Canada Pulls Anti-Tariff Ads After Trump Criticism

Topline

Ontario Premier Doug Ford on Friday said his province would pause ads that showed former President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs, after President Donald Trump condemned the move and announced he would “terminate” trade talks with Canada.

President Donald Trump said all trade talks with Canada have been terminated.

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Key Facts

Ford, in a post on X, said the advertising campaign would pause on Monday so that trade talks can resume between the U.S. and Canada, noting the “intention was always to initiate a conversion about the kind of economy that Americans want to build and the impact of tariffs on workers and businesses.”

“We’ve achieved our goal, having reached U.S. audiences at the highest levels,” Ford said, adding the advertisements would continue running during the first two World Series games between the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers.

In a post on his Truth Social Platform, Trump shared a statement issued by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and said it has “just announced that Canada has fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs.”

The president claimed this ad campaign, funded by the government of Ontario, was an attempt to “interfere with the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, and other courts.”

Trump labeled the ads as “egregious behavior” and said that because of this, “ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED.”

In his post, the president defended his sweeping tariffs once again, saying they were “VERY IMPORTANT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY, AND ECONOMY, OF THE U.S.A.”

What Has The Reagan Foundation Said?

In a statement issued on X, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute said it has learned that the Ontario government “created an ad campaign using selective audio and video of President Ronald Reagan delivering his Radio Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade,” dated April 25, 1987.” The statement added: “The ad misrepresents the Presidential Radio Address, and the Government of Ontario did not seek nor receive permission to use and edit the remarks.” The foundation said it is reviewing its legal options in this matter and shared a link to an unedited version of Reagan’s full speech on its YouTube channel.

What Do We Know About The Ontario Government’s Ad?

Earlier this month, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, announced his government will run an CA$75 million ($53.5 million) ad campaign across both local and national U.S. TV stations that use Reagan’s words. “We’re going to repeat that message to every Republican district there is, right across the entire country,” Ford said, adding that the ads will be “very factual” and not “nasty” about tariffs. The minute-long ad features audio clip’s of Reagan’s speech in the background with images of American farms, factories, workers and families. In the speech Reagan is heard saying: “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.” The ad ends with a short glimpse of Reagan reading the address from 1987.

What Did Reagan Say In His Original Video Address?

The Ontario government’s ad uses a section of Reagan’s 1987 radio address about his decision to impose duties on Japan amid a trade dispute over semiconductors. In the speech Reagan says: “imposing such tariffs or trade barriers and restrictions of any kind are steps that I am loathed to take…in a moment I’ll mention the sound economic reasons for this. But over the long-run such trade barriers hurt every American worker and consumer.” Reagan insisted that he was not trying to start a trade war with Japan but rather just “trying to deal with a particular problem.” Later in the speech Reagan decries the use of tariffs and says “many economic analysts and historians argue that high tariff legislation” passed under the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act of 1930s led to the Great Depression. He added: “When someone says let’s impose tariffs on foreign imports it looks like they’re doing the patriotic thing by protecting American products and jobs. And sometimes for a short while it works, but only for a short time. What eventually occurs is first homegrown industry start relying on government protection in the form of high tariffs they stop competing…and then while all this is going on something even worse occurs high tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars. The result is more and more tariffs higher and higher trade barriers and less and less competition.”