Skip to content
  1. Home
  2. Letters to the Editor

LETTER: Tariffs...Groundhog Day… Again?

In Canada we have our own furry forecaster: Wiarton Willie. Maybe he can offer better insight on whether we’re in for six more weeks of trade disputes or an early resolution'
Letter to the Editor
USED 2022 03 30 groundhog GK
A groundhog takes a peek.Greg King for NewmarketToday

To the editor:

Groundhog Day… Again?

Ah, February 2nd, the day we look to a large rodent for meteorological advice on both sides of the 49th parallel. But this year, we might need Punxsutawney Phil to do double duty as a USA economic forecaster. Because while we’re all waiting to see if we get six more weeks of winter, Canada is bracing for something else entirely: a 25% tariff hike from U.S. President Donald Trump on our exports.

It’s as if we’re all trapped in a bad sequel to Groundhog Day, the 1993 Bill Murray classic where every day is the same. The film popularized “Groundhog Day” to mean an endless, frustrating loop. So Canada-U.S. trade relations is an endless loop of negotiation, tariff threats, retaliation, rinse and repeat.

Bill Murray’s character, Phil Connors, wakes up every morning to the same song, I Got You Babe, playing on the radio. For Canadians, our version is more like I Got You Trade War. We’ve been here before: steel and aluminum tariffs, dairy disputes, and softwood lumber spats. Every time we think we’re moving forward, we wake up and boom, we’re back in 2018.

As Phil Connors wisely puts it, “Well, what if there is no tomorrow? There wasn’t one today.” That’s how Canadian businesses must feel staring down another round of trade uncertainty.

Of course, in Canada, we have our own furry forecaster: Wiarton Willie. Maybe he can offer better insight on whether we’re in for six more weeks of trade disputes or an early resolution. Either way, we know one thing, whether it’s Wiarton Willie or Punxsutawney Phil, we’ll be getting our weather and trade predictions from a groundhog.

But if there’s anything Groundhog Day teaches us, it’s that persistence pays off. Phil Connors finally breaks the cycle by adapting and outsmarting his situation. Canada has done the same before by diversifying trade, strengthening domestic industries, and proving that, despite protectionist storms, our economy can weather the winter.

So whether Phil or Willie sees their shadow or not, one thing is certain: Canadians will keep waking up and pushing forward. After all, as Murray says, “It’s the same thing your whole life: clean up your room, stand up straight, pick up your feet, take it like a man. Be nice to your sister. Don’t mix beer and wine, ever.” And, of course, don’t let the trade wars get you down.