Close Reading

Trudeau has always been good in a crisis and for that I’m sorry to see him go. I give a thumbs up for all of parliament for putting differences aside in these last few weeks to fight against trump. I hope we bolster our trade with other countries and never go back to the USA.

This trade war is only going to bring True Americans, Canadians and Mexicans closer together in solidarity against the Trump Regime. Our shared suffering will draw us together and create a unified force against Donald Trump the likes of which no-one has yet seen arrayed against a particular regime since World War 2.

I think we have cheaper alternatives in the US. How about 50%. As long as we have 250% tariffs on American goods, I say keep going. We need reciprocal trade and need to fix the border issues also. We lose so many to the fentanyl. Canada needs to make its military contributions also. We don’t need the bs words from this bs guy. Some better leadership can still fix this but when I hear boycotts, I start checking labels also.

Ah yes, the trade war that Canada will surely lose. I love Canada. Wouldn't trade it for the world, but this is a losing battle by which citizens on both sides will feel the full effect. Trump appeasing Putin is a chess move, that the PM seems to be overlooking. The US can't afford to go to war with Russia, but at the same time, it needs resources within Russia's neighboring region. So the US will do what they always do, and had people listened to what Kissinger had to say, they'd be better prepared for this. Nonetheless, let's stand proud and strong, and come together as Canadians in order to get through this.

There's many reasons not to like Trudeau up here in Canada, many of which are the reason he'll (rightfully) no longer be the PM next week. As a conservative I hated him for SNC-Lavalin (among other scandals), and the fact that his inexperience with the economy Harper left him is probably part of why this trade war is going to hurt more than it could have, and the fact that he's often been kind of a phony more concerned with looking and sounding good for the press cameras. Not this time. Nothing phony here; I've got to give credit to him for capturing the national mood pretty much perfectly with this speech. Good on him. \n\nAnd congratulations as well to Donald for pretty much handing the Liberals their best shot at a fourth term, too. What an absolute idiot. Normally I'd turn my nose up at having to vote Liberal, but I am so, so sick of the brand of empty populism Trump stands for that it looks like that's what I'm gonna be doing come election time.

For all of you GO Canada people. The majority of Canadians oppose what our government is doing. This man has destroyed our economy and done everything he could to stop international trade of LNG and oil by shutting down all pipeline and LNG PROJECTS WE HATE THIS MAN. It is not Trump BAD it is everything Trudeau did above and more that killed us. these Tariffs would mean nothing to us if he hadn’t fiscally destroyed us. We are getting what we deserve. Unfortunately it will lead to destitution of many people. I can’t wait to see his party gone. We are running out of time.

We are going to make sure that you can sell the absolute minimum to Canada. We have reliable trade partners, reliable options. You have none. Good luck with Russia. Do you really think Putin will trust you?

Trump is a total disaster for all Americans except the $Billionaires. But it wasn't the $Billionaires who voted Trump into office, it was the millions of MAGA Morons, the very people who are now losing their jobs in thousands as Musk takes an axe to everything. Tariffs on America's main trading partners means that the American consumers, many of them MAGA Morons, are going to be hit a lot harder in the pocket as prices on their goods rocket. I only feel sorry for the Americans, who saw this coming and voted against Trump. For all the MAGA Morons, don't cry help, you brought this on yourself !!! Here in the UK we support Canada 100% !!!

FROM ARGENTINA I support Trump on this!!! The USA should balance goods trade and blow up deficit! Milei in Argentina has eliminated deficit for the first time after 123 years in Argentina's history, making economy and investment start growing. Mexico and Canada are taking advantage, Go Trump!!!

Its a tragic turn in history; US + Russia, smh. Canada go trade with us in Europe and Australia, we love you! ❤??????\nAnd to all the americans that didn't want this, take care and get rid of him fast!

