‘ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED’: Trump Explodes Over Ad That Has Reagan Making Him Look Bad

President Donald Trump stopped all trade talks with Canada late Thursday night. The reason was a TV ad that used Ronald Reagan’s voice to speak out against Trump’s tariffs. Ontario Premier Doug Ford had said earlier in the week that Trump would not be happy with the 60-second ad his province made.

As per Politico, the ad was made to warn Americans that Trump’s tariffs could cost them their jobs. It used a clip from Reagan’s 1987 radio speech where he talked about why tariffs are bad. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation was angry about this. They said Canada used the clip without asking and that it twists what Reagan was really trying to say.

Trump posted on Truth Social that the foundation said Canada “fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs.” He said they did this to mess with court decisions. Trump then wrote: “Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED.”

Reagan’s Words Hit Different When They’re Used Against You

In his 1987 speech, Reagan warned about what happens when countries use tariffs. The ad shows Reagan saying: “But over the long run, such trade barriers hurt every American, worker and consumer. High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars. Then the worst happens. Markets shrink and collapse, businesses and industries shut down and millions of people lose their jobs.”

Someone speaking for Ford said they had every right to use the clip. They said it was “an unedited excerpt from one of President Reagan’s public addresses, which is available through public domain.” Prime Minister Mark Carney backed this up too. “The quote of former President Ronald Reagan was recognizing that ultimately somebody pays the tariff — and it’s the consumer,” he told reporters.

The ad played in big U.S. cities, including Washington D.C., and during Toronto Blue Jays games. Ford said last week they would show the message “to every Republican district there is right across the entire country.”

Trump has already put tariffs on things Canada sells to America like steel, aluminum, cars, lumber and copper. He has talked about changing the United States-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement or maybe even getting rid of it. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc were supposed to meet this week, but no one knows if they got together before Trump made his announcement.

This is not the first time Trump has suddenly cut off trade talks with Canada. Back in June, he stopped talks because of Canada’s Digital Services Tax. Things started up again a few days later when Carney’s government said they would drop the tax. Trump and Canadian leaders have clashed before, and things between them keep getting more heated.