GOLDSTEIN: Mark Carney has gone 'elbows down' on Donald Trump for a reason

Those hoping for an “elbows up” response from Prime Minister Mark Carney to U.S. President Donald Trump’s invasion of Venezuela — and his threat to conquer Greenland (and possibly Colombia, Cuba and Mexico) — have been sorely disappointed by the PM’s carefully worded comments.

As Carney put it in his initial response on X to Trump’s capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores and shipping them off to New York for prosecution for “narco-terrorism” and other crimes: “The Canadian government … welcomes the opportunity for freedom, democracy, peace and prosperity for the Venezuelan people.

“In keeping with our long-standing commitment to upholding the rule of law, sovereignty and human rights, Canada calls on all parties to respect international law,” he said. “We stand by the Venezuelan people’s sovereign right to decide and build their own future in a peaceful and democratic society.”

He was similarly restrained on Greenland, expressing support for its right to self-determination without, once again, condemning (or even mentioning) Trump.

Trump not mentioned in criticisms

As Carney’s prime-ministerial X account put it: “Prime Minister Carney emphasized Canada’s support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark, including Greenland, which must be respected in accordance with international law. The Prime Minister affirmed Canada’s support for today’s joint statement on Greenland by Denmark and European leaders. The future of Greenland is for Greenland and Denmark to determine. Canada will continue to work with Denmark, Greenland and other partners in our shared responsibility for the security and resilience of the Arctic.”

Among the critics are Liberals such as Lloyd Axworthy — former PM Jean Chretien’s foreign affairs minister, who hasn’t held the job for a quarter-century — and a wide assortment of Canada’s chattering classes who are accusing Carney of everything from incompetence to cowardice.

But in the world of realpolitik, what Carney is doing is understandable.

It’s one thing for Carney to condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza and declare that if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ever sets foot in Canada, he will detain him in compliance with the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for him.

Ditto condemning Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion and four-year war against Ukraine.

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

Crucial negotiations await with U.S.

That’s easy because Canada doesn’t have much skin in the game when it comes to Israel and Russia and the fact that Canada has sent $22 billion in aid to Ukraine makes his position (and that of his predecessor Justin Trudeau) pretty clear.

But Canada’s relationship with the U.S. — where 75% of our exports are sold and 50% of our imports come from — is a different story.

Here, Carney has to weigh virtue-signalling against Trump with the fact that we’re entering crucial negotiations this year on the future of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) on trade, which so far has protected most Canadian industries from the full force of Trump’s tariffs.

Carney is now finding out — as all prime ministers do — that it’s a lot harder to catch the spears being thrown at him by critics than it is for the critics to throw them.

The PM’s restrained responses to Trump are consistent with the fact that he long ago abandoned his “elbows up” rhetoric against him, even before the Liberals used the phrase in an election ad featuring Carney and comedian Mike Myers.

Post-election, Carney has made numerous concessions to Trump in a bid to get a trade deal.

While it’s easy to criticize him from the cheap seats, Carney must do what he thinks is best for the Canadian economy. That’s his job.