We Canadians can no longer trust the Moscow Agent Governing America since he trashed the fair trade agreement he signed. Canadians are boycotting made in USA. Feel bad for many Americans who did not vote for the Tangerine Toddler in chief. Ffs when will the Republicans wake up and realize Cheetolini is going to destroy America. I agree with Trudeau today, this trade war is dumb. Thanks from Canada ?❤️??

Start checking Canadian ports. The border is just a part of it. Maybe if they up the staff at Canadian ports we can get somewhere with this trade war. That's where a lot of Canadian cars are going after they get stolen they need to check more shipping containers for contraband. That's probably where most fentanyl or precursors are coming in.

Starting a trade war with our trusted allies is an extremely stupid idea... But does Trump and his associates ever have a good idea?? I am glad Canada is standing up for what is correct!! Hearing Trudeau speak in the language of FACTS, LOGIC, and REASON is SO REFRESHING!!!! Go Trudeau!!!

So, a country that had a 2024 60 billion budget deficit, depends on the US for trade is going to act tough? OK. Zelensky just learned what FAFO means the hard way. Now he is begging ... Trudeau and Canada will end up begging and getting humiliated again.

I'm Canadian. You need to stop the gutting of your federal by Trump. He is a bankrupt billionare and he is going to drag you all down with him. We will be fine we can trade with anyone in the world Its not a matter of higher prices at this point we won't deal with you at all under these conditions Donald Trump is a russian asset and you need to get rid of him as fast as possible

Most Americans cannot stand this imperialism criminal president's trade policy. People are going to pay for a higher cost of living.

I'm European and I really can't understand how you can make an economic trade war with an ally like Canada, a close and so friendly neighbor.... A dumb decision not only for the W Post... And all of this will end up heavily impacting Americans as well, also because besides Canada there is Mexico, China and the whole of Europe. In such a war there are no winners.... I really hope that the American people understand this and start fighting for this nonsense to end. \nAnd when I then hear President Trudeau called governor.... Well I get even more angry. This shows even more (but there was no need) who trump is. A suburban bully. A rude man. An unscrupulous man who passes over everything and everyone.\nAmerica is turning into something I no longer recognize....\n\nKeep going Canada!

Why are we in a trade war with Canada? God, this is going to be a long four years.

As an American, I want to say You go Trudeau! A trade war is lunacy.

Its quite simple, make the trade inequities between the two countries fair and equal and tariffs go away......simple wuss boy!

What an effeminate, useless leader. I feel bad for Canadians. They are going to suffer because Trudeau will not address the money the USA is losing in trade deficits, border security and fentanyl.

Let the trade wars begin. Trudeau has hurt canada far more than Trump ever could. Canada will not win this. Go to Canada and every car you see is American, half their foods American, in America we use very little Canadian goods. Do some research.

They should talk about guns coming into Canada ?? they are not going to stop this with out talking about illegal gun trade to Canada ??

Historically speaking, walls on borders have been used to effectively keep people *_in_* and not out! Does anyone remember the iron curtain? \nWe're not going to have any trading partners left in the world, because we have turned our back on all of our traditional allies...\nHoly shit... Never thought I'd see this happen in my lifetime.

