Trump announces tariff increase on Canada over Reagan ad spat
- The San Juan Daily Star
- 11 hours ago
- 4 min read
By MATINA STEVIS-GRIDNEFF
President Donald Trump doubled down Saturday in his feud with Canada over a television ad that used audio of former President Ronald Reagan denouncing tariffs, saying he would punish the country with an additional 10% tariff on its goods.
Trump had already suspended monthslong trade talks with Canada, the U.S.’ second-largest trading partner, on Thursday night because of the ad, which had been paid for by Ontario. Although the ad faithfully reproduced Reagan’s words, just in a different order, Trump has insisted it was “fraudulent” after the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute said it had made “selective” use of the five-minute original address.
The latest twist in the Canada-U.S. saga comes as the two countries have been locked in intensive talks over lowering some U.S. tariffs on key Canadian goods. The countries’ relationship has drastically deteriorated since Trump’s election, as he has menaced the close U.S. ally with tariffs and spoken of making Canada the 51st state.
Canadians have reacted with anger and have rallied around the flag in a rare burst of patriotism, but the Canadian economy has been suffering the consequences of the dispute. Ontario, in particular, has much at stake in trade relations with the United States, and its premier on Friday posted the entire Reagan address online.
The audio used in the province’s ad was authentic, and minor edits to the original 1987 address did not alter the substance of Reagan’s remarks, which were highly critical of tariffs’ consequences. Following Trump’s outrage, though, the province pulled it from the airwaves, effective Monday.
Still, the commercial was shown during the first World Series game Friday evening, during which the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in a home game. The ad also aired during the Saturday evening game between the two teams.
“The sole purpose of this FRAUD was Canada’s hope that the United States Supreme Court will come to their ‘rescue’ on Tariffs that they have used for years to hurt the United States,” Trump said in a social media post Saturday afternoon.
The U.S. Supreme Court is set to begin hearing oral arguments early next month in a legal challenge to some of the president’s tariffs, including many of those he has placed on Canadian exports.
“Because of their serious misrepresentation of the facts, and hostile act, I am increasing the Tariff on Canada by 10% over and above what they are paying now,” Trump wrote.
He did not provide further details over how the additional tariff would apply and on which goods.
After Trump said he was increasing tariffs, Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister for trade relations with the United States, said in a statement that Canada was “ready to build on the progress made in constructive discussions with American counterparts over the course of recent weeks.”
A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump announced the tariff increase as he was en route to Malaysia, the first stop on a tour of Asia, where governments are seeking to stabilize ties with the United States after months of tariff disputes. Mindful of how Trump’s diplomacy can shift overnight, many of those nations are trying to stay in his good graces.
The United States still has a relatively low average rate of tariffs on Canadian goods, because most of the levies are not applied to goods covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, a free trade deal that Trump negotiated in his first term. But the Trump administration has applied other harsh tariffs on goods critical to the Canadian economy: autos, steel, aluminum and lumber.
Canadian steel and aluminum are subject to a 50% tariff (in line with the rest of the world), softwood lumber is subject to a 10% tariff on top of other preexisting levies, and some auto parts are subject to a 25% tariff.
Despite the focus on the Reagan ad, a top White House economics adviser, Kevin Hassett, said on Friday after the suspension of talks with Canada that “the frustration has built up over time.”
“The Canadians have been very difficult to negotiate with,” he added in comments to the news media.
While Canada has rolled back most of its retaliatory measures against the United States as part of the ongoing talks, it did cap the number of Stellantis and General Motors vehicles made in the United States that can be imported into Canada tariff-free after both companies slashed jobs in Canada, dealing a major blow to the country’s important automotive industry.
“This is the latest in a series of unprovoked and unwarranted escalations in tariff policy with other sovereign nations,” said Flavio Volpe, the president of Canada’s Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association, a trade group. “Lost in the accountability loop here is the president’s threat is really to charge American taxpayers billions of dollars because of a benign World Series ad he doesn’t like,” he added.