B.C. leaders are minor players in lumber dispute

There seems to be much shaking in the boots because the big bad Donald has us in his sights now and Justin Trudeau hardly seems like the man able to give President Foghorn Leghorn the middle finger and suggest this matter about the milk and the wood be taken outside and settled in the parking lot.

Here in the middle of a B.C. election campaign, Christy Clark and John Horgan are in agreement of making an issue out of something they have little to no control over in hopes of securing votes. Trade is a federal matter.

Trudeau is free to cut whatever softwood lumber deal he likes with Trump, regardless of what Clark, Horgan or anyone else in B.C. says.

Clark is telling reporters she is pushing for an increasingly diversified international market for B.C. wood, where it wouldn’t matter if the U.S. raised tariffs because there would be willing buyers elsewhere.

Hopefully, she is also pushing for more Lotto Max winners from this province, too. She has as much control over that as she does over the global supply and price of lumber.

Horgan is no better. He pledged to head down to Washington within 30 days of being elected premier. The reception he’ll get from the White House will rival an official visit from the prime minister of Lower Slobovia. Doesn’t matter whether he meets with Ivanka, Jared, Kellyanne Conway or Kid Rock, the utter lack of results will be the same.

Just like Horgan and Clark are trying to benefit from Trump bashing, Trudeau and his Parliamentary opponents are positioning themselves politically.

The federal NDP and Conservatives are accusing Trudeau of mismanaging the softwood file.

Trudeau is setting political expectations low, as he often does, before amazing the electorate by easily clearing the bar and then shooting a Mission Accomplished selfie. The more people think Trump is going to beat him with a hardover copy of The Art of The Deal, the more Canadians will be relieved by a new lumber deal. Even if all the new pact does is reduce the tariff slightly and/or lets the American forest sector keep all the tariff money the U.S. government collects, both features of past agreements, it’ll be trumpeted as a could-have-been-worse win.

While the politicians grandstand, industry CEOs will slash operating costs, streamline production, modernize facilities, push into other markets and cut new deals, to offset the effect of the tariffs. They don’t do it for the workers or the communities. They do it for the shareholders.

There are far fewer sawmills and far fewer forestry workers in B.C. than there was at the start of the last lumber dispute nearly 20 years ago.

The Canfors and West Frasers got busy buying up smaller mills on both sides of the border, closing old mills and centralizing operations. West Fraser got hit with a 24 per cent tariff, which will affect its 15 mills in B.C. and Alberta. It won’t affect the 16 sawmills it owns in the U.S.

Smaller lumber manufacturers feel the tariffs much more, but tariffs are toughest of all on consumers.

American house builders and retail lumber stores will pass their costs on to home buyers and builders, who will pay for the Mexican wall or whatever else the Prima Donald has planned with that tariff money.

Tariffs create winners and losers, just the way the Ginger Wrecking Ball sees the world operating. In this case, consumers and workers lose.

The winning side includes big, business-savvy B.C. lumber producers and more than a few politicians.

Neil Godbout is managing editor of the Prince George Citizen.