Donald Trump’s trade war with Canada has renamed lakes, threatened to make Canada the 51st state, and slapped tariffs on everything from steel to snowmobiles. The surprising part is what it’s doing to the country itself.
Quebec, home to Canada’s oldest and fiercest separatist movement, has been hit hardest by the tariffs, and yet, support for leaving Canada has dropped to its lowest level in decades. Meanwhile in oil-rich Alberta, largely spared by Trump’s tariffs and booming from high oil prices, a once-fringe separatist movement is gaining ground, with a referendum on leaving Canada looming in October.
As far as Trump is concerned, he doesn’t care where the cracks appear, as long as Canada eventually caves in.
Watch all episodes of If You’re Listening:
Subscribe:
Note: In some cases, our captions are auto-generated.
#ABCNewsIndepth #ABCNewsAustralia
source
Big news for IYL fans. We've been working on something behind the scenes. More very soon 👀
Even if we don't agree on things and we have our problems. Canadians are in a huge Majority in favor of not taking a shi deal with the US and taking a great deal with the EU
Why isn’t Somaliland a country if the UN isn’t responsible for deciding what’s a country?
The harder he pushes, the more determined we get…unfortunately for us and the them, he doesn't know that about us, and as he can't lose face, he'll persist until he's out…, that'll end up hurting alot of people in both countries. Such a waste.
Not even close, he'll crack long before we do. Also the Alberta separatist movement is an extremely loud minority suspiciously well funded and connected with the US government
As Aussies, we see Canada as our family across the the ocean. We are very similarly friendly and share similar values. There are many Canadians living here in Sydney and the ones I know are all good and decent.
For rest of planet wherever we saw America, we saw Canada right there. For us Canada was USA. Every military invasion, every American sanction, Canada was right there with America.
Some Canadians might not like it but we don't see you separately from the US, Canada was an active partner in every atrocity committed. Best of luck.
Support for our Prime Minister is overwhelming.
Wow, more media playing into the US/Russia goal of dividing Canada. Quebec isn't going anywhere. And only 18% of Albertans entertaining separation, and that is under the influence of heavy US investment in separatist propaganda. This is hardly the flex you're portraying. Please don't be part of the problem. The real story here is foreign interference with the goal of destabilizing a sovereign nation in order to crack it and exploit its resources.
US war plan red comes to mind
Look maybe it's not a big deal, but the video at 9:45 isn't the Parti Quebecois, it's Lucien Bouchard of the Bloc Quebecois which was a party in the federal parliament. Parties in Canada are not synonymous with provincial counterparts like in Australia.
Neutral reporter question: "Do you feel Albertans are being ripped off basically"?
Crack? Why? Trump is the greatest gift to Canadian unity in a hundred years. When bars in East Montreal, traditionally hotbeds of separatism, are bursting into spontaneous renditions of O Canada you know something has changed. Thank you Donald!
Astounding just how viscerally averse we can be to anything approximating candor around the utility of language, particularly when that of our inheritance is not the zenith among them we might like it to be. Those of Quebec flirt with a mistake worn not chiefly by them, but rather by their grandchildren.
9:40 PQ 🤣 that’s a French slang term for toilette paper. C’est marrant ça
Talking about Big Dog Doo…Donny Doo.
Albertan here.
Many of the people that are waving Albertan flags right now were waving Canadian flags during COVID which was a different protest movement.
The separatist thing is such a self own.
An economics argument that falls apart as soon as you start applying economics principles.
Could very well be funded fifth column American astroturfing.
The fella in the ski-doo commercial is the fella Ben Stiller idolises… Surely?
Bombardier – "oUuuu non"
SNCLavalin – "hold my beer.. I'm about to commit crimes"
NO, these divisions existed long before any specific president.
If anything trump made us unite as never before!!!
Carney has the highest approval rating ever.
We Albertans are definitely going to vote no to separatism
The "Alberta-style" fiscal grievance isn’t unique—it’s a global trend.
China’s economic success relies heavily on its coastal regions. I’ve personally heard Cantonese factory owners vent about the massive fiscal transfers sent to the central government to subsidize less-developed provinces. They genuinely believe Guangdong would be a global superpower if it just kept its own money.
Scotland has the exact same ambition, historically pushing to leave the UK to become an independent, oil-rich nation.
With the exception of Guangdong (which relies on China's massive domestic market), these regions all share a common illusion: that shrinking their global footprint and isolating themselves is the best way to get rich.
But history attests that relying purely on localized wealth is futile:
• The American Confederacy and the "King Cotton" Collapse (1861–1865)
• The Fall of the Italian Maritime Republics (Late 1500s)
• The Netherlands and the "Dutch Disease" Shock (1960s–1970s)
LOL tRump does not really have a chance. It would be best for us not to see (again) the worse that Canada has to offer.
The separatists in Alberta cannot be ignored. The threat they pose, just as we need unity, is real. The thing is, the provincial government and the separatists are closely aligned… and inept, but they are also well funded. Inept yet well funded, does that remind you of anybody?
The thing growing in our neighbours' yard south of us is trying to infect us here. Alberta has the worst infection but it's everywhere else too, some places more, some places less.
The Alberta separatists can leave any time, they just can't take part of Canada with them. They are a small but noisy bunch, so don't overplay them. The Alberta residents I talk to want nothing to do with this silliness.
Mark Carney's strategy is supported by 85% of Quebeckers. Last poll gives PQ only 28% of the votes. Canadians are not waiting for the end of Trump's term at WH. They are waiting for Nov 3 MT élections. After this Canada's position could be much better to negotiate with the Big Orange. BTW Trump already stopped his threat against Bombardier after a few phone calls came from some mid West American states…
Dutchy here reading the comments to see if what was said in the video is actually true.
After reading the comments from real Canadians. I think using AI to release this video was a bad decision.
This seems to be Trump wanting to improve the aparent poor US geography scores.
What is the name of this lake for 400 … America… Yeah that's right, how do you know so much!
For 800 what is the name of the strait half way round the world, managed by the US? The Trump Strait.
For 1000 what colour crayon does DJTrump use when looking at his Junior Atlas of the world? Golden… It must be Golden.
These separist movements are interesting, what happens when the oil drys out or runs out. Same kind of talk is happening in South Africa lead by the same kind of "conservative" parties. There are no coincidences.
Do you wish Trump was causing division in Canada? Let us pick at that tiny thread for you.
This is complete garbage and not a reflection of provincial positions. This is American propaganda suggesting separatist views are much more common than they are let alone the less than a fraction of 1% that actually support separatist views. Do better @ABC, this is complete horsesheet.
Of course he is. That is what the devil does, divide, lie, create chaos. And that is the ine man d trump. Thanks dude. Well done.
Bombardier also has a profitable business making metro trains right? I live in Mexico City and allot of the Metro System here is by Bombardier, and I know even French Metro has some Bombardier rail neumatic stock.
NOPE
I like your reporting style, it lays out the difference in perspective without slanting it with personal opinion.
Is it me or this video got it veeery wrong ?