Trudeau hits back at Trump by announcing massive tariffs on the United States: ‘Canada will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered’
Trudeau hits back at Trump by announcing massive tariffs on the United States: ‘Canada will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered’
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday night that his country will retaliate against the U.S. if President Donald Trump goes through with his plan for tariffs on Canadian goods, which are set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday.
Summary
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced retaliatory tariffs after Donald Trump confirmed 25% tariffs on Canadian goods and 10% on energy, set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
Trump justified the move by linking it to fentanyl smuggling concerns.
Trudeau called the tariffs "unjustified" and imposed 25% tariffs on $155 billion in U.S. goods, with $30 billion effective immediately and the rest in 21 days.
He warned of price hikes and job losses in the U.S., arguing the move violates Trump’s own trade agreement from his last term.
I like Cory Doctorow’s plan.
The reason Canada got tariff-free access to sell to the US in the first place? Canada agreed to enforce penalties for tampering with digital locks, following the premise of the Digital Milennium Copyright Act.
If the US is going back on the deal, then Canada should too. Make it legal to jailbreak all US tech.
Doctorow advocating for this plan:
- On Democracy Now
- On his blog
- On his podcast
- In the Ursula Franklin lecture at the University of Toronto’s Innis College (I especially enjoyed this one, but it is the longest)
Heck, make it legal to pirate all American media.
Hit where it really hurts: stop paying Microsoft.
Yeah, I'm not too concerned about that. Their courts are being attacked with so much that I'm pretty sure downloading a car isn't going to be high on their list.
If the US is going back on the deal, then Canada should too. Make it legal to jailbreak all US tech.
That should be considered with plans for further escalation varying from nothing to an embargo.
Though arguably piracy and jailbreaking are not so bad for said domination. Microsoft practically encouraged piracy in ex-USSR at some point. Piracy solves the availability problem, supports market share, leads to short-term loss in sales but long-term growth.
But that's Microsoft, while US government in general seems to think DMCA is for them what the Sound was for the Danish crown in middle ages.
Microsoft practically encouraged piracy in ex-USSR at some point. Piracy solves the availability problem, supports market share, leads to short-term loss in sales but long-term growth.
Yup, Bill Gates pretty much said he'd rather have people growing up on pirated Microsoft products than use alternatives.
Im pretty sure i watched him say this on democracy now and he was a great listen
Yep, I caught that one too. He’s a fantastic orator. He’s got an endless arsenal of one-liners.
I added a link to that and some other instances where he’s made this argument.
They could also make their own play store and apple store, and could charge the developers much lower fees, for the same apps that would work anywhere. It would cost them very little and be nothing but profit.
It’d be nice if somewhere, other than Russia and China, was doing the important reverse engineering work.
American here.
100% support you Canada. Keep it up.
<3
We know it's not all of you.
Ditto. Our only hope is for brave nations like yours to smack our leaders down.
My fear is that, the brain washed swarms will ignore the shortcomings and scapegoat something else.
Trump is such a vindictive moron. Whether he's a Russian asset or just a certifiably stupid, the end result is the same.
Good god I hate this fucking timeline. Fuck corporate America for backing this monster and fuck everyone who voted for him. Fuck the Democrats for collectively shrugging about all this too.
unfortunately, America has created a system where we can’t really do anything about the president at this point I am really wondering how long will the global world order allow Donald Trump to continue to screw things up for everybody else? Not just talking about economics with Mexico, Canada and China. But also the military situation in Ukraine, which directly impacts the European Union as well as NATO 
The problem is that the global order is collapsing. That's what makes this possible for Trump and his companions. It's been going to shit for a while. We're entering a world where international law will be less important. Sadly.
International law was already completely irrelevant when it came to the developed world imposing its will on the entire developing world, or anyone classified as an "enemy". There are hundreds of violations across the years that were never enforced, from America carpet bombing south east asia and installing puppet regimes around the world, to Russias use of phosphorous warheads and chemical weapons in Syria, to Israel (and allies) genocide in Palestine.
International laws have only ever been, at best, gentleman's agreements among the developed world's oligarchs and political classes.
What's happening now is the US political class and oligarchy are shifting allegiance to fascist authoritarianism and imperialism, because both are populated with mentally ill narcissists and psychopaths of insatiable greed and megalomania, completely detached from reality; no different to the feudalist monarchs, emperors and pharaohs of old.
I also don't believe this is an America problem, as much as it is a capitalism problem. Americas oligarchy are no different to Russias oligarchy, who are no different to Chinas oligarchy, who are no different to every oligarchy. They are borderless, stateless, only worship wealth and power, and are a reflection of the psychology created by unchecked wealth and power; these people view themselves as the rightful rulers of humanity, by virtue of their wealth and power, and views concepts like democracy a direct threat to their existence.
We're entering a world where international law will be less important. Sadly.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record: International law was never important. It was always rules for thee and not for me.
I am really wondering how long will the global world order allow Donald Trump to continue to screw things up for everybody else?
I mean what are they gonna do? Invade and depose him? We're witnessing the end of the Pax* Americana, simple as that.
*Terms and conditions apply.
