US President Donald Trump has terminated Trade Talks with Canada over Anti-Tariffs advert.

US President Donald Trump has announced an immediate end to all trade negotiations with Canada over an advert critical of the tariffs he has imposed on the nation. The advert, which was sponsored by the Canada Government’s province of Ontario, quoted Trump’s predecessor, Ronald Reagan, an icon of US conservatism, saying tariffs “hurt every American”.

Trump wrote on social media that the advert was “FAKE” and “egregious”, adding that trade talks were “HEREBY TERMINATED”. His administration has imposed a 35% levy on many Canadian imports, as well as individual tariffs targeting particular industries like car and steel manufacturing. Ontario has been particularly hard-hit by these.

Trump has allowed exemptions for goods that fall under a free trade agreement with Mexico and Canada that he negotiated during his first term. But Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney has since his election earlier this year attempted to strike a deal that would ease the US tariffs. This deal has been complicated by Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who is one of the most vocal critics of the taxes levied on US firms buying Canadian products.

In the minute-long advert published last week, Reagan’s voice can be heard narrating over images that include the New York Stock Exchange and cranes adorned with both US and Canadian flags. The video excerpts a 1987 national radio address by Reagan that focused on foreign trade.

“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“, Reagan says in the advert. “Over the long run, such trade barriers hurt every American, worker and consumer”.

“High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars… Markets shrink and collapse, businesses and industries shut down and millions of people lose their jobs“.

The Ronald Reagan Foundation, which is the custodian of preserving his legacy, has released a Press Statement on Thursday saying the advert had used “selective” audio and video of Regan’s remarks.

It said the advert “misrepresents” the former president’s address, without specifying why, and accused the Ontario government of not seeking permission to use and edit the remarks. The foundation said it was “reviewing its legal options“.

Trump refusal was in reference to this statement, and said the video was designed to “interfere with” the US Supreme Court’s upcoming decision in November on whether Washington’s sweeping tariffs on many nations’ products are legal. The court’s decision represents the biggest test of Trump’s presidential authority and signature economic policy, potentially forcing the US to refund billions collected in tariffs.

While the minute-long advert only includes excerpts from the original, five-minute-long address, it does not alter Reagan’s words. The order in which he makes the comments has been changed. The advert’s penultimate sentence is taken from near the beginning of his speech, and a phrase that features about halfway through the advert is likewise taken from an earlier point in the address.

The original address, which is titled “Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade”, is regarding a specific set of tariffs the Reagan administration had at the time imposed on some Japanese goods.

Reagan seeks to use the speech explain why he had introduced the tariffs in this “special case” despite his belief that “imposing such tariffs or trade barriers and restrictions of any kind are steps that I am loath to take“. He makes clear that he wants to lift them as soon as possible “to promote the prosperity and economic development that only free trade can bring“, a position he had stressed throughout the speech.

Trump later doubled down on his criticism of the advert, writing that “Ronald Reagan did not like Tariffs, when actually he LOVED TARIFFS FOR OUR COUNTRY, AND ITS NATIONAL SECURITY“. The advert was run as part of a campaign worth $75m Canadian dollars (£40m; $54m) on mainstream TV channels in the US.

In a post accompanying the advert, Ford wrote that “we’ll never stop making the case against American tariffs on Canada“. China’s embassy in Washington also used a similar Reagan clip in a post on X to cast doubt on Trump’s global tariffs earlier this year.

Ontario is Canada’s most populous province and its largest regional economy, and has suffered the most as a result of the US tariffs.

Ford hit back at Trump’s earlier tariff threat against Canada by saying he was willing to cut off power supply to the US. He had also described Washington’s trade policies against Canada as having pulled a knife and “yanked it into us”, and called on US lawmakers to put pressure on Trump.

Trump’s sector-specific levies on Canadian goods include a 50% levy on metals and 25% on automobiles. The White House’s global tariffs, particularly on steel, aluminium and cars, have hit the nation hard, forcing job losses and putting pressure on businesses.