Canada is already heading into an economic crisis, and what Trudeau just did might be the final nail in the coffin. This is his last big mistake — and he’ll soon blame Trump’s policies to cover up his own failures.\n\nLet’s be clear: Trump’s tariff policies aren’t some random attack — they’re based on a simple reality: The U.S. doesn’t need Canada. Here’s why:\n\nEconomy Size Comparison:\n\nU.S. GDP (2024): Over $28 trillion\nCanada GDP (2024): Around $2.3 trillion\nThe U.S. economy is more than 12 times larger than Canada’s — the leverage is completely one-sided.\nTrade Imbalance:\n\n75% of Canadian exports go straight to the U.S. — Canada’s economy depends on the American market to survive.\nMeanwhile, only around 12-15% of U.S. exports go to Canada. The U.S. can replace Canadian goods easily through Mexico, Europe, or Asia, but Canada has no backup plan for losing U.S. access.\nPopulation and Consumer Base:\n\nU.S. population: Over 330 million\nCanada: Around 40 million\nThe U.S. is 8 times the market size, meaning American businesses would always prioritize the U.S. market over Canada.\nNatural Resources & Energy:\n\nCanada’s oil, gas, and timber exports rely heavily on U.S. buyers.\nThe U.S. is already the world’s top producer of oil and gas thanks to its shale industry — it can easily survive without Canadian energy.\nCanada, on the other hand, would struggle to find new customers fast enough to avoid collapse.\n\nDefense & Global Influence:\nThe U.S. holds dozens of trade agreements with major powers like the EU, Japan, South Korea, and Mexico.\nCanada’s economy relies heavily on U.S. investment, which could be cut off or redirected if necessary.\nBottom line: Trudeau is dragging Canada into a crisis of his own making. He’s gambling with his country’s economic future, knowing full well that in any economic war with the U.S., Canada loses — fast. When the fallout hits, Trudeau will shift the blame to Trump, but the facts are clear: Canada needs the U.S. far more than the U.S. needs Canada.

As a Canadian who lives in (largely French-speaking) Quebec, I don't know if our gov't even NEEDS to tariff American consumer goods, the people here are already boycotting US goods and companies en masse. EVERYBODY is doing it - and the pace isn't going to recede anytime soon. Even after the Orange Turd is long gone, trust me, Canadians will remember this! The American state has proven it cannot be trusted. They have unilaterally broken the trade agreement (negotiated by the previous Donald J Chump administration) on the flimsiest of reasons, the 00.2 % of fentanyl that flows over the border into the US from Canada. That deal now obviously not worth the paper it was signed on.

Canada's $63 billion trade imbalance is a bigger issue. your telling trump the last time he was in the white house you would be spending 2% of your GDP on the military by 2024. Now you say you will get to 1.8% by 2027. Open your trade. Like JD Vance said we can keep going up on Tariffs until you balance trade.

We know why HE is doing this. He is pushing an imperialistic agenda, so he can be like those he admires. He's hoping that Canada will bend at the knee and give in so that he can claim Canada as a 51st state. But guess what? That won't happen. He's just doing himself and his country harm. He doesn't care about you, or me, or us as two countries that have always worked together. But we are setting up border security to keep American drugs, and weapons, and illegal migrants from coming into Canada. We're going to have to survive by reverting our trade to elsewhere, to depend on ourselves, to boycott U.S. products. We may be nice, but we are also tough. We love our society, our democracy, and our benefits. We won't give that up. Growing up, I lived in South Western Ontario, I used to go back and forth from Canada to the U.S. with no issues. Now, I'm sad to say, I won't ever be going to the U.S. again. Let's all hope for a brighter future for both countries.

Sings great but no Trudy you haven’t done big things and don’t get to take credit for the good men that came before you. Good job taking the opportunity given here however I see another limp D trying to save his embarrassing career. But good for you getting all these gullible people to buy it. Half truths do not make the truth whole. 75 years of industrial decline aren’t getting fixed with friendly assurances and happy trade deals. During WW2 everyone lived on food rations, turned in all metals, kept their old cars running etc… and y’all are upset because inflation means you have to make some tough choices? I’m ashamed of every American that refuses to try something new since the last 50 years of the same old back and forth is what got us here in the first place. Obstruction and diversion. Division. Both parties are responsible. If Donald wants to destroy the faith of his faithful… let him. But going radical against half the country’s people isn’t going to end well for anyone. We should stop giving the rich all the cards.

