The Canadian Premier on the frontline of the ‘trade war’ with Donald Trump has renewed his threat to roll out retaliatory measures against the US.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has issued yet another warning to the US President Donald Trump, as he says his plans for retaliatory tariffs will harm American citizens.
Ford has been at the forefront of the trade battle between the US and Canada, which started when the POTUS signed a slew of ‘catastrophic’ tariffs on its neighbors, as well as Mexico, China and the European Union.
Trump cited reasons from drugs to immigration as justification for the pricey sanctions, which includes a 25 percent tariff on aluminum and steel.
Doug Ford has resumed his position on the frontlines (Katherine KY Cheng/Getty Images)
The Canadian premier has since torn up a $100 million contract with Elon Musk and threatened to hike mineral exports and electricity that powers the homes and businesses of 1.5 million people in New York, Michigan and Minnesota.
He even warned he would flip the switch off entirely alongside a raft of ‘relentless’ counterattacks before slamming on the brakes after an apparently ‘productive’ meeting with US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, earlier this month.
After the tense stand-off and amid a moment of pause, Trump called Ford a ‘strong man.’
However, the fight is apparently back on as Trump announced yet more hikes, with a 25 percent tariff on cross-border auto trade.
Despite the president recently purchasing a Tesla in support of his buddy, Musk, the company says it could be harmed by retaliatory tariffs (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Ford has resumed his battle stance, saying his country will inflict ‘as much pain as possible to the American people,’ while shielding Canadians.
“President Trump’s at it again and what I can tell you, it’s going to hurt American workers,” he said.
“I’m in full support of preparing retaliatory tariffs, tariff for tariff, but we want to see what he’s going to do on April the 2nd, as we’ve seen over a number of months, it’s on again, off again.”
Ford continued: “We have to run through every tariff and minimise the pain for Canadians, maximise the pain for Americans.
“I feel terrible for the Americans but it’s one person, that’s President Trump, that’s creating this chaos.”
Trump announced on Wednesday (March 26) that the tariffs on cars and certain automobile parts will come into effect on April 2, which he has dubbed ‘the beginning of Liberation Day in America,’ and will be ‘100 percent permanent.’
The POTUS has pressed ahead with his tariffs (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
And while the POTUS maintains the increases to trading partners will boost jobs, industries and the economy as a whole, some economists and sectors, from agriculture to retail, are less than certain.
They say retaliatory measures could leave American consumers footing the bill, particularly in areas like groceries and booze, which has only been aggravated further by the European Union vowing a retaliatory 50 percent tariff on US alcohol.
US-based carmakers, including Musk’s electric vehicle company, Tesla, recently wrote to the US Trade Representative’s Office, stating that ‘certain parts and components’ are made outside the US which cold be ‘difficult or impossible to source.’
Autos Drive America, representing Toyota, Volkswagen, BMW, Honda and Hyundai, also warned ‘broad-based tariffs will disrupt production at U.S. assembly plants’.
The trade group added: “Automakers cannot shift their supply chains overnight, and cost increases will inevitably lead to some combination of higher consumer prices, fewer models offered to consumers and shutting down U.S. production lines, leading to potential job losses across the supply chain.”
