Ideological chasm

Re: Tea with Tillerson nice but irrelevant, John Ivison, Dec. 20; and Brace for a tax tsunami, Jack A. Mintz, Dec. 19 John Ivison correctly identifies the ideological chasm between our federal administration and that of the U. S. His summary is that “the longer Donald Trump is in power, the dissonance between his administration and Justin Trudeau’s government becomes less theoretical.”

The cause, however, depends on where you sit. We can just as well say “the longer Trudeau is in power.” The “tax tsunami” that Jack Mintz identifies is only going to hurt us because our policy directions — carbon taxes, business tax increases, degenerating energy revenue — place us squarely in the path of the tidal wave. As well, Glocal Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland’s wishful “international order … in which might is not always right” sounds like the default policy of an administration whose commitment to defence procurement is characterized by the purchase of used equipment. When the tsunami hits, we will have no one outside Canada to blame. John Ivison does his best to put a negative spin on Donald Trump’s new tax cuts package but, inadvertently, admits that he knows exactly what will happen: “The Trudeau government will be forced to respond to lower corporate tax rates and new rates on investment, if jobs and profits start flowing south.”

Yes, John, jobs and prosperity will be south of the border.