President Trump intensified his growing trade confrontation with Canada on Monday, responding sharply after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described the standoff between the neighboring nations as a “war.”
“Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years. Their ridiculously high tariffs on our Farmers and farm products has made life impossible for these great American Patriots, and has long created a 60 Billion Dollar Deficit between our two Countries. Not sustainable, and NOT ANYMORE!,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
Trump went further, declaring that beginning January 1, 2027, he intends to raise tariffs on all vehicles, auto parts and steel to 50%. He also revived one of his long-running taunts, saying Canada no longer deserved to be treated as a potential 51st state.
“Canada will be treated like a State no longer! On Trade, and in other ways, also, they are among the worst Nations in the World to deal with. They feel entitled, and yet, WE DON’T NEED CANADA, THEY NEED US! They do 95% of their business with the U.S., with us, the exact opposite!,” Trump wrote.
The latest escalation follows the Trump administration’s move on Saturday to impose a sweeping 50% tariff on a range of Canadian imports, including beer, cheese and electronics, after Washington and Ottawa failed to reach a new trade agreement.
Carney, in turn, pledged that Canada would not back down, announcing retaliatory tariffs set to take effect on September 8.
“We were attacked. You’re at war when you get attacked. We got attacked,” Carney said Saturday. “That’s fine. We’ve got the reserves. We’ve got the resilience. We’ve got the plan. We’ve got the focus. We will respond.”
Canada’s countermeasures are expected to hit U.S. steel, dairy products, farm machinery, pulp and paper, and other goods. Carney said Ottawa’s response would match the U.S. tariffs “dollar for dollar.”
Both sides have blamed the other for a lack of a deal.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, leading talks for the United States, said Canada was asking for too much.
“I think there were things that the Canadians just — you know, they wanted more,” he told CNBC on Monday morning.
Carney, who is trying to build a reputation as a leader willing to stand up to Trump, said the same of the United States.
“They asked too much and offered too little,” he said.
