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President Trump has called on Canadian companies to pack up and move to the United States, saying he does not want Canadian cars, parts, or “Canadian anything” as the trade war between the two countries keeps escalating.
Some shit you should know before you dig in: Trade talks between Washington and Ottawa collapsed, and 50% US tariffs took effect Aug. 22 on roughly $20 billion in Canadian goods, hitting wine, cement, dairy, and lumber. That covers about 5% of what the US imports from Canada, a total that reached nearly $382 billion last year. Canada is retaliating Sept. 8 with matching tariffs of 15, 25, or 50% on about the same value of American goods, targeting electronics, appliances, farm equipment, steel, and dairy. Trump has separately ordered 50% tariffs on Canadian steel and on all cars and trucks built there, starting Jan. 1, 2027. Roughly $900 billion in trade crosses the border every year, making Canada America’s second-largest trading partner.
What’s going on now: On Sunday, President Trump took to Truth Social in back-to-back posts, warning that the trade relationship between the US and Canada is finished as it stands and telling Canadian firms the only way around the tariffs is to relocate.
He wrote, “Let all Canadian Companies that are doing business with America move to the United States, immediately. Many of them are Companies that moved out years ago due to stupid U.S. Leadership. When you move back, there are no TARIFFS!” He also claimed “Canadian businesses are pouring into the United States,” without naming any firm that has actually moved or any figure for capital crossing the border. Trump credited his tariffs with saving the American auto industry, saying a Ford plant in Detroit that was set to close is now “running 24/7” and “one of the most profitable Car Plants in the World.”
He added that Canada is one of the “worst abusers” of the United States and said he does not want anything coming into the US from Canada. He went on to say, “This should have happened long ago with other Presidents, just as stopping Iran should have happened long ago. They want to be treated like a State, but they aren’t one. I deal with the Leadership of many Countries, but I find Canada to be the worst. They are entitled no longer!”
Canadian officials are not backing off. Prime Minister Mark Carney called the new tariffs a “miscalculation” and an attempt to “hurt and divide” Canada, saying the country is “at war” over trade. Ontario Premier Doug Ford told ABC’s “This Week” that “everyone’s feeling bullied by President Trump, and this is the worst thing you could do for the American economy. I just don’t see the purpose. It’s absolutely backwards.”
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew went harder, calling Trump “very weak” and saying, “he’s about to get slaughtered in the midterms and the cost of living is the number one issue and he’s completely out of touch.”
This comes as US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer warned against further escalation, telling a Canadian broadcaster, “If there’s further retaliation from the Canadian side, we, of course, we’re not going to just sit down and take that. Our view is don’t retaliate. I know how people are feeling in Canada and what they think. So, you know, it’s unfortunate, but it is what it is.”
