Canada Gave In Again
First Fentanyl, No Digital Services
I had high hopes Canada would stand firm to Trump’s bullying. Trudeau came in weak before.
But now they are doing it again, surrendering on a digital services tax out of the gate on negotiation. It is important to note that this is a tax on domestic activities of multinational companies (specifically Google, Amazon, etc.) It applied to all digital services and would have charged them on the money they make from Canadians. But Trump wants it gone so it is gone.
Carney it seems, is not as strong as he appeared.
I should note that I want this not because I want Trump to lose per-se but because multinational tax-dodging is the business model of tech companies. To understand how serious they are about it you only need to look into the “Double Irish With a Dutch Sandwich” financing, or the history of Braeburn Capital. Trump, who railed against Big Tech when campaigning, has been eager to prop them up at every turn through direct finance or protection. He is doing so here as well.
If everyone gives in then the same US companies that don’t pay taxes in the US, won’t pay taxes anywhere.
They will be lawless everywhere.
And we all lose from that.
To offer another supporting perspective from a proud Canadian:
Yes. Very disappointing.