Trudeau secure your boarder with the ??. Have fair trade with the usa instead taking advantage of us. Build your own military and protect yourself. This communist pm needs to go

So, Trudy, has his panties in a bunch. WTF did he think was going to happen, he has ZERO leverage in a trade battle. The Canadian auto industry will collapse. Canada does not have a car line; the entire Canadian auto industry is to supply the American auto makers. If those goods and services are now 25% more those jobs will be brought back to the US. But hey Canada voted for this socialist, he just and into a much better and smarter capitalist.

Trump isn't starting this trade war because of drugs. He's doing it for no other reason than to damage your relationship. Everything else is just a distraction so he can motivate it to the American public to prevent them from realizing what is really going on before it is too late. Why would he want to damage your relationship? It's not because it benefits America. There's another external part that benefits. And that is where you need to look.

As a South African, I want to say that this trade war, as well as the hostile approach of Trump towards Canada, is devastating. If one were not experiencing it directly, it would be almost impossible to believe. This is such a remarkable speech that it will go down in history as one of the truly great speeches in times of crisis. It is entirely correct to address the American and Canadian peoples directly, as the Prime Minister has done. They are both clear victims of this madness, Americans misled, and Canadians the target, of this senseless trade war. If one reads History, there is another dimension to this, and I hate to say it. Canadians have to prepare themselves for worse. These types of antics by the aggressor usually involve, finger pointing, contrived border incidents, plausibly deniable incursions and other actions, by the aggressor, which one can find if the preludes to the WW1 and WW2 are studied. I am not sure if you have porcupines in Canada, but you need to rapidly become one.

When are these republicans going to wake up? Trump is leading his whole party and the rest of the country off a cliff! Start a trade war with Canada for absolutely no apparent reason? This man’s agenda will come to light, because there is a reason he’s doing this, it’s just not common knowledge.

The reason for this 'trade war' is not about 'trade'. It's about 'creating chaos' so that president Trump is the 'centre' of world attention. A malignant naracistic individual apparently cannot have anyone seemingly to be 'doing better' or being more successful than he is. Canada ?? is a very successful nation and because of its economic success it is creating envy and apparently hatred in certain individuals who view the success of Canada ?? as a threat to themselves. The USA now apparently cannot see the value of a strong and stable economy as its near neighbours. Thats why apparently there are some who now want to crash the Canadian economy and when times then 'get tough' the blame and responsibility for this chaos will be accepted by whom. Presidents and Prime Ministers come and go. Once their 'term is over' they simply 'walk away'. World leaders need to be men or women of integrity and honesty who 'do the right thing'. With 'great power' comes 'great responsibility'. You only 'give responsibility' to someone who has the wisdom and expertise and understanding in order to both 'hold' and 'govern' wisely and without fear or favor. Maybe its time for others in positions of authority in other institutions to step in and 'take control'. You would never let a child drive a super car on the highway so how much 'damage' has to happen before a world leader is not 'held to account' and his 'hands removed' from the steering wheel before there is a motor accident so large that the freeway is rendered unless and has to be totally shut down your. You cannot have total power in the hands of individuals who apparently do not possess the necessary skills knowledge and experience and wisdom that is required to fulfil the role they were elected to fulfil. A person with the mind and mentality of a child apparently is not a fit person to be running the economy of any nation. May Canada ?? remember its roots and may we all be thankful for true and honest leaders who have integrity and do and say the right thing. Thank you Mr Prime minister. I trust that King Charles III has heard what his Canadian prime minister has said and what he is doing with total integrity.

Good speech. Now let’s also look at what has gone on last 9 years in Canada. Mr. Trudeau It was dumb to divide the provinces. It was dumb for you to shut down every project that Alberta had to work with other provinces and trade with other parts of the world. It was dumb for you to continually suck up to Quebec while ignoring the rest of the country. The corruption we know of that your party created such as We Charity and Arrivecan app is just the tip of the iceberg of billions of dollars you have robbed from Canadian taxpayers that could have fixed health care and provided much needed tax relief to all Canadians. While you are speaking about dumb I pray that Canadians realize and understand what the Liberal and NDP parties have done to our country the last 9 years and vote your party out. Canadians need to stop being dumb with who we have in power. We cannot keep going like this.

