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Tariffs and personal insults
In the escalating trade dispute between the United States and Canada, Canada announced the imminent imposition of tariffs on around 700 U.S. products, with the new levies scheduled to kick in Sept. 8 as retaliation for fresh U.S. tariffs.
“Canadaannounced the imminent impositionof tariffs on around 700 U.S. products.”
The confrontation has also turned personal, with Trump posting on social media that “Without the United States, Canada couldn’t survive — It’s where they get all of their money and, because of their current bad leadership, primarily Governor Carney, and his Flunky, Ford, they will not be allowed to keep taking advantage of the United States — Their key to survival.”
At a news conference Saturday, Mark Carney contended that the U.S. wanted to add late terms into the deal, which he said were not merely “uneconomic [and] unfair” but “called into question the reliability of any deal.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives moved ahead in public support as the confrontation with Trump intensified, with the PCs climbing six percentage points to 39% among decided and leaning voters in the latest Liaison Strategies Ontario tracker, ahead of the Liberals at 35% and the NDP at 20%.
The poll also found that 85% of respondents supported keeping American beer, wine, and spirits out of LCBO stores until Canada reaches a satisfactory trade agreement with the United States.
Ford and Carney trade blows
As the tariff fight intensified, Trump publicly attacked Doug Ford and Mark Carney, including a post that called Ford a “flunky” and referred to Carney as “Governor Carney,” while Ford responded by calling Trump a “dictator,” a “bully,” and a “loser.”
In an interview with CNN, Ford acknowledged that the exchange had taken on too personal a tone and said he now aims to return to the negotiating table, adding, “I want to seal a deal. A good deal for the American people and a good deal for Canadians,” highlighting the importance of the trade relationship between the two countries.
The dispute has also produced a symbolic clash over naming, with Trump proposing to rename Lake Ontario to “Lake America,” and the rts.ch report noting that Carney stressed on Thursday that the lake had been called that “today and forever,” after the decree was signed.
In the same reporting, rts.ch quoted Carney’s French post on X: “Canadians also know that things must be named for what they are, and this lake is named Lake Ontario – today and forever,” while Trump’s decree was accompanied by an Oval Office map labeling the Great Lakes stretch as “Lake of America.”
Retaliation schedule and stakes
Canada’s retaliation is set to take effect on September 8, with tariffs of 15%, 25%, and 50% applied across $27.6 billion of U.S. imports, after Ottawa said the 50% U.S. tariffs cover $27.6 billion of Canadian goods.
“Canada plans to respond on September 8 with tariffs of 15%, 25%, and 50% across $27.6 billion of US imports.”
The deep dive report said Canada plans to respond on September 8 with tariffs of 15%, 25%, and 50% across $27.6 billion of US imports, and it also described political support for keeping American alcohol out of LCBO stores and for Canadian tariffs equal in value to the new U.S. tariffs.
In parallel, ABC7 Los Angeles reported that Canada announced an aid package for workers and businesses affected by the dispute worth 7.5 billion Canadian dollars ($5.4 trillion U.S. dollars), while also stating that tariffs would take effect on September 8 with rates of 15%, 25%, and 50% and that Canada would match the corresponding U.S. tariff rate on more than 700 products.
The stakes are framed in terms of costs and jobs, with ABC7 Los Angeles quoting French-speaking Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne saying, “We did not choose this conflict, but when our economic integration is used as a weapon rather than the basis for a partnership in which everyone wins, we need to stand up,” and quoting industry minister Mélanie Joly urging Canadians to buy Canadian products to help protect jobs and launch a “resistance movement.”
The same ABC7 Los Angeles report also said U.S. imports of steel from the United States have already fallen 30% since Canada imposed a 25% tariff, and it described the new 50% rate as expected to push them further down.