By Canadian Press

Canada mulling ‘game plan’ if U.S. takes far-right, authoritarian shift: Joly

Aug 17, 2023 | 10:27 AM

OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada has been considering a “game plan” for how it would respond if the United States takes a far-right, authoritarian shift after next year’s presidential elections.

Joly said in French during an interview with a Montreal radio station Wednesday that Canada must “prepare several scenarios” because of Ottawa’s close ties to the U.S.

She says Canada has a game plan in mind but wouldn’t get into details, other than saying she’d work with multiple levels of Canadian government, the business community and labour unions.

Joly drew an analogy to her government’s experience working with the administration of former U.S. president Donald Trump, which sought to limit decades of trade in crucial sectors.

Trump is again running for the Republican nomination in next November’s election, and has promised “retribution” against his opponents and civil servants.

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University of Ottawa national-security professor Thomas Juneau says many Canadians might find it far-fetched to talk about Washington falling drastically out of step with Canada, but he says there has been an extreme rise in global volatility in recent years.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 17, 2023.

The Canadian Press