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US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was increasing tariffs on Canada by an additional 10 per cent “above what they’re paying now”, over what he said was a misleading advertisement. “Their Advertisement was to be taken down, IMMEDIATELY, but they let it run last night during the World Series, knowing that it was a FRAUD,” Trump posted on social media, describing the ad as a “misrepresentation of facts”. The ad, commissioned by Doug Ford, Ontario’s outspoken Conservative premier, features a video of late US president Ronald Reagan, a Republican icon, saying that tariffs cause trade wars and economic disaster. The US Commerce Department, the White House and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Washington had halted trade talks with Canada on Thursday over Ontario’s decision to air the ad. Ford said the next day that after discussions with Carney, Ontario would pause the US advertising campaign on Monday so that trade talks could resume. But the disputed commercial would continue to air over the weekend as the Toronto Blue Jays play in the first two games of the World Series, he added. The first game was played on Friday night. The Blue Jays beat the LA Dodgers 11-4. Some analysts suggested that Ford’s ad was only a pretext for Trump’s outburst. “Mr Trump doesn’t like to be confronted with the truth,” said Asa McKercher, an expert in US-Canada politics at St Francis Xavier University in Canada. He said the ad was an accurate representation of Reagan’s views. Trump first saw the ad earlier in the week and said on Tuesday: “If I was Canada, I’d take that same ad also.” McKercher said Ford has often used his aggressive and populist style to appeal to American audiences in appearances on conservative-leaning outlets like Fox News, but that his latest ad may have misfired. The Canadian dollar weakened after Trump broke off trade talks, and Ontario is the province most affected by the US president’s car and steel tariffs. “When you use Ford’s attack-dog approach, there’s always a risk that you’re going to get smacked,” McKercher said, adding it would be Carney who might need to make concessions to get Trump back to trade negotiations. Still, Ford’s approach attracted some unusual support from politicians on the other side of the political spectrum. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, who heads the left-leaning New Democratic Party in the province, posted a message for his “good friend Doug Ford”, calling on him to keep running the ads. Green Party leader Elizabeth May cheered “Go Doug Ford!” as she arrived at parliament in Ottawa on Friday. Pollster Shachi Kurl, president of the Angus Reid Institute, said Ford has acted “as the more pugilistic foil” when the prime minister has adopted a more conciliatory approach to Trump, noting that “it’s not a stance that generally hurts him [Ford]”. In February, Ford handily won a rare third term as Ontario premier. Earlier this month, Ford said he confronted and threatened to beat up a suspected shoplifter at a Home Depot store, telling an audience at a Toronto club: “Screw this, I’m going after this guy.” Trump previously called off trade talks with Canada in June, citing his objection to Canada’s digital services tax. Carney rescinded the tax later that month. Under previous prime minister Justin Trudeau, Trump threatened numerous times to walk away from trade talks between Canada, Mexico and the US. Laura Stephenson, chair of political science at Ontario’s Western University, said Carney does not have many good options, but that the situation is fixable. “Ford can play the bad guy and Carney will have to be the level-headed guy trying to keep discussions on track,” she said. Diamond Isinger, a former US-Canada adviser to Trudeau, said Ford’s ad clearly resonated with American audiences. “If the ad wasn’t effective, Trump would not be so deeply concerned about it,” she said.
