Trump and Canada: All the ways northern neighbour could feel election aftershock

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—Keystone XL: Trump has said several times he favours construction of the Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta. A campaign document suggested he’d invite TransCanada Corp. to reapply. If he’s serious about proceeding, it could be a bit of welcome news for the Canadian government. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had supported the pipeline, and now faces political dilemmas at home related to new pipelines.

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—Syrian refugees: Trudeau went to the airport to welcome Syrian refugees. Trump refers to the refugees as a Trojan horse. His son tweeted a comparison to a bowl of Skittles, where only one bad one can kill you. Canada works closely with the U.S. on intelligence and screening of foreigners. It’s an integral part of ongoing plans to thin the Canada-U.S. border and facilitate trade. It’s far from certain a Trump administration would be keen on more refugees next door.

—Brain-poaching possibilities: Even before Tuesday’s election, CNBC reported that the number of Americans searching for jobs in Canada had increased a whopping 58 per cent since last year on the jobs-posting platform Monster Worldwide.

—Defence: Trump has threatened to leave allies to their own devices if they fail to meet the agreed-upon NATO target of spending two per cent of GDP on the military. Canada is nowhere close and recently said it had no current plans to get there.

—Bad bromance: Trudeau’s affection for the current president was obvious during their meetings. He’ll soon face a less-predictable interlocutor. Trudeau bit his tongue, mostly, during the campaign but he did make clear his displeasure with Trump’s talk of a Muslim ban. One benefit working for Ottawa: Trump and his team have said virtually nothing negative about Canada during the campaign — unlike the constant complaints about the neighbour to the south.

Alexander Panetta, The Canadian Press