Wow, articulate strong talk, no lies, no propaganda, no bluster, none of the total and complete unrelenting bullshit we have endure on a daily basis from the sociopathic delusional asshole that currently occupies the White House. It should be no surprise that our leadership chooses to blame all of our problems on someone else, because that's exactly what they do every day. We have a drug problem, it's because of Canada and Mexico. We have an immigration problem, likewise Mexico and Canada. We have a deficit problem, that's because of the EU and NATO. Our problem is our government, specifically Republicans who won't accept the simple truth: you want to solve problems you have be disciplined and smart. You have to spend money to fix your problems instead of blaming some else and trying to get them to pay for it. You pay to solve your problems instead of giving huge tax cuts to people who don't need them. You stop lying to your people. You want to change the trade imbalance? Build products that other countries want at a price that makes sense. The EU has no laws that prevent American car manufacturers from selling their cars in Europe. American car companies make shitty cars. They make cars that are too big, that don't make sense for European where streets can be very small and gas is very expensive. The US manufacturers don't make a single small car in thos country that can compete with European cars. US agricultural products are laced with poisonous chemicals that are outlawed in the EU because they kill people. Our governmeent doesn't give a shit about that because to grow healthy food means you have to cut profits, almighty dollars, instead of grow things that the rest of the world will accept. We have an idiot for president who thinks he knows more than anyone else and an idiot party that won't tell him the truth. This is going to cost us big time. We are going into recession, probably a long one because we don't have real leaders and the president on his best day is nothing more than a reality TV personality, and not a very entertaining one at that.

Make That Make Sense. Here you go Trudeau. . If US aligns with Ukrain, as very very sad as this situation is, Trump would be declaring opposition with Russia. Then China aligns with Russia. Then WW3 starts on North American soil. Did Trump word everything right? Absolutely NOT. NOPE. However… I don’t want a war either. Trump should have just stayed out of it. \n\nLastly Trudeau you liar. You said “no one wins in a trade war…”. Yet you respond to tariffs with tariffs. You just started a trade war!!!! \n\nHow’s that for making sense enough for you!!

Trump wants to break Canada weakening them to make them the 51st state. Canada there are other markets to trade with. Companies are going to move from the US and with them so will your trade route.

Who convinced Trump of this? I like him but this trade war against Canada isn’t the way to go, really. I feel Canadians were mistakenly targeted. US needs allies not foes. Proud of Trudeau for the first time. I don’t live in the US but in Canada at the moment, not Canadian either, but I’m very objective in my perception about these occurrences. I hope America makes peace with Canada so strengthen both sides, hmmm.

The trade war has begun now he wants to discuss how we’re going to adapt to the economic nightmare how we can survive this and how we can defeat Trump’s bullshit

Admit there's a trade imbalance, do something about it, and this will all go away.

Canada and Mexico are not responsible for the people in the US who chose to use drugs. In fact, it's the United States job to keep illegal drugs and immigrants out of the US and they are doing a poor job of it and need someone else to blame. Mexico could retaliate in a way that could flood the US with illegal drugs and immigrants and refuse to repatriate its citizens back into Mexico. The rest of Central and South America could do the same in support of Mexico. They need to get Trump out of office before he ruins America.\nI remember the press conference with the USA (Trump), Canada and Mexico when signing the new trade agreement during Trump last time in office. Trump proudly stated that this is the greatest agreement in the history of the United States. Last week he wanted to know who in the US agreed to the terrible trade agreement. He is losing his mind and cognitive function is deteriorating at a rapid rate. Re-negotiating contracts after the work is complete is how Trump ran his businesses. He has bankrupted many small businesses by not paying them knowing that they do not have the money to go to court. He is only rich because of daddy's money otherwise he would have never survived his many bankruptcies. Thats why no one will loan him money. I can't wait until he screws over the government of Saudi Arabia with one of his shady business deals. Anyone remember what happened to Khashoggi for just authoring a bad article on Saudi's Leaders. What do you think will happen to Trump for monetarily screwing them over?

