“I didn’t know they were letting her go a little bit longer. They could have taken her off tonight,” Trump told reporters on Friday. “It’s a dirty game. But I can play even dirtier than them,” he added.
Out of anger over the TV ad, Trump broke off trade talks with Canada for the time being. Ontario also ran the report on various US television stations. In it, over images of US workers and families, Reagan’s voice could be heard warning of tariffs on foreign imports. “In the long run, such trade barriers harm every American worker and consumer,” says the former Republican president (1981 to 1989) in the spot.
The spot also drew criticism from the Ronald Reagan Foundation. The foundation, which manages the estate of the Republican, who died in 2004, accused the province of “selective” use of audio and video material from Reagan’s April 1987 speech and of a “wrong” interpretation of the address. The foundation reserved the right to take legal action.
Canadian Prime Minister Carney said before departing for Asia that Canada is ready to build on recent progress in trade talks “when the Americans are ready.” Carney and Trump could meet on the sidelines of Asean and APEC summits starting Sunday in Malaysia and South Korea. However, the US president said he had no plans to meet Carney.
At the beginning of April, Trump imposed massive tariffs against Canada and numerous other trading partners worldwide. Although he later reduced a number of these surcharges, neighboring Canada is particularly suffering from tariffs of 50 percent on steel and aluminum, 25 percent on cars and a 10 percent surcharge on wood recently imposed by Trump. The government in Ottawa has imposed counter tariffs on steel and aluminum as well as cars from the USA.
