There may be no more hazardous exercise for a Canadian newspaper columnist these days than attempting to interpret Donald Trump’s trade policies. To suggest that there might be some logic behind his moves to undo the rules of the global trading system that he insists have been skewed against the United States is to invite accusations of gaslighting on behalf of the most mendacious, immoral and incompetent U.S. President of the past 250 years.
Here it goes anyway.
In his election night address to Canadians last year, Mark Carney spoke with gravity and urgency about the threat posed by Donald Trump. “America,” he declared, “wants our land, our resources, our water, our country … President Trump is trying to break us so that America can own us.” Having spent the 2025 campaign warning Canadians about the seriousness of this threat, the prime minister sounded similarly unequivocal about the need for a more assertive approach to Canada-U.S. relations. “Our old relationship with the United States, a relationship based on steadily increasing integration,” he added, “is over … We have to look out for ourselves and above all we have to take care of each other.”
Chinese-brand cars are sitting at Canadian ports, waiting to be unloaded. The first dealerships of BYD, Geely, and Chery are set to open this fall in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montréal, with more to follow by the end of the year. And not one of those cars can legally be sold in the United States.
That gap—vehicles landing at America’s doorstep that can’t be sold across the border—is the center of a quiet contest now unfolding on the northern frontier. The United States has walled out
Chinese cars with a 100 percent tariff and a national security rule that bars China-owned automakers from the U.S. market even if they build their cars on American soil.
But Canada has moved the other way. In January, it agreed to let in a rising number of Chinese electric vehicles at a tariff of only 6.1 percent, breaking ranks with Washington.
“The only winning move is not to play.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney must be a fan of sci-fi movies, as this memorable line from the 1983 Oscar-nominated movie “WarGames” neatly sums up Canada’s current CUSMA negotiating stance.
It’s becoming clear that the Liberals have determined that there’s no good deal to be had with U.S. President Donald Trump. Rather than go through the motions, Carney seems to have pivoted to a completely new tactic: not playing the game. The current dynamic is surely far more appealing than the alternative: signing a revised U.S. trade agreement that’s substantially less palatable than what was achieved by either Brian Mulroney or Justin Trudeau in years gone by.
The Ontario government’s representative in Washington says U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest threat to levy 50 per cent tariffs on hundreds of Canadian goods is an indication that the administration is taking notice of the effect Canada’s retaliatory trade action is having on the American economy.
Speaking to CBC’s Power & Politics, David Paterson pointed to a specific complaint laid out in the fact sheet announcing the tariffs: U.S. auto exports to Canada dropping 22 per cent since April of last year.
Awareness of the latest U.S. tariff threat is high among Canadians, according to a new Leger poll, but only 50 per cent support some level of tariff response.
Overall, 68 per cent of poll respondents are following Canada–U.S. trade developments closely, the new data suggest. More men (77 per cent) are doing so than women (59 per cent). Meanwhile, Canadians 55 and over are more engaged in the tariff news (79 per cent) than younger Canadians, 18-34 (59 per cent).
Though many hate to admit it, Canadians have long wished for more attention from the US. Well, we’re getting it now. And it turns out that President Trump and some of his top supporters in the Maga movement don’t much like us.
The first big hint was when he started talking about annexing us, saying we couldn’t survive without American support. But the most recent example of Trump’s dislike for Canada can be seen in his latest tariff policies. Canada was largely spared the impact of his “Liberation Day” tariffs in April 2025 by its pre-existing free trade deal with the US (and Mexico), but earlier this month, as expected, the US declined to extend that deal for another 16-year term. It’s now subject to annual renegotiations. Then, last week, the White House announced tariffs as high as 50% on a selection of Canadian products including, for the first time, items previously protected by the trade agreement. The US called it retaliation for Canadian trade practices.
“The White House fails to understand that Mark Carney and Canada’s regional leaders can’t cave in to the US president: it’s too toxic to voters.”
If you told me Carney was in cahoots with Trump I’d hear you out.
Freeland is a big help as usual.
🚨 FREELAND: "US IS A BIGGER THREAT THAN CHINA" 🚨😡
Chrystia Freeland just told Wall Street Week that many Canadians now trust Beijing MORE than Washington.
