Washington (AFP) – The Canadian province of Ontario said on Friday it would pull an anti-tariff ad featuring former US president Ronald Reagan that prompted current leader Donald Trump to scrap trade talks. Trump announced on his Truth Social network on Thursday that he had “terminated” all negotiations with Canada over what he called the “fake” ad campaign that he said misrepresented fellow Republican Reagan.
Less than 24 hours later, Ontario premier Doug Ford said he was suspending the ads after talking to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney about the spiraling row with Washington. “In speaking with Prime Minister Carney, Ontario will pause its US advertising campaign effective Monday so that trade talks can resume,” Ford said in a post on X. Ford added, however, that he had told his team to keep airing the ad during the first two games this weekend of baseball’s World Series — in which a Canadian team, the Toronto Blue Jays, face the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Canadian ad used quotes from a radio address on trade that Reagan delivered in 1987, in which he warned against ramifications that he said high tariffs on foreign imports could have on the US economy. It cited Reagan as saying that “high tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars,” a quote that matches a transcript of his speech on the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library’s website. The Ronald Reagan foundation wrote on X on Thursday that the Ontario government had used “selective audio and video” and that it was reviewing its legal options.
Trump did not immediately react to the Ontario premier’s decision to pull the ad. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told reporters that Trump had made his “extreme displeasure” known and was expected to respond later. A senior US official said that Trump would probably encounter Carney at a dinner on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in South Korea on Wednesday. “They will likely see each other,” the official told AFP.
– ‘Cheated and got caught’ –
Trump had first vented his fury at the ad late on Thursday, saying it was designed to “interfere with the decision of the US Supreme Court,” which is due to rule on his sweeping global tariffs. “CANADA CHEATED AND GOT CAUGHT!!!” he said in a new post as he doubled down earlier Friday. Carney had earlier sought to calm the situation, saying that his country was ready to resume “progress” on trade talks “when the Americans are ready.” Canada has “to focus on what we can control, and realize what we cannot control,” he added as he headed to Asia.
The latest twist in relations between the United States and Canada came just over two weeks after Carney visited Trump at the White House to seek a relaxation of stiff US tariffs. At that meeting, Trump described Carney as a “world-class leader” and said the Canadian would “walk away very happy” from their discussion. Trump’s global sectoral tariffs — particularly on steel, aluminum, and autos — have hit Canada hard, forcing job losses and squeezing businesses.
For now, the United States and Canada adhere to an existing North American trade deal called the USMCA, which ensures that roughly 85 percent of cross-border trade in both directions remains tariff-free. But in a speech on Wednesday, Carney said that the United States has raised “its tariffs to levels last seen during the Great Depression.” “Our economic strategy needs to change dramatically,” Carney added, saying the process “will take some sacrifices and some time.” White House National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett told reporters earlier that Canada had been “very difficult to negotiate with” and that “frustration has built up over time” for the president.
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