I didn't want Trump to become president for many reasons, one of the main ones being I didn't want him to pull USA out of NATO, because it strengthens our shared enemies.
Things are actually going worse than I expected, which is really impressive.
I know people are probably sick of hearing this, but I kind of figured this would be the worst possible case imaginable because the same thing happened to Hitler. They threw his ass in jail and then after a couple of months they let him walk and then when he regained power, he knew that he could never lose power again, and if he did, he’d never be able to accomplish his personal objectives. 
There’s something about history that we can learn from here. I don’t know why Trump was even allowed to run, but yeah, here we are. 
They absolutely can do something. They don't want to. They support this.
This is not Donald Trump, this is America. They voted for exactly this. And they seem to be enjoying it.
The US is one of the only, if not the only country in the world where what can be done is enshrined in the constitution.
Lee Harvey Oswald found a way to do something about the presidency. Just saying..
I mean then Vance would succeed him, which is... not good. At least Trump is an idiot.
I believe you mean Bernard Montgomery Sanders who we all know was the second shooter.
Lee Harvey, ONI and Guy Bannister
Surely the US isn't the only country that has foreign leaders assassinated?...
We need to really turn the screws into the U.S. Along with applying tariffs, we also need to just outright stop delivery of critical materials they need. Full Stop.
I’m know this is just a sounding board, but honestly I’d love to see the cutting off of any and all essential raw materials they need. I’m sure they can source it elsewhere, but they most likely can’t get enough of it fast enough.
Cut off anything they need for energy and more importantly: agriculture.
People can live without power. Make their stomachs ache.
Trump is a diseased cunt who doesn’t understand what happens when things don’t go his own way. Let’s show him.
The Beaverton had as a headline a few weeks back along the lines of "Americans choose the most expensive way to figure out what they purchase from Canada" which I thought was appropriate.
I said it before. Stop sending aluminum and steel and aerospace and military manufacturing would suffer immensely. That is 90%+ of all good made, metals have strict import requirements and certifications, and we couldn't just make our own on a whim.
Starting off slow and ramping up sends the correct message that (a) we want to find a way to stop this garbage and (b) we can and will make things more painful for business and consumers alike if it continues long term.
Everytime Trump threatens tariffs they should out a one week export ban on literally everything to the US... That would really shock the system.
Yes make us hurt. It’s the only way.
Today I watched both Trudeau and Sheinbaum's addresses.
I must say that Americans get even worse reputation everytime Trump and Vance talk even just because of the contrast with some of the best, most prepared speakers and I must say attractive individuals in politics today.
Why doesn't trump just setup fentanyl production in the states? Seems like a easy fix for me /s
Trudeau’s measured retaliation shows Canada won’t back down but prioritizes diplomacy over chaos.
🐱🐱🐱🐱
By the end of these 4 years, everyone will be jobless and prices will be unreasonably high. Wonderful.
4 years? Do people really think that there will be mid-term election? and presidential one in 4 years? really?
I thought the point of all this was to ratchet up tensions so Trump could declare martial law and suspend democracy indefinitely.
“We have always been at war with everyone but Russia and China….”
Yes, elections are run by the states, not the federal government. Will red states have fair elections? Absolutely not.
Just like, checks notes 96 years ago!
I was going to buy an item but the price went up since yesterday. Not going to buy it now. It's his tax on us. Not going to finance Krasnov's destruction of America.
Carry on Prime Minister Trudeau and create better trade deals with the EU, EEC and friendly Asian countries.
Don't retaliate 1:1. Retaliate 5:1.
Burn the fucking bridge already.
Ok I've been wanting to ask this and all the articles don't really address it so I'm confused.
The whole rhetoric is that Trump's tariffs will impact the citizens with increased prices and it's really just going to cause economic harm. Like cool, I can understand that. But why is Canada then performing the same action effecting their citizens? I get it's retaliatory, and suppose to expedite (hopefully) a return to normal trade policy. I just don't get why this is the move when it's a bad move in the first place (two wrongs don't make a right and all). Please be gentle, I'm honestly just confused.
Trump's tariffs are universal. Meaning that even in cases where the only practical option is Canada, for example potash, they have to suffer a direct 25% price increase.
The Canadian tariffs are highly selective, we only tariff goods that have alternate non US suppliers at similar prices. In this case the tariffs would mostly reduce market competition without directly affecting price.
I think the better approach is to not enforced the digital lock aspects of the free trade agreement and have Canada be a leading repairer of farm and industrial equipment.
Aluminum is another one, apparently. The element is everywhere, but it takes massive amounts of electricity to get in metal form, which we just happen to have from all the dams in great lakes region.
Our Aluminum companies are literally planning to change nothing. They expect their American customers will just eat the cost.
There really aren't any other moves to take. It's either this or lie down.
Also, I will say that tariffs can be a lot easier to manage if you only implement them against one of your trading partners. While major imports from that trading partner, and any goods produced with any of those imports, will see a price hike, most Western countries have very diversified economies and can make up the difference elsewhere. The real trouble begins when you start having blanket tariffs affecting all of your major trade partners, which seems to be Trump's plan.
