Donald Trump’s Canadian Punching Bag

From December 1940 to June 1941, Joe Louis defended his heavyweight crown seven times in seven months. Sportswriters weren’t accustomed to a boxer so aggressively defending his championship belt and so, they derisively and unfairly dubbed Louis’s opponents the “Bum of the Month Club”.

Louis dispatched all seven fighters, although future Hall of Famer Billy Conn was ahead on points before getting greedy and going for the kill in the 13th round, only to be KO’d by Louis instead. After the bout, Conn famously quipped "I lost my head and a million bucks." He also told reporters who asked why he had abandoned his winning strategy to go for the knockout punch, "What's the use of being Irish if you can't be thick?”

Had Conn won, he would have become the first light heavyweight to assume the heavyweight title. But alas, he was guilty of punching above his weight class.

As for Louis, the “Brown Bomber” went on to defend his title a remarkable 25 times during his unprecedented 12-year reign atop the heavyweight division from 1937 to 1949. Simply put, he was a man amongst boys, head and shoulders above his competition.

Which reminds me of the relationship between Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The former is the undisputed heavyweight champion of the political world, and the latter is flailing away, trying to punch above his weight class.

In layman’s terms, Trump “owns” Trudeau and they both know it. The Progressive girly man from Ottawa may primp and preen, but he is simply no match for the 47th Commander-in-Chief of the United States. For instance, when President Trump announced that he was planning to impose a 25% tariff on imported Canadian goods unless our neighbors to the north did a better job securing their border, Trudeau impulsively fired back that Canada would match American tariffs tit-for-tat.

I’m not sure what went on behind closed doors or over the phone, but within 48 hours Trudeau was singing an entirely different song... and it wasn’t “O Canada”. Here is a partial list of the concessions he agreed to:

Canada will implement a $1.3 billion border plan, which will reinforce Canadian borders with “new choppers, technology and personnel,” as well as “enhanced coordination,” with the U.S., to “stop the flow of fentanyl.” Canada will also appoint a Fentanyl Czar; list cartels as terrorists; create a joint strike force between the two countries to combat organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering; and launch a new $200-million intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl.

In tennis, they would call that a straight set win… 6-0, 6-0, 6-0. And in golf, I am reminded of the famous story Lee Trevino, no slouch himself, used to tell about Jack Nicklaus’ pure dominance on the links.

“When you arrived at the first tee, Jack knew that he was going to win, you knew that he was going to win, and he knew that you knew that he was going to win.”

Justin Trudeau, meet Jack Nicklaus… I mean, Donald Trump.

(Editor’s Note: The saddest part of this story is that – reminiscent of Richard Nixon’s dismissive comment to the press after losing the California gubernatorial race in 1962 – we won’t have Justin Trudeau to kick around anymore, because he is resigning as prime minister and as a member of parliament this spring. Don’t let the door hit you in the bum on the way out, Justin.)