In this Feb. 1, 2017, file photo, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn speaks during the daily news briefing at the White House, in Washington. Flynn resigned as President Donald Trump's national security adviser Monday, Feb. 13, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)The Associated Press
TODAY'S TOP STORIES
Trump's national security adviser Flynn resigns
Michael Flynn announced his resignation as Donald Trump's national security adviser last night. Flynn was in hot water over phone calls he had with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. following Trump's win and before the inauguration. In his resignation letter, Flynn said he gave Vice-President Mike Pence "incomplete information" about those calls. Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, who had been named National Security Council chief of staff, will take over Flynn's position in the interim.
Trump wants to tweak NAFTA
"We have a very outstanding trade relationship with Canada. We'll be tweaking it." Those were the words of Donald Trump as he spoke at a joint press conference with Justin Trudeau in Washington yesterday. Trade was a prominent topic of discussion during Trudeau's first meeting with the new President, and what "tweaking" means for NAFTA is now the big question mark in the weeks and months ahead (for subscribers). One area where Trump might look for concessions would be in having U.S. companies bid on provincial and municipal projects. By all accounts, the meeting between the pair went smoothly. Trump directed his attacks on trade toward Mexico, and said Canada's situation is "much less severe."
But the bottom line is that Canada is far more dependent on the U.S. than the other way around, and that puts Trump in the driver's seat. Roughly half of Ontario's GDP depends on U.S. trade, while Alberta's figure is 31 per cent. By contrast, only two U.S. states count on Canada for more than 10 per cent of their GDP.
Trudeau-Trump tidbits
As for the energy sector, both leaders highlighted Keystone XL and said they hope to improve Canada-U.S. ties in oil and gas. Clean energy got a mention, but nothing was said about climate change.
Trudeau and Trump held a roundtable on women in the work force where they announced a project to help female-owned businesses. But if you read between the lines, the roundtable was a clever way for Trudeau to talk about trade, Barrie McKenna writes (for subscribers).
Meanwhile, Sarah Palin won't be the new U.S. ambassador to Canada, the White House told Canadian officials.
Patients worry about safety of medical-marijuana products
In the wake of recent recalls, some patients are wondering if Canada's medical-marijuana products are as safe as they thought. Health Canada doesn't regularly test the products of the country's 38 regulated growers. Instead, they rely on the companies to police themselves. Two of those companies were recently found to have been using a banned pesticide. A staff member at one firm, Mettrum, hid the pesticide behind ceiling tiles when inspectors visited, a former employee said.
MORNING MARKETS
Global stocks flatlined and the U.S. dollar dipped on Tuesday as caution set in before testimony from Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen that may offer clues to the timing of the next U.S. interest rate rise. Adding to pressure on the dollar was the resignation of President Donald Trump's national security adviser Michael Flynn. Tokyo's Nikkei lost 1.1 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped slightly and the Shanghai composite gained marginally. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 was up 0.1 per cent by about 5:25 a.m. ET, with the Paris CAC 40 up a touch and Germany's DAX down 0.1 per cent. Oil recouped some ground on OPEC-led efforts to cut output, though rising production elsewhere kept prices to a narrow range that has contained them so far this year.
WHAT EVERYONE'S TALKING ABOUT
Trudeau's snooze-worthy meeting with Trump a triumph
"Trudeau would rather drink strychnine than play golf with Trump. Fortunately, he has mastered the elementary political skill of acting cordial toward people he would rather strangle. He also knows the last thing Canadians want is for him to look too chummy. The aim is to appear dignified, and avoid humiliation. Mission accomplished. … For the time being, we seem to have persuaded [Trump] that we're his harmless little buddy. Our guys can get back to Ottawa and pour themselves a nice stiff drink." – Margaret Wente
Canadian exceptionalism, American envy
"It was hard for Americans to look at Trudeau on Monday with anything but longing: not only to give our eyes a break from Agent Orange, but to remember what it is like to have a president who is eloquent, informed and has a grasp of the rule of law. One does not need to be a great fan of Trudeau; the fact that he is not Trump suffices for most. … [But] there is no country that is immune from autocracy, and Canada – toward which Americans now cast envious eyes – is also vulnerable. Guard your democratic institutions, Canada. Cherish your prime minister's willingness to serve the public, and hold him accountable. That a nation's leader is willing to serve anyone but himself seems to us like a novelty now." – Sarah Kendzior
Trudeau keeps it boring with Trump, and it works (for now)
"Canada got what it wanted out of the meeting: the reassertion of our special friendship, a firm commitment to free trade across the 49th parallel, and recognition that an open border and the fight against terrorism are not mutually exclusive. The one downside is that these things came from Trump. His volatility has a way of making everything – including the greatest international relationship in modern history – feel precarious." – Globe editorial
HEALTH PRIMER
Chocolate may be good for your heart
Happy Valentine's Day – now go enjoy that (dark) chocolate. One study found that people who eat chocolate regularly were less likely to have a stroke, or die from heart disease. The natural chemicals in cocoa beans may help reduce cholesterol and improve blood flow. And even if you toss aside any long-term health benefits, dark chocolate is a solid source of iron and magnesium.
MOMENT IN TIME
Quebec asbestos workers strike
Feb. 14, 1949: On this day, 5,000 asbestos miners in Quebec's Eastern Townships walked off the job in a fight for better working conditions. Their demands included a wage of $1 an hour and reducing workers' exposure to the deadly dust. Quebec's then-premier Maurice Duplessis, known for anti-union policies, declared the strike illegal and sent in provincial police. After several months, at a time when Quebec supplied 85 per cent of the world's asbestos, U.S. employer Johns Manville Co. began to hire replacement workers; violence escalated on both sides of the dispute. The four-month strike is seen as a milestone in Quebec's labour history, demonstrating the clout of the francophone majority in a turning point that some historians say paved the way for the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s. It marked, as Pierre Trudeau later wrote, "a violent announcement that a new era had begun." – Tavia Grant
Morning Update is written by Arik Ligeti.
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