Trudeau should be our next Prime Minister...!!! ?\nOur economies are so inter-twined because it WORKS! So many American companies have set-up plants in Canada in order to profit from doing business here. It's not just products that we MUTUALLY benefit from selling to each other, the US generates significant profits from its many operations in Canada, and those $Billions of dollars in profits that go back to American Investors is not included in the 'Trade Imbalance' that is a justification for the tariffs. With those profits included, I'd bet Canada is the nation with the imbalance not in its favor...

Trump , vance and Musk , are not very smart , \nby open trade wars , only the people get hurt on both sides , \nand if USA go after europ then usa will loose even more , \nUsa need us as much as we need them , and Trump \nshould start thinking , becosue americans are loosing power as well \nmust of in europe dont see USA as western leadership anymore , \nthat eneded when people of USA was stupid enough to vote for trump and \nvance , we warned USA people this would happent and still they voted trump \nand now you want us to stand with you ,,,, honestly we have a saying that goes like this \nyou gonna lay in the bed you made , and if you complain about you better redue you bed ! \nSo RNC votes , do you feel the pain the trump a, vance and musk are doing to you , \nif you do then time to remove the idiots from power ! \nand btw , you should rename RNC to RNCC ( Real Northamerica Criminal Consortium)

I'm usually reasonable enough to realize that while I may disagree with many policy decisions, there's usually a relatively coherent line of thought to back said actions up. The problem here is that there’s no clear logic behind using tariffs as a tool to curb fentanyl trafficking or immigration. I'm not going to speak on the issue of immigration at the Canadian border because there simply is none. Yes, there are illegals from Canada, but almost 100% of them are from overstaying visas rather than crossing the border unlawfully. So let's talk about fentanyl. \n\nMost fentanyl in the US originates from China, often in precursor form, and is then processed in Mexico before being smuggled into the states. But it's typically trafficked in small, high potency quantities, often hidden in legitimate shipments or through mail, and only on very rare occasions is it being brought in by individuals crossing the border. It has _never_ been documented to have shipped in as part of large scale commercial imports, so a 25% tariff on legal trade with Canada and Mexico doesn’t directly target the black market supply chain at all.\n\nIf we take Trump’s reasoning at face value, the argument seems to be that he wants to exert economic pressure on Mexico and Canada as a means of having them crack down harder on drug trafficking networks. But the issue is that fentanyl simply isn’t coming in through mass import channels, so all this looks like is a punitive measure without a clear mechanism to actually achieve its stated goal. And the implications? Drastically higher costs for consumers in the US, Canada, and Mexico, with absolutely nothing to show for it.

Why are those 2 people standing behind him trying not to smile when Trudeau is making up that Trump wants a trade war and he's siding with Putin? This guy is trying to start problems and spreading lies to keep the division going!!! That is the whole plan with this whole Ukraine deal!!! Stop funding the wars and we could all move forward not with this BS!!!

Canada should suspend all the things they did to tighten the border. In fact they should go the other direction. This trade war is going to hurt the good people of Canada, and resources used to help the united states could be better used helping Canadians. Trumptards only learn when they touch the hot stove.

It was dictator Trump who rewrote the free trade agreement when he was in power before. Now, this dictator is going against what he SIGNED, which is against world law. But this dictator wants the USA to have a Russia style government in the USA.

This is about USA jobs that free trade has moved overseas and the middle class restoration. Regan did the same thing and added tariffs on jap motorcycles and quotas on JAP CARS saving Detroit car company’s and the steel industry and saving the rust belt..... Than wall st shipped the jobs to communist china and south vetnamn putting the USA’s national security at risk…no one will ever go after wall st gamblers they are a protected class.