You don't want smoke? How about a mirror?
Dear Ambassador Pete Hoekstra,
A couple of weeks ago, half a dozen Republicans wrote to Canada's ambassador to the United States to complain about the wildfire smoke that sometimes drifts from our country to yours.
According to the Canadian Press and the Associated Press — you know the latter crowd for sure; they're the ones still calling the Gulf of Mexico by its recognized name and not the one declared by your oh-so-capricious president — representatives Tom Tiffany, Brad Finstad, Tom Emmer, Michelle Fischbach, Glenn Grothman and Pete Stauber of Wisconsin and Minnesota are saying that 'successive years of wildfires in Canada have undermined air quality in their states and robbed Americans of their ability to enjoy the summer.'
Jacquelyn Martin / The Associated Press
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media, Sunday, July 13. American politicians are complaining about wildfire smoke drifting south. Columnist Pam Frampton points out something just as noxious is drifting north from the U.S.
Let me just say right off the bat that we're terribly sorry if our pesky wildfires are interfering with folks' God-given right to play cornhole in the backyard, enjoy a Bud Light on the deck, or set an apple pie out to cool on the kitchen windowsill. Believe it or not, Canadians like those sorts of things, too, of a summer's day.
The representatives are demanding answers and action, writing in their letter, 'As we are entering the height of the fire season, we would like to know how your government plans on mitigating wildfires and the smoke that makes its way south.'
Well, forgive my boldness, sir, but those remarks seem a little light in the empathy department. Wildfires are caused by many things: some by arson, some accidentally set — by a dropped cigarette, say, or a backyard fire that sends sparks flying into tinder-dry woods — some by Mother Nature messing around with lightning. Some are even started by the sparks from trains.
But the underlying factor in all of these is climate change, and the representatives' letter had nary a mention of that. Climate change can bring hotter weather and drought, earlier snow melt and high winds, all of which can set the stage for raging fires.
Are there things countries can do to try to lessen the risk? Why of course, and Canada has. I don't mean to boast, but we've won recognition for our work in that regard. The Canadian Forest Fire Danger Rating System, for example, has been adapted by countries outside of our own. (Acknowledging that climate change is real is a good place to start).
Those Republic representatives are worried about their constituents' —and presumably their own air quality — and fair enough. But have they given any thought to the thousands of Canadians who have had to flee their homes this summer — 12,000 evacuated in Manitoba alone so far — because of wildfires that are far more present and dangerous than second-hand smoke? And what of those who have lost their lives and properties in the fires here? Do those elected representatives care about their neighbours at all?
And speaking of neighbours, your country hasn't exactly been exemplary in that regard of late. With U.S. President Donald Trump turning the tariff screws on Canadian products at every opportunity, you're no longer the ally you once were.
Come to think of it, we have a complaint of our own.
The squalid nature of politics in your country, sir, is making it difficult for many Canadians to enjoy their summer.
Why, we can't even open our newspaper or turn on CBC Radio out on the deck without reading your president's name or hearing his voice. Instead of 'The World This Hour,' CBC might as well call their newscast 'What's Trump Done Today?'
Government departments decimated. Massive employee layoffs. Families ripped apart by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Detainees caged in Alligator Alcatraz. Science denounced and underfunded. Bizarre conspiracy theories endorsed and spread by the Oval Office (we hear Joe Biden was executed in 2020 and replaced by a robotic clone). Playing politics with the judiciary. Promises of peace deals that don't materialize. The 'Big Beautiful Bill.' Trump's incessant use of ALL CAPS. The Epstein files.
Did we mention the Epstein files? Soon, Canadian children will be tearing off daisy petals to the refrain 'Is there a client list or isn't there a client list?,' instead of 'He loves me, he loves me not.'
Weekday Mornings
A quick glance at the news for the upcoming day.
Enough already. Can you do something about that, Ambassador Hoekstra? Can you take our complaint to the highest levels, as we have done with yours about wildfire smoke?
To paraphrase the Republican representatives, we would like to know how your government plans on mitigating the claptrap and twaddle that makes its way north — in all seasons since Trump took office, and not just in summer.
Because right now, the president's vapid ramblings, poison politics and social media proclamations are about as welcome as a parade of ants in a potato salad at a picnic.
Sincere regards.
Pam Frampton lives in St. John's. Email pamelajframpton@gmail.com | X: @Pam_Frampton | Bluesky: @pamframpton.bsky.social
Pam Frampton
Pam Frampton is a columnist for the Free Press. She has worked in print media since 1990 and has been offering up her opinions for more than 20 years. Read more about Pam.
Pam's columns are built on facts, but offer her personal views through arguments and analysis. Every column Pam produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
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