Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said that Canada would be able to calm the waters with the U.S. using two very simple words.
According to Mediaite, Lutnick told CBS News’s chief White House correspondent Nancy Cordes during an interview that all Canadians have to do for President Donald Trump and his administration to ease of up tariffs would be to say, “thank you.”
Lutnick said that countries are used to the status quo, where they say a lot, but don’t do a lot, and added that Trump has a different approach.
“With Donald Trump, you do nothing, you get punished,” Lutnick said. “The markets are going to learn, let the dealmaker make his deals. Let the best negotiator, and the best person who cares about America, let him make the deals.”
Lutnick said that all countries have to do is be thankful for what the U.S. does for them.
“Just say thank you,” Lutnick said, “When the biggest client and the biggest trading partner, the most important counterpart that you have really really matters to you, the first thing you do is show immeasurable respect. Say thank you, I want to work it out with you, I want you to be happy, and that is what Donald Trump is going to make everyone realize. We feed the world, please be kind to us.”
Lutnick added that Mexico only wants to “care” about the U.S. when someone like Trump is in charge.
He said: “Mexico allows caravans down their highways to break into America, and they then say, you’re really important to us. Seems very disrespectful. How about, we don’t have to build a wall, you build the wall. You want to trade with us, you want all this economic to come to you, how about Mexico, you build the wall. So, the first time, in his first term he said Mexico would pay for the wall, you know who’s guarding the wall right now? 11,000 Mexican troops are guarding the wall because they care about America, and they care about America when Donald Trump’s in the White House.”
