Donald Trump’s latest tariff tantrum, delivered the day after the World Cup finals, was a sucker punch to Prime Minister Mark Carney, who was seated with the President during the match.
The new measures, which were announced Monday, impose 50-per-cent duties on roughly US$20-billion worth of Canadian goods, from milk and cream to alcohol, hockey equipment and electrical machinery, and are set to take effect on Aug. 19. The administration cast them as retaliation for what it calls Canada’s unfair treatment of American dairy, alcohol and automakers. Tellingly, the list spares energy, potash and critical minerals – all things the U.S. urgently needs from us right now, along with goods already captured by the separate steel and auto tariffs.
