President Trump’s tariffs are meeting stiff retaliation from the nation’s largest trading partners, who are imposing their own tariffs on U.S. goods in a trade war that threatens to raise prices on both sides.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced $150 billion in retaliatory tariffs against the United States. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said her country would take retaliatory “tariff and nontariff measures,” rebutting the White House’s claim that drug cartels have an “intolerable alliance with the government of Mexico.”
Meanwhile, China vowed to file a legal case against the United States at the World Trade Organization and threatened countermeasures.
“We don’t want to be here,” Mr. Trudeau said late Saturday. “We didn’t ask for this.”
The comments came shortly after Mr. Trump signed off on 25% tariffs on most goods from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on Chinese imports.
Mr. Trump said he was following through on a campaign promise to put pressure on the nation’s neighbors to do more to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and illicit drugs, most notably fentanyl.
“We need to protect Americans, and it is my duty as President to ensure the safety of all,” Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social. “I made a promise on my Campaign to stop the flood of illegal aliens and drugs from pouring across our Borders, and Americans overwhelmingly voted in favor of it.”
On Sunday, Mr. Trump dismissed the outrage.
“The ‘Tariff Lobby,’ headed by the Globalist, and always wrong, Wall Street Journal, is working hard to justify Countries like Canada, Mexico, China, and too many others to name, continue the decades long RIPOFF OF AMERICA, both with regard to TRADE, CRIME, AND POISONOUS DRUGS that are allowed to so freely flow into AMERICA,” Mr. Trump posted on social media. “THOSE DAYS ARE OVER!”
Mr. Trump also said Canada “should become our Cherished 51st State.”
“Much lower taxes, and far better military protection for the people of Canada — AND NO TARIFFS!” he said.
Canadian Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman said Sunday her government is eager to stop the tariffs from taking effect this week and has been working with the Trump administration to show its investment in addressing border security.
“It is hard to know what more we can do, but we are obviously open to any other suggestions that come our way,” Ms. Hillman said on ABC’s “This Week.” “This is not a path we are interested in going down.”
She noted that 1% of illegal border crossings come from Canada and that the nation has been abiding by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement that Mr. Trump ushered in during his first term.
“I think the Canadian people are going to expect that our government stands firm and stands up for itself,” Ms. Hillman said. “I don’t think we are at all interested in escalating, but I think that there will be a very strong demand on our government to make sure we stand up for the deal we have struck with the United States, which is 99% tariff-free trade between our countries.”
Meanwhile, Ms. Sheinbaum rejected Mr. Trump’s claim that the Mexican government had ties to drug organizations, calling it “slander.”
“If there is any such alliance, it is in the gun shops of the United States that sell high-powered weapons to these criminal groups,” she said.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.