Trump’s national security strategy delivers grim message that Canadians downplay at our peril

The Trump doctrine essentially portrays Canada as vassal state to American 'pre-eminence' in the hemisphere. Canada, Mexico and other nations of the Americas are expected to pursue their national interest—just as the U.S. does—but will pay a stiff price if their strategies do not align with MAGA America.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., on May 6, 2025. The National Security Strategy implicitly threatens to punish countries—particularly those like Canada—that pursue decarbonization strategies in ways that Trump or his MAGA officials find contrary to American interests, writes Shawn McCarthy. Photograph courtesy of the White House/photographer Daniel Torok

Opinion

BY SHAWN MCCARTHY

December 10, 2025

OTTAWA—It’s not surprising that the Trump administration’s National Security Strategy of the United States of America takes no account of the global instabi...

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