VIVE LE CANADA — With those three words, TRUDEAU capped a Saturday night response to Trump’s eye-watering tariffs — a sweeping economic barrage aimed north of the border. Trudeau seemed to channel an emerging strain of Canadian patriotism in the face of an unpredictable president who has acknowledged that tariffs will bring some measure of "pain" to his own people. — Canada’s response: To slap counter-tariffs on goods worth C$155B annually, including C$30B coming into effect Tuesday. — Targeted U.S. goods: Canadian targets: Ottawa set its sights on Florida orange juice; household products in Trump ally Sen. LINDSEY GRAHAM's South Carolina and Vice President JD VANCE's Ohio stomping grounds; and motorcycles and coffee from Pennsylvania, a key swing state that powered Trump's return. Find the full list of 1,256 items here. An order-in-council formalized the measure. — Not targeted … yet: EVs produced by ELON MUSK's Tesla. Ottawa is also considering an export tax on Canadian oil, Finance department officials say. They could also launch a legal challenge. — Bring back Parliament: Finance officials are at work on a relief package for affected Canadians and businesses, but offered few details during a briefing for reporters. Any measures that require parliamentary approval would involve recalling the legislature — an option Trudeau dismissed Saturday evening. "We have the tools to be able to support Canadians," he said, calling on all political parties to "set aside our differences." Conservative Leader PIERRE POILIEVRE isn't buying it. “Put aside partisan interests and recall Parliament,” he said Sunday morning in Vancouver. “It is insane that in this great crisis, Parliament is shut down to deal with the crisis and the power struggle within the Liberal Party.” New Democrats have expressed an openness to support a relief package. — Speaking of bi-partisan: In a survey of 675 "likely Liberal leadership voters" who responded Jan. 24-31, Spark Advocacy's ALEX KOHUT found 86 percent support bringing opposition leaders into a “war Cabinet.” Opening odds of that coming to fruition: low. — Immediate yes: The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board wrote what many were feeling over the weekend, describing the cross-border tension as “The Dumbest Trade War in History.” So what’s this really about, anyway? — Trojan horse: Foreign Affairs Minister MÉLANIE JOLY smirked when the PM was asked Saturday if fentanyl and illegal migration at the border were the president's actual motivation. The PM dodged the question, but Immigration MARC MILLER revealed Cabinet's behind-the-scenes thinking Friday: No. It’s not about the border. Canadian Chamber of Commerce president CANDACE LAING believes Trump wants to raise revenue through tariffs to make fiscal room for renewed tax cuts. The president's 2017-era measures are due to expire this year. “Loyalty, rather than logic, is at the top of the list in terms of what matters in Trump's circle this time,” she told POLITICO. Other theories in the ether: → Trump wants to gain the upper hand on free-trade negotiations slated for 2026 at the latest. → He wants to pulverize Canada’s supply-managed dairy and poultry sectors, which for years he has derided as unfair to U.S. farmers. → He’s eager to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., especially the auto sector. MANIFEST DESTINY 101 — The conventional wisdom on Trump is often summed up in six words: Take him seriously, but not literally. — OK, cool, but the president's fixation on "51st state" quips appeared to ratchet up Sunday morning on Truth Social. Trump complained that an American trade deficit is "subsidizing" not just Canada's economy — but its very existence. "Without this massive subsidy, Canada ceases to exist as a viable Country. Harsh but true! Therefore, Canada should become our Cherished 51st State. Much lower taxes, and far better military protection for the people of Canada — AND NO TARIFFS!" Fentanyl, the border, trade deficits, defense spending, even the banking sector — each has risen and fallen as the definitive basis for mutually disastrous tariffs. But the annexation fixation has been constant. — Run back the tape: Maybe Trump doesn't want to absorb Canada into the American project. He has always enjoyed a good Sunday troll around the neighborhood. But, but, but. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU could be taking the president at his word. Green Party Leader ELIZABETH MAY circulated a Sunday evening statement about a meeting of party leaders earlier in the day. "The Prime Minister shared that it had become increasingly clear that there was no evidence or further actions on border security that would make any difference. Trump would only double down. It was not really about fentanyl. It was about Canada and our sovereignty," she said of Trudeau's thinking. — On the record: Trump's inaugural address evoked manifest destiny, a 19th-century concept steeped in American exceptionalism and continental expansion. He has clear designs on the Panama Canal, Greenland, the surface of Mars — and, maybe, Canada. | 
