Bad news, everyone. Canadian beer will be available for the Super Bowl after all. Kidding! I kid, I kid ...

In a totally shocking and surprising move, Justin Trudeau also agreed to spend more resources on border security and fentanyl interdiction as tariffs took effect. Just hours after Mexico's Claudia Sheinbaum committed troops to the border and significant funds to combat drug trafficking, Canada's embattled PM offered similar concessions:

I just had a good call with President Trump. Canada is implementing our $1.3 billion border plan — reinforcing the border with new choppers, technology and personnel, enhanced coordination with our American partners, and increased resources to stop the flow of fentanyl. Nearly…

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) February 3, 2025

Nearly 10,000 frontline personnel are and will be working on protecting the border.

In addition, Canada is making new commitments to appoint a Fentanyl Czar, we will list cartels as terrorists, ensure 24/7 eyes on the border, launch a Canada- U.S. Joint Strike Force to combat organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering. I have also signed a new intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl and we will be backing it with $200 million.

Proposed tariffs will be paused for at least 30 days while we work together.

Contrast this with Trudeau's position yesterday. The New York Times practically cheered Trudeau's "emotional rebuke of Trump tariffs" and his defiant threat to level retaliatory levies:

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada laid out more than $100 billion in retaliatory tariffs against the United States late Saturday, in a forceful response to President Trump’s decision to impose levies on a range of Canadian goods.

But he made clear that Canada was doing so reluctantly.

“We don’t want to be here,” Mr. Trudeau said in a somber televised address from Ottawa that evoked the deep bonds between the two neighbors and close trading partners. “We didn’t ask for this.”

Well ... so much for Trudeau's "forcefulness." And for that matter, so much for the media freakout over tariffs. As I wrote earlier, this is not a new strategy for Trump; he did the same thing with both Canada and Mexico in his first term. He used tariff threats to force both countries to renegotiate a trade agreement that eclipsed NAFTA, and then Trump did it again with Mexico to force cooperation on this very issue. Why would anyone be surprised to see Trump use a successful strategy again, especially as a reset at the beginning of his new term?

Trump confirmed the deal on Truth Social, mainly just repeating Trudeau's tweet:

Canada has agreed to ensure we have a secure Northern Border, and to finally end the deadly scourge of drugs like Fentanyl that have been pouring into our Country, killing hundreds of thousands of Americans, while destroying their families and communities all across our Country.

Canada will implement their $1.3 Billion Border plan, and as per Prime Minister Trudeau, will be, “reinforcing the Border with new choppers, technology and personnel, enhanced coordination with our American partners, and increased resources to stop the flow of fentanyl. Nearly 10,000 frontline personnel are, and will be, working on protecting the Border. In addition, Canada is making new commitments to appoint a Fentanyl Czar, we will list cartels as terrorists, ensure 24/7 eyes on the Border, launch a Canada-U.S. Joint Strike Force to combat organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering. I have also signed a new intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl, and we will be backing it with $200 million.”

As President, it is my responsibility to ensure the safety of ALL Americans, and I am doing just that. I am very pleased with this initial outcome, and the Tariffs announced on Saturday will be paused for a 30 day period to see whether or not a final Economic deal with Canada can be structured. FAIRNESS FOR ALL!

Trudeau had already floated the $1.3 billion border plan, others have noted, but Trudeau wasn't exactly enthusiastic about it. He only offered it because Trump threatened tariffs shortly after the election, and it's been two months and nothing much has happened. Now Trudeau has 30 days to get it in action along with the new commitments made today. The FAIRNESS FOR ALL is about more than just trade, but also in fair and equitable efforts on all sides of the borders to secure them. 

And let's not kid ourselves about whether this is a win for Trump. Earlier, some commentators claimed that Trump had blinked rather than Sheinbaum, but the NYT knew better -- and knew Trudeau had gotten shafted by Sheinbaum. And that may have been because some Canadians were trying to shaft Mexico:

Canada found itself in a precarious position on Monday morning after Mexico cut a deal with President Trump to postpone tariffs in exchange for a major deployment of forces along the border between the two countries. ...

But when Mr. Trump first threatened tariffs against Canada and Mexico in November, citing illegal migration and fentanyl flowing into the United States from both neighbors, some Canadian politicians rushed to throw Mexico under the bus.

Ontario’s premier, Doug Ford, a prominent voice on the topic, and others suggested that the United States should form a separate deal with Canada and ditch Mexico. The argument focused on the vast difference between the two borders: Only a fraction of the undocumented migrants and fentanyl entering the United States come from Canada compared to Mexico.

While Mr. Trudeau did not suggest ditching Mexico, the relationship between the two countries suffered deeply. The senior Canadian official previously said that the trust between them had been reduced to zero.

Ooops! Well, timing matters in these negotiations. Now Trump has the upper hand on both countries, and Trump will not hesitate to use it.