the engaged element of the citizenry have enough influence carry the day in the midst of wide scale ignorance, however, remains to be seen.

For Those Who Think They Are Safe

 Just a little reminder of the new reality in Trump's Amerika:

Seth Abramson

‪@sethabramson.bsky.social‬

The brownshirts are everywhere. And they *will* come to your street eventually. This is not just going to happen to "other people."

‪✨️ Steph ✨️‬ ‪@zapoo.bsky.social‬

· 1d

Coming soon, to a city near you!! 📢🚨

Stating The Obvious

From my perspective, it is clear that America has become a fascist country. Those who deny that reality are either extreme partisans (I refuse to use the term patriots, the word fascists favour) or living in a world of massive denial. 

The militarization of American cities, an essential precondition of fascism, has been going on for some time. Just look at the tanks and the army paraphernalia many police forces now sport - certainly a reflection of their relationship with their citizens. What is striking, however, is how quickly and unabashedly the Trump regime is moving in establishing a siege mentality, another precondition for fascist rule. There has been the stationing of military presences in Los Angeles, D.C., Memphis, and Portland, with deployment plans for other Democratic cities as well. There is the constant denigration of Democrats as "far-left radicals' and antifa acolytes. Additionally, Trump, in his recent address to the military in Quantico, referred to "the enemy within." In other words, American citizens have become the enemy, and he went further and suggested the Pentagon use American cities as “training grounds” for its troops.  

For those with the audacity to still think independently, the irony of the entire situation cannot be lost. Masquerading as the law and order regime pursuing the 'enemy', another favourite fascist ploy, Trump and his jackboots are in fact violating a myriad of laws. Justin Ling writes:

Off the coast of Venezuela, the enemy was four unarmed fishing boats. The White House declared them cartel members and terrorists — for which they supplied no evidence — and ordered drone strikes to kill everyone onboard. 

This extrajudicial killing could constitute a war crime. 

Pete Hegseth, the former Fox personality and now Secretary of War, 

says there will be “no more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement.”

Those rules of engagement are designed to comply with international law — to avoid the murder of civilians, to prevent torture, to forbid the use of weapons of mass destruction. More importantly, the rules of engagement are part of strong set of internal rules that allow officers and soldiers alike to refuse illegal orders. 

Those rules are being flagrantly violated.

Those rules of engagement, and the U.S. constitution, forbid the military from policing the streets of America in peacetime. And yet active-duty personnel have been deployed to American cities, with more occupations to come. Trump says he’ll authorize “full force” to quell the enemy at home. The U.S. military, arguably the nation’s most fiercely independent institution, looks set to obey. 

In the new fascist Amerika, enemies are ubiquitous.

Trump has classified antifa — the mere concept of anti-fascist activism, not an actual group — a terror organization. He has ordered the Department of Justice to go after former FBI Director James Comey and Congressman Adam Schiff.

Given the ongoing threats against Venezuela and Greenland, Ling believes it is past time for Canada to take the fascist threat seriously through careful preparation.

It means revising agreements and cancelling memoranda of understanding. It means not sending our Canadian Armed Forces to train with units who no longer feel bound to the Geneva Convention and marking intelligence ‘for Canadian eyes only’ because it could be used to commit war crimes. It will mean creating systems within NATO that operate separately from Hegseth’s new warrior corps. This will invoke Trump’s ire, no doubt, but history teaches us that appeasing despots rarely works out.

But more is needed. 

[T]here will come a point where we need to make our objections clear, and where we will need to rally our allies into speaking up as well. Trump’s adventurism in South America will be a direct security challenge to Canada. His new affinity for committing war crimes will implicate the Canadian Armed Forces, who serve shoulder-to-shoulder with the U.S. military on many fronts. His comfort to fellow autocrats and despots will be a direct threat to the countries still pursuing democracy.

The greatest advantage Trump and his lieutenants currently hold is people's stubborn belief that fascism is impossible in the U.S.A. It has already arrived, and the sooner that fact is widely acknowledged, the better the chances of excising that malignancy from the body politic.  

 

Amerika Defines Itself

It may seem redundant to place the adjective ugly in front of Americans. After all, their regular deportment, both domestically and internationally, makes such a designation obvious. However, being the 'greatest' nation in the world also makes it hard for them to perceive any national or personal shortcomings, so it falls on the rest of the world to school them.

And that's exactly what Rory McIlroy did after the Ryder Cup, the golf tournament that saw Europe defeat the U.S. in the midst of despicable crowd behaviour.

An emotional Rory McIlroy opened up on the abuse he received during the Ryder Cup after Europe secured a famous win in New York. The 15-13 success for the visitors at Bethpage Black came against the backdrop of awful spectator behaviour, largely towards European players and their families. McIlroy confirmed his wife, Erica, was hit by a beer that was thrown during Saturday afternoon’s play [my emphasis]. 

“I don’t think we should ever accept that in golf,” said McIlroy. “I think golf should be held to a higher standard than what was seen out there this week. Golf has the ability to unite people. Golf teaches you very good life lessons. It teaches you etiquette. It teaches you how to play by the rules. It teaches you how to respect people.

Clearly, such lessons are lost on MAGATS far and wide, but McIlroy had reason to be mightily vexed, given the assault on his wife, Erica McIlroy:

Shane Lowry, McIlroy’s close friend, added: “I was out there for two days with Erica McIlroy and the amount of abuse that she received was astonishing. The way she was out there supporting her husband and supporting her team was unbelievable.”

That such savage behaviour took place is but another confirmation of an ugly American national character emboldened by Trump, according to Bryan Armen Graham.

What crept in on Saturday was different: insults aimed at players’ wives, homophobic slurs, cheap shots at McIlroy’s nationality dripping with tiresome stereotypes....

The change, Graham suggests, coincided with Trump's arrival at the Ryder Cup, compounded by the strength shown by Europe's team, always deemed an inferior entity in TrumpWorld.

Add the optics of Donald Trump’s fly-in on Friday – fist bumps, photo-ops, galleries dotted with Maga hats and a certain politics of humiliation playing to its base – and the swagger slid easily into license.

Given the guest of honor’s [i.e., Trump] well-known aversion to losing gracefully, it was hardly a shock that the worst behavior broke out just as America’s chances were slipping away. But the tournament’s response to the ugly crowd conduct on Saturday was woeful. Extra security and a phalanx of New York state troopers materialized around McIlroy’s match at the turn. A couple of spectators were ejected near the main grandstands. The PGA of America said it bolstered policing and pushed more frequent spectator etiquette messages on the big screens. Fine, as far as it goes. But once a thousand people have decided a backswing is their cue, you can’t manage it with a graphic and a frown. Enforcement has to be swift, visible and consequential or it becomes permission by another name.

The rowdy, disrespectful fans at the Ryder Cup disgraced both themselves and their country. 

I'm sure they saw it as exactly the opposite, certain that they were reaffirming American pride and honour.

Such a deluded, benighted people.