Does Donald Trump deserve a Nobel Peace Prize?
Reading about such obsequious stunts, I'm reminded of George Orwell's 'Newspeak,' and the party slogan from his novel '1984' declaring, 'War Is Peace.' I was also reminded of another line, from another U.S. President with a more legitimate claim on peacemaking: Abraham Lincoln, to whom the folksy witticism 'Knavery and flattery are blood relations,' is often attributed.
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Calgary Herald
an hour ago
- Calgary Herald
EU plans to engage more with other nations hit by US tariffs
(Bloomberg) — The EU is preparing to step up its engagement with other countries hit by Donald Trump's tariffs following a slew of new threats to the bloc and other US trading partners, according to people familiar with the matter. Article content Contacts will take place with nations, including Canada and Japan, and could include the potential for coordination, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. Article content Article content Article content The move comes as talks between the EU and the US have dragged on and continue to be stuck on several issues, including cars and tariff rates on agriculture. Article content Article content Member states were briefed on the status of talks on Sunday. Article content Earlier in the day, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc will extend the suspension of trade countermeasures against the US until Aug. 1 to allow for further talks. The measures had been adopted in response to tariffs imposed earlier by Trump on steel and aluminum before being paused a first time, and were due to snap back into place at midnight on Tuesday. Article content 'At the same time, we will continue to prepare further countermeasures so we are fully prepared,' von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels on Sunday, while reiterating the EU's preference for a 'negotiated solution.' Article content The current list of countermeasures would hit about €21 billion ($24.5 billion) of US goods, while the EU has another one ready of about €72 billion, as well as some export controls, that will be presented to member states as early as Monday, said the people. Article content Article content Von der Leyen also said that the EU's anti-coercion instrument, the bloc's most powerful trade tool, won't be used at this point. 'The ACI is created for extraordinary situations,' she said. 'We are not there yet.' Article content In a social media post responding to Trump's announcement, French President Emmanuel Macron called for the speeding-up of preparations for credible countermeasures, including the anti-coercion tool, if no agreement is reached by Aug. 1. Article content German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Sunday evening said 30% tariffs would hit exporters in Europe's largest economy 'to the core' if a negotiated solution in the trade conflict can't be found. Article content Merz said he was coordinating closely with other leaders to ensure tariffs of such magnitude don't come into force. 'That requires two things: unity in the European Union and good lines of communication with the American president,' the conservative leader told ARD in an interview. Article content Trump has sent letters to a slew of trading partners, tweaking tariff levels proposed in April and inviting them to further talks. In a letter published Saturday, the US president warned the EU it would face a 30% rate from next month if better terms can't be negotiated. Article content The EU had sought to conclude a tentative deal with the US to stave off higher tariffs, but Trump's letter punctured recent optimism in Brussels over the prospects for an 11th-hour agreement. Other countries like Mexico, which has also been negotiating with the US, were surprised to receive similar letters. Article content The EU is seeking a tariff no higher than 10% on agricultural exports. An offset mechanism that some carmakers had pushed as a way to grant tariff relief to companies in return for investments in the US isn't under consideration for now, amid worries from the EU that it could shift production across the Atlantic. Article content Article content The bloc's negotiators are focusing talks on car tariffs instead, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. Article content Negotiations between the US and EU are expected to continue this week, said the people. Article content The US and the EU have been discussing an initial deal that would see most EU exports hit with a 10% tariff, with limited exemptions for some industries such as aviation and medical devices, Bloomberg previously reported. The EU has also been arguing for lower rates on spirits and wines, as well as mitigating through quotas the 50% tariffs that Trump has imposed on steel and aluminum. The US has proposed a 17% tariff on agricultural products. Any initial agreement would also cover non-tariff barriers, economic security cooperation and strategic purchases. Article content In addition to a universal levy now due in August, Trump has also introduced 25% levies on cars and parts, as well as double that on metals. The president is working to introduce sectoral levies in other areas, including pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, and recently announced a 50% duty on copper.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Trump to make unprecedented second state visit to U.K. in September
