Elephant in the room at NATO summit: The return of Trump

A day before the start of the NATO summit, a top U.S. congressman brought up Canada as a source of frustration without any prompting.

When asked about American allies who are pulling their weight in defence spending, the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives pivoted to the exception on his mind:

«By contrast, shamefully, [there's] Canada,» Mike Johnson said during a think-tank event in Washington.

«Talk about riding on America's coattails. They have the safety and security of being on our border and not having to worry about that. I think that's shameful.»

It's been said Canada is in the hot seat at the NATO summit, which is unfolding amid a spike in global tension that has countries ramping up defence spending. Nearly one-quarter of U.S. senators, from both parties, have written an unusually caustic letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau demanding a plan to hit the alliance's minimum spending goal.

But it could get a lot hotter next year.

Even as Trudeau toured Capitol Hill on Tuesday, there were reminders that, within months, the leader of Johnson's party, Donald Trump, could be president again.

Trump is the proverbial elephant in the room at this year's summit.

Had Canada's prime minister wandered down the corridor, to the left, from his meeting with Senate leaders, he would have witnessed a party in unseemly disarray.

A dense swarm of reporters had gathered outside a room where Democratic lawmakers were meeting to discuss their widespread fear that President Joe Biden is destined for electoral doom.

So what would a Trump comeback mean if he does, indeed, win this fall? Trump has already threatened to stop defending NATO countries who don't meet their spending commitment.

Some of his allies say to count on Trump