Raymond J. de Souza: Trump is a gangster dressed up like a president

U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. on July 16, 2026. Photo by Saul LOEB / POOL / AFP via Getty Images

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Gangsterism as a public policy technique was aptly summarized more than 40 years ago in The Empire Strikes Back.

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Lando Calrissian: “That wasn’t part of the deal!”

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Darth Vader: “I am altering the deal. Pray I don’t alter it any further.”

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Lando: “This deal is getting worse all the time!”

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Gangsterism explained the Trump administration’s “alteration” of the 2012 agreement for the building of the Gordie Howe Bridge from Windsor to Detroit. President Donald Trump refused to honour it, delaying the scheduled opening last month — invitations had already been sent out — and demanding a share of the toll revenues from the bridge. Canada had paid entirely for the multi-billion-dollar bridge; the original agreement was that Canada would collect and keep the tolls entirely until the construction costs were recouped — a period estimated to take as long as 50 years. After that, Canada and Michigan would split the toll revenues.

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With the bridge completed — and requiring American customs and border officials to operate — Trump reached into the gangster playbook. Don Corleone made offers that could not be refused. The Don in the White House made refusals until he got the offer he wanted.

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An agreement was made and the bridge will open this month. Canada will still collect the tolls but the Americans will get a cut of the revenues immediately. Gangsterism won.

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Prime Minister Mark Carney has not revealed the details of the altered deal. Perhaps he fears it might be altered further. No one likes playing the Canadian Calrissian to the American Vader.

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It is also plausible that in three years, after the bridge is open and operational, Canada will simply refuse to hand over any more toll revenue, unilaterally reverting to the original agreement. The post-Trump American administration will then have the unpalatable choice of shutting down a bridge that will, by that time, have become essential to cross-border traffic for firms and citizens alike.

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Two can play at the gangster game. Gangsterism encourages parties to act like gangsters.

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For more than 10 years, this column has argued that it is impossible to understand the Trump phenomenon without recognizing the roots of Trumpism in reality television and professional wrestling, the latter being the earlier incarnation of the former.

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Trumpism also requires an understanding of the world of the “respectable” gangster. It was not possible to develop real estate in New York in the 1970s and 1980s without cutting deals with the Mafia.

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Paul Castellano, the Gambino family crime boss, was assassinated outside an elegant Manhattan steakhouse in 1985. This brought about the rise of John Gotti, who became what Trump always admired: a celebrity who got good TV ratings.

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Trump had bought concrete from Castellano for his projects, including Trump Tower. There was nothing extraordinary about that. The Mafia controlled concrete and, without their cooperation, any construction project could be impeded or even shut down. The respectable gangsters were simply part of New York society.

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Gangsterism was thus part of Trump’s professional formation. Gotti was the glamorous gangster of the 1980s, a celebrity business partner for a generation of developers.