Carney and Ford have not yet commented on Trump’s announcement, since it is the second time Trump has said he was ceasing trade talks with Canada, after Ottawa announced it would impose a digital services tax on US technology firms earlier this year. Earlier, when Canada rescinded the tax, the White House said Carney had “caved” to pressure from Trump.

Original Ronald Reagan advert –

Below are the lines from the advert in italics, followed by an explanation of how they appear (indicated in bold) in the original address.

“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“.

This is the opening line of the minute-long advert. The words have not been altered.

But it is not until about halfway through his original address that Reagan speaks these lines.

The 1987 radio speech, Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade, begins with Reagan saying Japan’s Prime Minister will visit the White House and “recent disagreements” on trade will be discussed. Reagan had recently placed tariffs on some Japanese goods over a trade agreement dispute.

By the time he reaches the advert’s opening line, he has set out his aversion to tariffs, described the “prosperity and economic development that only free trade can bring”, and said high tariff legislation made the Great Depression even worse.

“Over the long run, such trade barriers hurt every American, worker and consumer“.

In the advert, these words immediately follow the first line. Again, Reagan did speak these words.

However, in the original address the two sentences are not connected. In fact they are separated by more than a minute of speech, and the “Over the long run..” line actually comes first.

After introducing the Japanese state visit, Reagan starts to explain why he recently introduced the tariffs.

He says in the original speech: “Imposing such tariffs or trade barriers and restrictions of any kind are steps that I am loath to take. And in a moment, I’ll mention the sound economic reasons for this: that over the long run such trade barriers hurt every American worker and consumer“.

Reagan says some companies had been “engaging in unfair trade practices” and going against an agreement with the US – and that this was therefore a “special case”.

This sets the tone for the rest of the address, which he dedicates to making clear his commitment to free trade and the dangers of high tariffs.

“High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars“

This is the advert’s third line, and again these are Reagan’s words. But again, in the original speech they do not follow straight on from the previous line in the advert. There is about one minute separating them in the address.

In the 1987 speech he says this line in the middle of his address while describing what he sees as the consequences of tariffs. He says:

“What eventually occurs is: First, homegrown industries start relying on government protection in the form of high tariffs. They stop competing and stop making the innovative management and technological changes they need to succeed in world markets. 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“.

“Then the worst happens. Markets shrink and collapse, businesses and industries shut down and millions of people lose their jobs“.

Reagan does say this line after the previous one – but the advert cuts out a few sentences separating them.

Here is the full run from one to the next in the original:

“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.

“So, soon, because of the prices made artificially high by tariffs that subsidize inefficiency and poor management, people stop buying. Then the worst happens: Markets shrink and collapse; businesses and industries shut down; and millions of people lose their jobs“.

“Throughout the world, there’s a growing realisation that the way to prosperity for all nations is rejecting protectionist legislation and promoting fair and free competition“.

Here, the advert jumps back about a minute – but the words are the same.

In the original, Reagan praises the economic benefits of free trade and continues: “Now, that message of free trade is one I conveyed to Canada’s leaders a few weeks ago, and it was warmly received there. Indeed, throughout the world there’s a growing realisation that the way to prosperity for all nations is rejecting protectionist legislation and promoting fair and free competition“.

He then talks about the “sound historical reasons” for this realisation: “For those of us who lived through the Great Depression, the memory of the suffering it caused is deep and searing”.

He says experts believe high tariff legislation passed at that time “greatly deepened the depression and prevented economic recovery”.

“America’s jobs and growth are at stake“.

This is how Reagan ends his speech both in the address and the advert, in relation to tariffs.

The final chunk of his speech is omitted from the ad – in which he says he is determined “to spare the American people the protectionist legislation that destroys prosperity” and criticises opponents in Congress who “want to go for the quick political advantage” and “forget” the millions of jobs involved in trade.

Team Maverick