Canadian authorities are working to decipher a recent social media post by Donald Trump, in which he mentioned a 10% increase in what he referred to as “the Tariff on Canada.” However, the U.S. president has not provided specific details about which Canadian exports will be affected by the tariff hike, and there has been no official notification to Canada from his administration regarding the increase.
During a press briefing on Air Force One, Trump was asked about the timing of the tariff increase, to which he responded vaguely, stating he was unsure and did not wish to discuss it in detail. Despite this, he extensively discussed an advertisement by the Ontario government, which he claimed led to the suspension of trade negotiations with Canada and the subsequent announcement of the tariff hike.
Trump continued to assert that the ad was misleading and misrepresented Ronald Reagan’s stance on tariffs, despite evidence indicating Reagan’s opposition to tariffs on economic allies like Canada. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on November 5 regarding Trump’s appeal against a ruling that deemed his imposition of broad-based tariffs on several countries, including Canada, as exceeding his constitutional authority.
When questioned about his decision to target Canada over the provincial government’s ad, Trump justified his actions by accusing Canada of long-term exploitation and having inadequate representatives. He expressed reluctance to meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney at the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea and emphasized his satisfaction with the current trade agreement with Canada without specifying which deal he was referring to.
Despite ongoing negotiations between senior U.S. officials and Canadian counterparts for potential tariff relief on steel and aluminum imports, talks were abruptly halted by Trump. The White House hinted that the ad was not the sole reason behind Trump’s escalation of the trade conflict with Canada, attributing it to the challenging nature of negotiations with Canadian officials.
Officials in the Trump administration criticized the Ontario government’s ad as interference in U.S. affairs and labeled it as propaganda aimed at condemning tariffs. However, they evaded questions regarding the specific Canadian exports that would be subject to the 10% tariff hike. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the ad as unwelcome intrusion, while dodging direct inquiries about the extent of the tariff application to Canadian goods.