‘Frustration’ With Canada Led to Trump Scrapping Talks, Not Just Ontario’s Ad: US Official

While U.S. President Donald Trump has singled out the Ontario government’s TV commercial as a reason to cancel trade talks with Canada, a senior White House official says it’s because there’s been growing frustration with Ottawa.

U.S. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett spoke to reporters on Oct. 24 following Trump’s decision to terminate trade talks with Canada the previous day, saying that Canadians have been “very difficult to negotiate with.”

“You look at all the countries around the world that we’ve made deals with, and the fact that we’re now negotiating with Mexico separately, reveals that it’s not just about one ad, that there’s frustration that’s built up,” Hassett said in a media scrum at the White House.

Trump said in an Oct. 23 Truth Social post he was terminating trade talks with Canada because of a TV ad ran by the Ontario government in the United States that features late U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Trump said the ad is “fake” and accused Canada of using it to interfere with a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, which is reviewing some of Trump’s tariffs.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford responded on Oct. 24, saying he will keep running the ad over the weekend, to reach audiences watching World Series baseball, but will pause it afterward.

“In speaking with Prime Minister Carney, Ontario will pause its U.S. advertising campaign effective Monday so that trade talks can resume,” Ford said in a statement.

Ford has pushed to take a hard line against Trump, by imposing counter-measures, whereas Carney said recently that now is the time for talks.

Ontario’s $75 million ad campaign features footage and audio from a 1987 address by former U.S. President Ronald Reagan extolling the virtues of free trade.

Trump in his social media post pointed to a statement from the Ronald Reagan President Foundation saying that the ad “misrepresents” the address to make it appear as if Reagan was opposed to tariffs.

Reagan’s address starts by explaining why he was imposing tariffs on Japan ahead of the visit of its prime minster. This portion was not used in the ad.

“I placed new duties on some Japanese products in response to Japan’s inability to enforce their trade agreement with us on electronic devices called semiconductors,” Reagan said in the address.

Hassett, Trump’s top economic advisor, said because of the built up frustration with Canada it’s the right decision to call a “time out” in the talks. “I think there’s been frustration with the behaviour of the Canadians, the demeanour of the Canadians, the positions of the Canadians, and so it’s probably a good time to take a break,” Hassett told Fox Business.

The breakdown in talks comes after both sides showed optimism following Prime Minister Mark Carney’s meeting with Trump at the White House on Oct. 7. Trump said at the time that “Canadians would love us again” while Ottawa said both sides had agreed to work quickly to make deals.

In reacting to the termination of trade talks, Carney said on Oct. 24 there have been “detailed” and “constructive” negotiations with the United States to reach deals around steel, aluminum, and energy. Trump’s sectoral tariffs have particularly hit hard the metals industries in Canada.

“A lot of progress has been made, and we stand ready to pick up on that progress and build on that progress when the Americans are ready to have those discussions,” Carney said.

It’s not the first time that Trump has abruptly terminated negotiations with Canada. He had done so in June as Canada’s digital services tax (DST) would begin impacting U.S. digital tech giants. In response, Ottawa pledged to rescind the DST in order to restart the talks.

The trade negotiations have also seen periods of stagnation, leading Ottawa to remove most of its counter-tariffs in September as a goodwill gesture to facilitate talks.