Murphy’s Logic: To deal or not to deal with Donald Trump

Steve Murphy discusses strategies on making a deal with President Donald Trump.

Politicians often get in trouble for not telling the truth, but Prime Minister Mark Carney seems to have riled some of his critics for speaking the truth.

Carney said Canada is unlikely to get a trade deal with President Donald Trump that doesn’t include tariffs of some kind.

If that doesn’t sound like a good deal for us, that’s because Mr. Trump doesn’t do deals that benefit anyone else.

It’s no secret.

Long before “The Apprentice,” let alone the presidency, Donald Trump put his name on the cover of a book called “The Art of the Deal.” It was a New York Times bestseller – number one for 13 weeks in 1987. A lot of what people believe about Trump the businessman is based on what’s in the book, and many of the people who voted for him said they wanted the man who wrote the book to be president.

Trouble is, Trump didn’t actually write the book – that honour goes to journalist Tony Schwartz, who’s credited as a co-author. Schwartz has since described writing it as his greatest regret.

He confesses to having helped create a monster, a man who lies without hesitation. Schwartz once told the New Yorker magazine, “Trump only takes two positions… either you’re a scummy loser or you’re the greatest. People are disposable.”

Schwartz concluded Trump is always in it for himself, always in it for the money.

So as Canada ponders a new relationship with the U.S., it’s important to remember the truth about Trump: there’s no art in what he does, and there are no deals that don’t benefit himself.

For Canada, it’s likely now only a question of whether no deal is better than whatever Trump is willing to offer.