Trump says he’s cutting off all trade talks with Canada over anti-tariff ad

President Trump said late Thursday he’s ending trade talks with Canada, citing an anti-tariff ad campaign by the province of Ontario that uses late President Ronald Reagan’s voice.

“Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED,” the president wrote on Truth Social.

The president appeared to be referencing an ad released last week by Ontario that includes excerpts from a 1987 radio address given by Reagan, in which the former president said tariffs work “only for a short time” and “hurt every American worker and consumer.” 

“High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars,” Reagan said, as quoted by the ad.

CBS News has reached out to the White House, Global Affairs Canada, and the Ontario premier’s office for comment. 

Earlier Thursday, the Ronald Reagan Foundation said in a statement posted to X the ad used “selective audio” and “misrepresents the Presidential Radio Address.” The foundation also said the government of Ontario didn’t seek permission to use snippets from Reagan’s address, and said it is “reviewing its legal options in this matter.”

Mr. Trump pointed to the Ronald Reagan Foundation’s statement in his Truth Social post, calling Ontario’s ad “FAKE” and claiming it “only did this to interfere with the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court” — referring to a pending case on the legality of Mr. Trump’s tariff strategy.

Canada is the second-largest trading partner for the U.S. after Mexico, with the U.S. importing $412.7 billion worth of Canadian goods last year, and Canada buying $349.4 billion in American goods, according to U.S. statistics.

But relations between the U.S. and its northern neighbor have frayed amid Mr. Trump’s trade strategy. He initially imposed higher tariffs on Canada earlier this year, accusing the country of not doing enough to stem the flow of illicit drugs and migration across the border — allegations that Canadian officials pushed back on.

Over the summer, Mr. Trump hiked tariffs on the country to 35%, though a large share of goods are exempt because they’re covered by the 2020 U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement.

Back in March, Canada imposed 25% retaliatory tariffs on many U.S. products not covered by the USMCA. But in August, as part of efforts to reach a deal on tariffs, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said those retaliatory tariffs were being lifted. The two nations have yet to reach such a deal.  

Meanwhile, Carney said earlier this week the country would seek to double its exports to countries other than the U.S., citing the “pall of uncertainty” caused by American tariffs.

Still, Carney has sought to negotiate with Mr. Trump, visiting the White House earlier this month.