Justin Trudeau is not popular in Canada, to put it mildly, with just a 28% approval rating. And if an election were called, his Liberal Party would get crushed by the Conservatives. But if there’s one thing a country as large and as diverse as Canada agrees on it’s that they want no part of joining the United States. They have their own problems to deal with, thank you very much. Trump’s childish taunts will only backfire, as they did in 2018.
Source: CTV News
Amid a looming tariff threat, U.S. president-elect Donald Trump appears to be mocking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, referring to him as “Governor Justin Trudeau” in a post on Truth Social(opens in a new tab) early Tuesday.
“It was a pleasure to have dinner the other night with Governor Justin Trudeau of the Great State of Canada. I look forward to seeing the Governor again soon so that we may continue our in depth talks on Tariffs and Trade, the results of which will be truly spectacular for all!” Trump wrote.
“We will, of course, as we did eight years ago, respond to unfair tariffs in a number of ways, and we’re still looking at the right ways to respond,” Trudeau said at a fireside chat with the Halifax Chamber of Commerce on Monday.
Back then, Trump had another stupid trade war that caused needless headaches for both countries. Like most pointless and unnecessary self-inflicted wars it failed badly and today the U.S. has an even larger trade deficit with Canada.
During his first term as U.S. president, Trump in 2018 triggered a nearly yearlong trade war imposing a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian steel products and 10 per cent on Canadian aluminum. In response, Canada unveiled a 25 per cent counter tariff on a long list of American steel and aluminum products, along with a 10 per cent surtax on miscellaneous U.S. goods including coffee, prepared meals and maple syrup. Those retaliatory tariffs were eventually lifted in 2019 after Canada, the U.S. and Mexico reached a deal.