Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau launched a blistering response to President Donald Trump’s decision to level punishing tariffs on his country.
He cited the Wall Street Journal to criticize Trump, and call his decision ‘dumb.’
‘Donald, they point out that even though you are a very smart guy, this is a very dumb thing to do,’ he said angrily at a press conference on Tuesday.
Imports from Canada will now be taxed at 25 percent as Trump’s tariffs went into effect on Tuesday.
‘Today the United States launched a trade war against Canada, their closest partner and ally, and their closest friend,’ Trudeau said. ‘At the same time they’re talking about working positively with Russia, appeasing Vladimir Putin a lying murderous dictator. Make that make sense.’
The United States imported $412 billion worth of goods from Canada in 2024 according to the US Census Bureau as they are the third largest trading partner with the United States.
‘Canadians are reasonable and we are polite but we will not back down from a fight, not when our country and the well being of everyone in it is at stake,’ Trudeau said.
Justin Trudeau spoke directly to the American people, blaming President Donald Trump for making the decision to level tariffs, warning it would hurt the country economically.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a news conference on imposed U.S. tariffs in Ottawa
‘We don’t want this. We want to work with you as a friend and ally and we don’t want to see you hurt either but your government has chosen to do this to you,’ he said.
Trudeau announced that Canada would begin implementing 25 percent tariffs against the $155 billion of American goods, starting with tariffs on $30 billion of goods immediately.
‘This is a time to hit back hard and to demonstrate that a fight with Canada will have no winners,’ he said.
Trudeau appeared deeply upset, warning the tariffs would hurt Canadian families and business, and said he would work with the United States to convince them to lift the punishing tariffs.
‘I will admit I have been holding out hope that these tariffs were just a clever negotiating ploy,’ he acknowledged.
Trump has long defended tariffs as a ‘powerful weapon’ that should be used by the United States to bolster American manufacturing.
He has also argued the United States does not need Canada’s lumber, dairy products, or auto manufacturing.
US Presidnt Donald Trump greets Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 20, 2019
Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was deeply upset by the news
‘We don’t need them to make our cars, we make a lot of them, we don’t need their lumber because we have our own forests… we don’t need their oil and gas, we have more than anybody,’ he said in January.
American companies who rely on products manufactured in Canada warn that tariffs will only will make their items more expensive as they pass their costs to consumers.
The president also leveled a 25 percent tariff on goods from Mexico and increased a 10 percent tariff on imports from China by an additional ten percent.
‘I love the people of Canada and — but honestly it’s not fair for us to be supporting Canada,’ Trump said last week during a cabinet meeting at the White House.
Trump has repeatedly proposed that if Canada wants to avoid the tariffs they should consider joining the United States.
‘I say Canada should be our 51st state,’ he said. ‘There’s no tariffs, no nothing.’
Trump has even proposed to Trudeau that he could be governor.
‘I think he’s a very good guy. I call him Governor Trudeau,’ he added.
