Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Canada has to go on “the offence” when it comes to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
“We always seem to be on our back heels. We need to be on the offence. Not constantly on the defence with President Trump. We need to stand up to the bully and we need to hit him tariff-to-tariff, all the way across the board,” he said during a media availability in P.E.I. on Tuesday afternoon, where is attending meetings with fellow premiers.
“That’s my message to the prime minister. We need a plan moving forward.”
In 29 days, the U.S. says it will charge a 50 per cent tariff on a wide range of Canadian goods, including some that are covered under the countries’ free trade agreement.
Officials in the U.S. have cited unfair trade practices, including provincial bans on U.S. booze, as justification for the move.
Ford said he would be happy to see the two sides reach a deal in the immediate future but noted that the new round of tariffs will hit Ontario the hardest.
‘Make sure he feels the pain’
“I’m tired of the bully trying to take our lunch money all the time,” Ford said.
“If he continues to constantly bully us, we can’t keep rolling over. We can’t keep backing down. We have to go full tilt. We are an energy powerhouse. We have to utilize every tool we have in the toolbox and make sure he feels the pain.”
He added that the province will not be lifting the ban on U.S. booze on LCBO shelves.
“We have to negotiate through strength, not weakness, and we need to throw everything on the table," Ford said.
“I want to emphasize one more time. It can’t always be Ontario. It has to be a Team Canada approach… We have to be united.”
‘We have to work together’
Speaking with NBC Meet the Press’ Kelly O’Donnell late Tuesday afternoon, Ford says Canada has an important economic relationship with the United States and the two countries must continue to work together amid ongoing tariff disputes.
The Premier reiterated Canada’s affinity for the U.S, saying that President Trump “started this this economic war against their closest friend and ally,” not the “great American people.”
“I believe in making a free and fair-trade agreement, no different than what Ronald Reagan believed in, and every tariff he puts on Canada gets a massive, massive tax on Americans,” he said.
Ford said Canada is the United States’ “Number One customer,” pointing to Canada purchasing 400 per cent more vehicles from the U.S. than any country in the world.
“I want a fair deal. I want prosperity. Americans want certainty. They want stability. And right now, when there’s not certainty and stability, the investment is stalled. But when there’s investment, we see investment and jobs and production and lower cost of goods,” he said, pointing to the rising cost of gas and home building, due to softwood lumber tariffs.
“We have to work together and make sure both countries prosper and thrive.”
Ford said Ontario could once again look at imposing retaliatory tariffs on energy, saying “everything’s on the table,” although that is not what we necessarily want to do, he noted.
“A tariff on Canada is nothing more than taxing his own American people,” the Premier said, encouraging American people to talk to the senators, congresspeople, and governors an=bout this issue.
He added that if the tariff disputes are settled American alcohol could be put back on Canadian shelves.
“Canada needs America, absolutely we need America, but guess what, America needs Canada,” the Premier said, pointing to Canadian electricity, oil, potash, high-grade nickel, and uranium purchased by the United States.
“So I guess President Trump has a choice: either deal with China and Russia for those goods, or you deal with your closest ally, your Number One customer in the world. And yes, the U.S. is our number one customer. This just does not make sense. I have a recommendation for President Trump: start focusing on China and start focusing on Russia, not your closest friend that fought forward shoulder to shoulder with our great American allies.”
Toronto mayor calls on ‘economic action team’
In response to Trump’s tariffs, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said she is reassembling her economic action team, which includes business and labour leaders who have devised a 10-point plan to combat the impact of the tariffs on Toronto.
Chow says the plan involved the city’s procurement practices, property tax deferrals for affected businesses, and a push to shop locally.
“I will call them back together and look at what else we can do,” Chow said at an unrelated news conference on Tuesday.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Phil Tsekouras