If the tariffs are taylored correctly they can cause more pain in the US while minimizing cost to Canada. For example, us grain is not cheap and you can make it so that Canada buys from other countries at a similar cost. This will hurt farmers in the US (a key group for Trump) while not really hiring Canada.
Make it hurt for the morons that support nazis
My understanding is that when the americans institute their tariffs, all canadian products become more expensive for americans and not price competitive with local american products. This results in a decrease of purchasing from Canada.
If we do nothing, then Canadians are still buying just as much american as before and there are little to no consequences for the tariffs
With tariffs on both sides, the effect is roughly "equalized" in that we are both now buying more local goods and less trade over the border
Higher import taxes (tariffs) on Canadian goods for Americans will increase the price, presumably reducing the amount of these goods that Americans will buy which hurts the Canadian producers. The only thing Canada can really do is hurt American producers in the same way, hence increase tariffs to reduce Canadian consumption of American goods and hurt American producers just as much (or preferably more). Hurting each other is a loss-loss strategy though, which explains why trade wars typically do not have winners only losers…
Excuse my ignorance but wouldn't that make things more expensive for Canadians as well?
:edit: thank you all for answering me. I totally understand now.
Fuck trump
Yes. It's alright, I've managed to mostly eliminate American products. Anyone smart or at least patriotic has looked into it as well, since the madness began. It was kind of neat watching the US products just sit on the shelves while Canadian stuff emptied out.
To reiterate what all our politicians have been saying to US media, Trump is raising prices on Americans to hurt us, it's for no good reason, and we're forced to do the same on our side.
There is a reason, is just like this old Western movies. The wealth banq/ranch owner that rules the town, is diverting the local stream to dry up the pretty widow a farm. Saying you know you would be much better off marrying me. I would cherish you and add you worthless farm to my ranch. Only he knows the train line is about to be installed and would turn that little plot of land into very valuable real estate. Ducking the widow in the as every night is just bonus.
Yes, but items are targeted to inflict the least amount of pain. We don't neeed orange juice or bourbon for example.
And inflict the maximum amount of pain on specifically the bad Americans who are doing this.
I am starting to understand how felon tRump bankrupted casinos
Yes, tariffs increase prices in almost any case they're implemented, which is the goal. Trudeau seems to be hoping that by adding these tariffs, it will become even easier to shift consumer behavior to buy non-American made goods, which could possibly either lead Trump to reduce/remove his tariffs, or at least make Americans feel more of the economic impact of those reductions in sales, which could then push more people to go against Trump politically.
Only on American products. Canadian products theoretically will cost the same.
Maybe in Canada. In the US, I fully expect corporations to increase domestic prices by 15-20%, and still have the more attractive option for consumers. If and when the tariffs are dropped, it is unlikely that prices will go back down. Trump essentially just created a permanent new regressive tax, affecting the poorest of US citizens the worst.
Anyone want to place a bet for what he blames it on? I'm hoping he goes for the classic Obama excuse.
Tariffs on imports make the imports more expensive and push people to buy non-tariffed goods. This causes the exporting company to lose income from their exports
Capitalist companies may lose income from lost sales, but they will be raising prices to match the tariff. Probably throw an extra 5-10% on top of that for greed, because they can blame it all on the tariff.
Sort of. The economy is not as robust as consumers like to believe it is.
Say you're a manufacturer and you make Widgets, and an essential component for those is Greebels, you likely have a supply chain already set up to have those Greebels delivered to your factory. Well, if those Greebels are now subject to a 25% tariff, they become that much more expensive to import. In theory, this would cause you to look for alternative domestic suppliers of Greebels to avoid having to pay what is essentially a 25% tax just to get essential components for your otherwise domestic-made product, but there are a number of factors that might make that impossible. For example, you might be under exclusive contract for a number of years with the foreign supplier, or you might only use Greebels supplied from the foreign Gizmo Corporation in your Widgets because you based your design on using their proprietary components and you can't switch to a competitor without redesigning your product entirely or violating intellectual property laws.
Even if none of those unusual edge cases apply, you might still opt to order your Greebels from the Gizmo Corporation - perhaps they are still cheaper than a domestic alternative after calculating the price difference, especially considering the labor laws here are more strict than it in in places such as China or Bangaladesh where minimum wage laws are almost nonexistent. If that is the case, there may not be any real domestic alternative because they can't stay competitive in the global market by paying their workers a 1st world minimum wage. Finally, setting up your own factory for turning raw materials into Greebels to use in your Widgets is a prohibitively expensive venture that likely wouldn't cause you to turn a profit for many years and would still require you to source the raw materials which may not be available domestically.
The most likely/realistic outcome is having the Gizmo Corporation agree to send their product to be manufactured/assembled/stored in a factory/warehouse in another country that is not subject to the tariffs and then import it, which bypasses the tariff altogether without compromising the specific product you are used to ordering (so long as the rerouting doesn't end up costing more than the import tariff)
or
Your company will eat the cost of the import and raise the price of Widgets by 25% to compensate for the increased cost per unit.
There will probably be a tiny dip in the exporting company profits at a result of tariffs, but they're not going to have a significant enough drop in revenue to cause any kind of panic.