Ford stresses U.S.-Canada friendship after Trump accuses Ottawa of ‘cheating’ on tariffs

Ontario Premier Doug Ford moved quickly Friday to emphasize the strength of Canada’s relationship with the United States, responding to a blistering post from U.S. President Donald Trump that accused the country of fraud and trade manipulation.

“Canada and the United States are friends, neighbours and allies. President Ronald Reagan knew that we are stronger together,” Ford wrote in a statement shared to X. He added: “God bless Canada and God bless the United States.”

To underscore his message, Ford uploaded a video of Reagan’s address.

Ford’s tone contrasted sharply with Trump’s remarks. In a lengthy post, the president alleged that Canada had “fraudulently” purchased ads misrepresenting Reagan’s views on tariffs, claiming the former president “LOVED TARIFFS FOR OUR COUNTRY, AND ITS NATIONAL SECURITY.”

Trump went further, accusing Canada of attempting to “illegally influence the United States Supreme Court in one of the most important rulings in the history of our Country.” He repeated long-standing complaints that Canada has “long cheated on Tariffs, charging our farmers as much as 400%,” before thanking the Ronald Reagan Foundation for “exposing this FRAUD.”

The president’s comments came just one day after he announced the termination of trade talks with Canada, citing what he described as anti-tariff advertising campaigns linked to the Ford government.

More to come