I honestly believe that Trump could annex the whole of Canada, Greenland, and half the EU if he demonstrated a willingness to utilize force, especially ground forces. I’m not saying this would be simple or easy, but it would be far more effective than threatening economic consequences. I think we can agree that Canadians generally value compliance and authority more than their American brethren. The Russians and Chinese also value compliance, and their nations are more than willing to absorb suffering for the sake of their respective authorities. This applies to other European nations as well. Germans in particular are culturally authoritarian, despite them pretending otherwise.
The Russian Federation, though objectively inferior to the United States, was able to make major strategic gains through application and threats of force. They only really overcommitted in 2022, but even that could have turned out much worse for them. Authoritarian societies value power above all else, so it's why even when they form democratic states they sperg out when they perceive their authority is being threatened. Justin Trudeau was very harsh on the truckers while "fascist" Trump let his cities burn during the Summer of Love.
Trump is a consummate businessman for better or worse. He likes dealing in money and deals. That might work in the market, where individuals have some sort of mutual respect for each other, but diplomacy is a different game. The best way to get a nation to deal in good faith is to show how you could just as easily destroy them. The Pax Romana didn't come about peacefully, ironically. Not to say any of the other recent presidents are an improvement. Biden and Obama were limp-wristed, Bush Jr was a stooge, and Clinton successfully turned Russia into a bitter rival with his actions in Kosovo.
Here's a modern example. Russians like pushing this idea of "multipolarity," but did you know this push actually originated in Canada and Western Europe? During the first decade of the 21st century, the French and Germans were all to happy to denounce American imperialism. Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sakorzy were notoriously unreliable for the US and the less said of the Germans, the better.
I know the US is not perfect, but I'd rather have the Republic swing the big stick and swallow up land then see the world descend into a mess of autocracies and oligarchies sending their populations off to meaningless death wars.
Oh right this is a Canada thread. Er, Trudeau is a stinky poo poo, Nunavut will never be a province, and Stephen Harper did nothing wrong.