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, left, hands an invitation from King Charles III for a second state visit to President Donald Trump at the White House, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, in Washington. (Carl Court/Pool via AP, File) LONDON — U.S. President Donald Trump will make an unprecedented second state visit to the U.K. between Sept. 17 and 19 when he will be hosted by King Charles II and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace said Monday. Trump, who is a big supporter of the royal family, particularly of the monarch, will be accompanied by his wife, Melania Trump during the three-day visit, the palace confirmed. No U.S. president has been invited for a second state visit. Trump previously enjoyed the pomp and pageantry of the state visit in 2019 during his first term when he was hosted by Charles' late mother, Queen Elizabeth II. The invitation for the second state visit from the king was hand-delivered by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in February during a meeting at the White House. After reading it, Trump said it was a 'great, great honor' and appeared particularly pleased by the fact he will be staying at Windsor Castle, to the west of the capital. 'That's really something,' he said. Precedent for second-term U.S. presidents who have already made a state visit is usually tea or lunch with the monarch at Windsor Castle, as was the case for George W. Bush and Barack Obama. State visits are ceremonial meetings between heads of state that are used to honor friendly nations and sometimes smooth relations between rivals. While the king formally issues the invitation for a state visit, he does so on the advice of the elected government. The visit is seen as part of Starmer's effort to keep Trump close and lessen the impact of some of his polices on the U.K. The relationship between the two appears amicable, and has helped the U.K. from facing the sort of hefty U.S. tariffs that other nations are seeing. But like Trump's previous visit, it's unlikely he will be welcomed by all. Last time, a day of protests saw the flying of a giant blimp depicting Trump as an angry orange baby from outside Parliament. Lawmakers from Starmer's Labour Party have also questioned whether the honor should be extended to Trump at a time that he is supporting Israel's war in Gaza and threatening the sovereignty of allies such as Canada and Greenland. Charles could also face some challenges during the visit because he is head of state of both the United Kingdom and Canada, which Trump has suggested should become the 51st U.S. state. During a speech to the Canadian parliament in May the king highlighted Canada's 'unique identity' and 'sovereignty,' while echoing the words of the country's national anthem when he said 'The True North is indeed strong and free.' State visits to Britain are particularly prized by heads of state because they come with a full complement of royal pomp and circumstance, including military reviews, carriage rides and a glittering state banquet hosted by the monarch. The events normally take place in and around Buckingham Palace in central London. But like last week's state visit from French President Emmanual Macron and his wife Brigitte, the Trumps will stay at Windsor Castle. Buckingham Palace is undergoing extensive remodeling. Pan Pylas, The Associated Press
Calgary Herald
3 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
Trump assassination attempt was result of 'preventable' Secret Service errors: U.S. Senate panel
Article content A 'cascade of preventable failures' within the U.S. Secret Service nearly cost President Donald Trump his life during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania last year, according to a Senate committee report released Sunday. Article content The Republican-led Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which oversees the Secret Service, found that a series of lapses in planning, communication and coordination allowed 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks to climb undetected onto a rooftop overlooking the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and open fire on July 13, 2024. Article content Article content 'It is a miracle that President Trump survived,' Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, the committee's chairman, said in the report. 'What happened was inexcusable, and the consequences imposed so far do not reflect the severity of the situation.' Article content Article content Article content The findings were released on the one-year mark of the shooting, which jolted the 2024 presidential campaign. Trump, who was grazed in the ear, moments later raised his fist and chanted, 'Fight, fight' — an image his campaign capitalized on. Article content The committee probe, which included 17 interviews and more than 75,000 pages of documents, showed that repeated requests for additional security were either denied or left unfulfilled in the months before. Article content Numerous questions remain about the shooting, including Crooks' motivation. Democrats on the committee did not immediately comment on the report. Article content Article content Agents assigned to Trump's protective detail told investigators they often refrained from submitting further requests because they were convinced headquarters would deny them, according to the report. Article content Article content Just 25 minutes before Crooks fired toward Trump, local law enforcement reported a suspicious man carrying a rangefinder outside the rally perimeter. But the Senate report says a Secret Service supervisory agent failed to broadcast the warning over the agency's radio network, and the message failed to reach agents on Trump's protective detail. Article content The report found significant gaps in how agents were briefed. One counter-sniper assigned to the Butler rally testified he had not been told about any intelligence suggesting a potential long-range threat. That agent chose not to report a suspicious person because he assumed someone else would act.
