Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney can be forgiven if he feels a little bit like he has a target on his back these days. It isn’t his domestic political opponents he has to worry about.

Carney has been unequivocal about Canada’s independence. It will not become the 51st US state. Nor will he back down in the trade dispute America has started.

Which has me thinking it is now a matter of when, not if. When will US president Donald Trump order Carney’s death?

You think that sounds preposterous. Consider the past couple of months.

Venezuelan president Nicholas Maduro kidnapped by the American military, in an operation that violated both American and international law. Did the American people protest? They did not. Did Congress rebuke the president? It did not? Did the military refuse to follow obviously illegal orders? They did not.

Now let’s look at the more recent attack on Iran and the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and much of Iran’s leadership, in an operation that violated both American and international law. Did the American people protest? They did not. Did Congress rebuke the president? It did not. Did the military refuse to follow obviously illegal orders? They did not.

Trump has acted with impunity because he can. He chose his targets carefully.

Maduro had no democratic legitimacy and has ties to drug cartels. No-one in the international community is sorry he is gone.

Khamenei was a sponsor of international terrorism and had the blood of tens of thousands of Iranians in his hands. No-one in the international community is sorry he is gone.

But they should be. Because the rule of law needs to apply equally to everyone or it has no meaning. Legal protections are not only for those we like. They should extend also to our enemies.

When any nation is allowed to use kidnapping and assassination to achieve its aims, and is not called to account for its actions, it sets a very bad precedent.

Do I actually believe Donald Trump will order they murder of Mark Carney if Carney continues to reject his offer for Canada to become part of the United States? After sitting and thinking about it for five minutes, my answer is: I don’t know.

What I do know is that Trump is quite capable of giving the order. And it appears that there is no-one willing to stop him.