US THREATS TO MEXICO AND CANADA
Pres. Trump has “directed the Pentagon to target drug cartels that the United States considers terrorist organizations,” implying that the US is considering military operations in Mexico. For many Americans this may sound good. But US invasions in 1846-8, 1914, and 1916-17 left nothing but bad will in Mexico. The President of Mexico Claudia Sheinbaum has categorically refused the presence of US troops or military operations on Mexican territory. But she has recently ordered Mexican military and police forces to crack down on drug operations, with some success.
Canada, since it fought a war with the US 1812-15, has had good or improving relations with the US: economic, political and military. Thus US belligerence toward Canada, symbolized by Trump’s reference to Canada as a target for annexation and by the 35% tariff imposed on certain Canadian goods, is playing badly north of the border, leading to calls for banning certain US imports, consumer boycotts and a steep reduction in Canadian travel to the US. Canadian politicians are calling for a reorientation of the Canadian economy away from any kind of dependence on the US.
How can anyone think it is good to antagonize our neighbors, as Trump has done?
Sources: The New York Times, 8/8 and 8/10, 2025