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Original article: https://theconversation.com/forget-booing-the-anthem-canada-must-employ-strategic-communications-to-fight-trumps-lies-252704
Since his return to office, United States President Donald Trump has launched a trade war on Canada. The White House has twice set deadlines for the imposition of sweeping 25 pre cent tariffs — and twice pulled back.
Trump has also threatened to use “economic force” to compel Canada to become the 51st state, remarks that are a focal point of the ongoing federal election campaign.
Canadians are offended. They’ve voiced this displeasure, with Canadian sports fans continuing to boo the American anthem at recent events.
This might be counterproductive.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
Trump says Canada is ‘nasty’
In this trade war, Canada faces more than tariffs: it’s confronting a communications effort by the president to paint Canadians as mean, disrespectful and “nasty.”
Trump’s most consistent line is that Canadians are “not fair,” “very abusive” and taking advantage of the U.S. on trade.
Regardless of the truth, the president repeats these allegations over and over and over again.
The repetition is the point — it’s an important practice in strategic communications or what’s known as StratCom, the use of communication to achieve objectives.
The repetition is key to Trump’s StratCom — it’s a way of making his message stick. Hard as it is for Canadians to believe this, there’s a danger of this “nasty Canadian” narrative taking hold south of the border.
Take it from a communications expert who often works in the U.S. and Europe: not everyone is as well-versed on the dispute as Canadians are. Even actions like booing the American anthem risk reinforcing Trump’s slurs against Canada.
Canada must devise its own strategy to counter Trump’s message and remind Americans — and the world — that Canada trades on fair terms. By dampening American support for the president’s trade war, this StratCom effort could actually help protect the Canada-U.S. relationship for the long term.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi
Creating false counter-narratives
Trump has long mastered the art of swapping one narrative with a preferred alternative. This tactic has arguably helped save his political career.
For millions of Americans, the president turned Russian interference in the 2016 election into the “Russia Hoax” — something he raised as recently as the infamous Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Rather than concede the 2020 election, Trump and his allies adopted the mantra “Stop the Steal.” And in a most striking StratCom effort, Trump and supporters recast the events of Jan. 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol into “a day of love.” Trump also issued a blanket pardon of all those convicted over the attack.
These are astounding examples of strategic communications, whatever we might think of the president’s honesty or his objectives.
Every time Trump repeats claims that Canada is taking advantage of the U.S., that narrative becomes further entrenched. So far, Ottawa has reminded Americans that Canada is a good partner and that tariffs would hurt both countries.
But it’s not clear that appealing to the long Canadian-American history as allies is having much effect in the White House. In early February, Vice President JD Vance posted: “Spare me the sob story about how Canada is our ‘best friend’” and noted Canada’s low defence spending.
A Canadian StratCom strategy
The Canadian government therefore must invest in an ambitious campaign of strategic communications. It should drive home that Canadians trade on fair terms and that Canada buys more American goods than China, Japan, the United Kingdom and France combined.
This StratCom effort must make clear that Canadians can and will be forced to buy elsewhere. It must note that Trump renegotiated a new Canada-U.S.-Mexico trade deal in 2018 and that the agreement was a win for the U.S.
The campaign can employ humility and humour, but it must reinforce the mutual benefit of trade and make clear that Trump’s anti-Canada comments are not based in reality.
Some specific claims must be targeted. Trump often notes that Canada has high tariffs on specific American products, like milk. But this can be misleading, as these are part of a negotiated supply control quota system.
Rather than simply counter Trump’s narrative, the campaign should advance a Canadian one.
Canadian leaders are starting to recognize this. Before leaving office, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau compared Trump’s treatment of Canada over trade with his conciliatory stance toward Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Former finance minister Chrystia Freeland has underscored the importance of communicating directly to regular Americans. The federal government has paid for anti-tariff ads on digital billboards along key highways in red states, including Florida, Nevada, Georgia, Michigan and Ohio.
Canadians themselves are in on the act. Decades after Canadian actor and broadcaster Jeff Douglas appeared in the iconic “I am Canadian” commercial, he’s come out with a new rendition.
“We are Canadian” rejects the president’s “51st State” threats. Its polite but firm tone is the sort of quintessentially Canadian response that should form the basis of a national StatCom effort.
Controlling the narrative
Given time and space, Trump can reshape the terms of the debate or even perceptions of reality. The Canadian government should therefore lead the way in defending the country’s trading practices and its value as a partner.
This effort should reflect Canada’s traditional emphasis on respect and decency. Canadians are offended. But they should resist responses like booing another nation’s anthem — especially if it contributes to the president’s effort to paint Canadians as mean or disrespectful.
The Canada-U.S. relationship will be changed by this experience. But whether the rift is lasting depends in part on whether Canadians believe regular Americans accept or reject the president’s narrative.
A good communications effort could help Canada counter the president’s StratCom campaign and reduce the longer-term fallout from this unfair attack — no matter the repeated threats and slurs emanating from the Oval Office.
