Ali Baba had two: “Open Sesame!”

Lydia had three: “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.”

Dorothy, five: “There’s no place like home.”

All got results, almost instantly.

Donald Trump has four magical words. But unlike the other three, they are rooted in reality, not fiction. Yet they will be as effective.

If Donald Trump is sincere about annexing Canada as the 51st state, tariffs are not the way to go. All that tariffs have done so far is unite Canadians. It’s not going to take long for Trump to realize that the opposite approach will be much more effective: disunity. And four magical words uttered by Donald Trump is all that’s needed:

“Vive le Québec libre” 

Every single voter in Quebec — and Canada — knows the implications of those four words. And if Trump dares to speak them, the 51st state is a done deal. All that will be left for Canadians to do is to plan for the inevitable.

Charles de Gaulle spoke those words in 1967 from the balcony of Montreal’s City Hall. Thousands of French-Canadians were gathered below. His words didn’t launch the Quebec separatist movement because it had already started, but it did give the movement much needed credibility. Nine years later, in 1976, the first separatist government was elected to power. The Parti Quebecois then governed Quebec for 20 of the next 48 years.

This included holding two referendums, asking the people of Quebec whether they wanted Quebec to secede from Canada and become its own nation.  The last referendum, in 1995, was a squeaker. The “YES” side lost 49.4% to 50.6%; only 54,288 out of over 4,671,008 cast.

A house divided cannot stand.  Just ask East and West Pakistan how that worked out. An independent Quebec will be a severing down the middle with Eastern Canada on one side — the Maritime Provinces — and Western Canada on the other — Ontario extending west to British Columbia…all separated by a huge gap of 950 miles.

The Parti Quebecois has already announced that if they win the next provincial election they will hold a third referendum.

Even the slightest of nudges from a sitting U.S. president will go a long way to easing the fears of those Quebec voters who would otherwise be reluctant to vote “yes.”  And Trump saying “Vive le Québec libre” is one huge nudge.

And, more importantly, Trump will follow it up by telling Quebecers that the United States will not only recognize an independent Quebec, but will enter into free trade and defense treaties with the new nation. Trump will also remind Quebecers that the United States itself came into existence as a result of its own separatist movement. From Great Britain. With splendid results.

Trump is a deal maker. He’s quite capable of convincing Quebecers that he and the United States will do everything to ensure the transition from Quebec the province to Quebec the nation will feel as seamless as a lane change on an empty highway.

Canada isn’t going to last long after Quebec goes its own way. And those Canadians shouting loudest today in defiance of Trump’s 51st state proclamations? Those are the same folks who will, hat in hand, be the first in line begging for what’s left of Canada to become part of the United States.

If you want to understand why Canada must end, read my book Why Canada Must End, which can be found on Amazon.

A native Montrealer, Tony Kondaks resides in Vancouver, B.C. Watch Trump’s four magical words to get the 51st state of Canada on YouTube.

Image: Public domain.