Let that sink in.
This is the same Freeland who:
– Froze bank accounts during the Freedom Convoy
– Used the Emergencies… pic.twitter.com/NENIu7W0Ft— SaskRiderGal🇨🇦 (@saskridergal) July 28, 2026
It’s curious that Donald Trump would be so fixated on Canadian trade practices if he, as he stated this week, doesn’t care about updating the current trade agreement and that he’d “rather be independent.”
It’s also interesting that the U.S. president is so bothered by Canada’s dairy protectionism, when he himself is such a defender of tariffs as smart and sound economic policy. The U.S. certainly maintains all sorts of agricultural protectionism policies, notably the tariffs and cartel system that protect the U.S. sugar industry.
Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc is back in Washington this week where he’s continuing his search for a breakthrough in trade negotiations with the U.S. administration.
LeBlanc’s office confirmed to CBC News that chief trade negotiator to the U.S. Janice Charette is with the minister as they try to hammer out a deal.
That task continues to look challenging as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to claim he doesn’t care about reviewing the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) or striking a broader deal with his northern and southern neighbours.
Trump on renewing CUSMA: "I don't care, I don't really want to. Here's the thing, Mexico and Canada need us. We don't need them. The deal is important for them, it's not important for us." pic.twitter.com/z5ZdPCXfRe
— Scott Robertson (@sarobertson_) July 28, 2026
The Liberals are preparing to eliminate base funding requirements for U.S. companies under the Online Streaming Act.
The news comes as the policy, which requires companies like Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., and Netflix Inc. to allocate a portion of Canadian revenues to fund domestic news and entertainment programming, faces strong pushback from American industry and political players.
h.t Mauser and WC
WASHINGTON — No one is shocked these days when U.S. President Donald Trump calls Canada the “51st state” or refers to Prime Minister Mark Carney as a “governor.”
But Trump’s habit of occasionally targeting Canada with crude insults has become much more common among rank-and-file Republicans in recent weeks.
As Trump watches his poll numbers sink under the weight of controversial policies and an unpopular war with Iran, he is casting about for scapegoats, said Robert C. Rowland, professor of rhetoric at the University of Kansas.
This is not good news, though such pronouncements are often mere negotiating tactics.
🚨 JUST IN: President Trump says Canada and Mexico NEED AMERICA to survive, so he "doesn't care" about updating the USMCA trade agreement
TARIFFS WORK 🇺🇸
"I don't care. I mean, I don't really want to. I'd rather be independent. Here's the thing, Mexico and Canada need us. We… pic.twitter.com/ekbmBnI6FS
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 28, 2026
Any parent knows how the interrogation goes. You answer the first “why?” and a small voice says “but why?” You give another answer only to prompt another “but why?” By the fourth you’ve run out of reasons and blurted the real one you were hoping to keep to yourself. Rather than being difficult, children are just being thorough.
We should too. We should try it on Donald Trump.
I can’t see what he’d want with Toronto.
Canadians spent $3.3 billion less on travel to the United States in 2025 compared to 2024, according to figures released by Statistics Canada.
The decline resulted in a total spend of $18.1 billion on visits to the U.S. last year, with the decrease driven by lower spending on leisure-related visits, which fell by $2.2 billion to $12.1 billion.
Ottawa’s quota for Chinese-built electric vehicles has passed a milestone nobody in Ottawa was aiming for. Global Affairs Canada’s utilization report now shows 9,235 vehicles cleared into the country under the 24,500-unit first window that runs March 1 to August 31 — about 37.7% of the allocation, with 15,265 permits still on the table and roughly six weeks left on the clock.
Two months ago the number was 2,910. The acceleration is real. What’s more interesting is what’s inside it.
OTTAWA – The Conservative shadow minister for Canada-U.S. relations is calling on Ottawa to provide its negotiation plan with U.S. President Donald Trump at an emergency meeting.
Shuv Majumdar says in a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney that the Conservatives want an emergency meeting of the Standing Committee on International Trade next week, and Ottawa needs to table its written plans at the hearings.
