A glimmer of hope is that DOGE is dismantling US federal infrastructure in a random and haphazard way and will have consequences that Trump will not have considered. This would mean the administration will be fighting fires at home and will not have the capacity to go on any foreign excursions.

9. Trump has already signalled he is ready to damage the international order (NATO and Ukraine) and is aligning with Russia, a country with its own imperialist ambitions and from whom Trump seems to take inspiration. Annexation to freely access our natural resources is what I think the endgame is.

8. My biggest worry is that someday - soon - we will have to endure the actions of an American President after giving a speech containing the phrase "I've instructed the military to assemble near the Canadian border." I don't believe this is hyperbole.

7. Diplomatic negotiations are built on a bedrock of protocol, tradition and give and take. The American administration has shown that they respect none of this. Zero-sum negotiating isn't negotiation at all. "America First" is becoming "America at all costs".

6. I hope the Canadian government is showing this fortitude during off-camera negotiations. The rest of the world is watching and it could set a precedent on how to deal with the Trump administration.

5. Trudeau's speech was pitch perfect in that he projected strength and confidence, filled a message void when speaking directly to average Americans, and sent a message that Canada will not fold easily.

4. Trump accuses Trudeau of "trying to hang on to power" when the Prime Minister could not give Trump a date for the Canadian election, showing either a wilful ignorance, or more probably, an actual ignorance of Canadian parliamentary procedures.

3. The US Vice-President accuses Canada of “killing Americans”, an outrageous comment meant to shame and embarrass, and giving more oxygen to the fentanyl excuse.

2. In a call to discuss the tariffs, Trump had the temerity to demand Canada lift its retaliatory tariffs while offering zero concessions on his side, doubling down on this fentanyl excuse and seemingly issuing new demands of lifting taxes on American-made goods.

1. The Trump tariffs (although in my opinion, it is more accurate to call them "sanctions") are in place on the disingenuous pretence of preventing fentanyl from entering the United States. Apparently, US border officials have no responsibility in this.