Donald Trump is someone who speaks his mind and does not take unnecessary crap. In the face of continued trade tariff strain between the two countries, Donald Trump has slammed a dire warning to Canada. Historically, the U.S. has imposed taxes on certain Canadian goods, such as steel, other metals, and softwood lumber, claiming that the government reportedly sold these at unfairly low prices. In return, Canada also imposed taxes on some goods in the U.S.
However, tariff tensions have increased after Donald Trump’s aggressive focus on it. As per reports, Trump’s moves have investor, consumer, and business confidence in ways that economists worry could cause a U.S. recession and further lag on the worldwide economy.
Moreover, disagreements on trade policies, renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which got replaced by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), and many others continue to cause friction.
As per Irish Star, Trump’s chilling warning for Canada came after Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced retaliatory tariffs. U.S. Ford declared an extra 25 percent electricity cost for Americans who rely on power from Canada in Minnesota, Michigan, and New York.
This sudden move fumed Trump despite his administration slapping 25–50% tariffs on almost all types of goods coming from Canada. “They will pay a financial price for this so big that it will be read about in history books for many years to come!” Donald Trump cautioned via the Truth Social app.
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He further questioned why Americans need to rely on Canada’s power supply even if it’s for a small area and claimed that “Canada has stooped so low” as they have used electricity that concerns ordinary people’s lives. As per Trump, Canada should not use electricity as a bargaining tool or threat to disturb others.
Meanwhile, Ontario Premier Doug Ford expressed his love for Americans. Still, he clarified that he, Ontario, and the rest of Canada “will not back down,” stating, “We will be relentless.” He said he would “not hesitate to shut off electricity completely if the situation escalates further.”
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Earlier, he also slammed Donald Trump’s tariff policies and called them a “disaster” for the economy, which is already suffering amidst reports of inflation and possible rumors of recession in one of the world’s most powerful countries. He vowed, “Until the threat of tariffs was removed for good, Ontario won’t back down. We’ll stand firm, use every tool available, and do whatever it takes to protect Ontario.”
Furthermore, Doug Ford also announced that despite Trump’s temporary one-month tariff reprieve, his tariffs would stay in place due to the uncertainty caused by Trump’s decision.
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Trump later reversed the reprieve and confirmed that the higher steel and aluminum tariffs would begin Monday. Ontario’s administration expects to forge around CAD 300,000 (approximately USD 208,000) daily from these tariffs. Ford states that the revenue will support Ontario workers, families, and businesses.
This latest tax is in addition to the federal government’s initial CAD 30 billion (USD 21 billion) worth of retaliatory tariffs on American goods, including orange juice, peanut butter, coffee, appliances, footwear, cosmetics, motorcycles, and certain pulp and paper products. Earlier, Trump declared that he wanted Canada to be the 51st state of the U.S., which caused a major backlash.
