Donald Trump has already seized one Canadian asset: our attention

Advertisement 1 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Breadcrumb Trail Links HomeNewsCanada Donald Trump has already seized one Canadian asset: our attention 'It's very difficult to know if (Trump is) just having his version of fun, or if there's a rationale behind it, and that's the problem,' says one academic Author of the article: By Stewart Lewis Published Sep 12, 2026 Last updated 13 minutes ago 4 minute read Join the conversation U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting in the Oval Office on Sept. 2. PHOTO BY KEVIN DIETSCH /Getty Images Article content Donald Trump is shamelessly trolling and manipulating Canadians, according to a bevy of experts who suggest a variety of strategies we can adopt in response. Article content “On the one hand, giving the trolling air time plays into Trump’s time-tax, the distraction of it all, taking one of our most precious resources: attention,” said Vass Bednar, managing director of the Canadian Shield Institute, a public policy think tank, said of a recent Trump social media post which portrayed Canada as part of the U.S. Article content Article content “On the other hand, his immature aggression is a reminder that we are not dealing with a typical or predictable administration and need to act accordingly,” she said in an email to National Post. Article content The Truth Social post made by Trump over the Labour Day weekend showed all of North America, Greenland, Iceland and the Caribbean illustrated with the U.S. Stars and Stripes. It harkened to Trump’s rhetoric about Canada as the 51st state and his talk about a strategic need for the U.S. to take over Greenland. Article content Iceland summoned its U.S. ambassador over the post, but official Canada mostly shrugged after years of similar Trump trolling. Article content Article content Article content Peter Jones, University of Ottawa professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, told the Post that “it’s very difficult to know if (Trump is) just having his version of fun, or if there’s a rationale behind it, and that’s the problem.” Article content NP Posted Get a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Article content He points out that when Trump first began referring to Canada as the 51st…