Justin Trudeau Calls Out Trump for Starting ‘Very Dumb’ Trade War With Canada While ‘Appeasing’ ‘Lying, Murderous’ Putin
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looked directly into television cameras to call out President Donald Trump for his 25 percent tariffs against his country as a “very dumb thing to do” as he announced retaliatory tariffs on $155 billion of American goods.
At 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, the Trump administration imposed long-threatened sweeping tariffs on nearly all imports from Mexico and Canada.
The move immediately sent the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq into sharp decline.
President Trump justified the tariffs as a measure to pressure both countries into curbing undocumented immigration and the flow of fentanyl across their borders into the United States.
In a news conference on Tuesday, Trudeau delivered a stern response and said that there was “no justification” for the tariffs, arguing that Canada had done all it could to comply with Trump’s border requests.
He went on to accuse the president of starting a “trade war” with its “closest friend.”
Today the United States launched a trade war against Canada, their closest partner and ally, and their closest friend. At the same time they’re talking about working positively with Russia, appeasing Vladimir Putin: a lying murderous dictator. Make that make sense.
Canadians are reasonable and we are polite but we will not back down from a fight, not when our country and the well-being of everyone in it is at stake.
Citing the Wall Street Journal editorial board’s criticism of the tariffs, he addressed Trump directly:
Donald, they point out that even though you are a very smart guy, this is a very dumb thing to do.
Trudeau then addressed U.S. citizens:
We don’t want this. We want to work with you as a friend and ally and we don’t want to see you hurt either but your government has chosen to do this to you.
Trump later responded to Trudeau’s remarks on Truth Social, posting: “Please explain to Governor Trudeau, of Canada, that when he puts on a Retaliatory Tariff on the U.S., our Reciprocal Tariff will immediately increase by a like amount!”
Watch above via MSNBC.
