After a move from Canada threatened the electricity of roughly 1.5 million Americans, President Donald Trump served up a stark reminder to the “Tariff abuser.”
“…and very soon, you will find that out.”
Holding strong to the America First agenda promised to voters, the president continued taking bold steps to reassert the nation’s standing on the world stage and remind supposed allies that the days of being walked on were over. A prime example came Monday night when following a threat to shut off electricity from Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Trump made clear “we’ll just get it all back on April 2.”
Taking to Truth Social, the president pointed to the action taken by Ford after he had agreed to a temporary exemption of tariffs on USMCA-compliant products as negotiations continued with both Canada and Mexico, “Despite the fact that Canada is charging the USA from 250% to 390% Tariffs on many of our farm products, Ontario just announced a 25% surcharge on ‘electricity,’ of all things, and [you’re] not even allowed to do that.”
“Because our Tariffs are reciprocal, we’ll just get it all back on April 2. Canada is a Tariff abuser and always has been, but the United States is not going to be subsidizing Canada any longer,” added Trump’s post. “We don’t need your Cars, we don’t need your Lumber, we don’t need your Energy, and very soon, you will find that out. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
Speaking with reporters Monday, Ford had noted that his charge on electricity for about 1.5 million residents of Michigan, Minnesota and New York was just the start in what he was calling a “trade war.”
“If the United States escalates, I will not hesitate to shut the electricity off completely,” said the premier. “Believe me when I say I do not want to do this, I feel terrible for the American people, because it’s not the American people who started this trade war. It’s one person who’s responsible. That’s President Trump.”
Before the weekend, Ford had attempted to foist blame on Trump for forcing his hand, sharing an interview with Fox Business anchor Liz Claman with the caption, “The only thing that’s certain today is more uncertainty. A pause on some tariffs means nothing. Until President Trump removes the threat of tariffs for good, we will be relentless.”
From the Oval Office, Trump warned that as early as this week he could implement a similar tariff on dairy and lumber to match the way “Canada has been ripping us off for years” on those goods. “We’re going to charge the same thing. It’s not fair. It never has been fair, and they’ve treated our farmers badly.”
Monday, the premier joined Bloomberg to argue, “U.S. markets are tumbling because of President Trump’s tariffs. Prices are going up for hardworking Americans. He needs to drop the tariffs now, for good. Until he does, Ontario will stand firm.”
Among those pushing back on claims that the president’s policies were responsible for the extent of current economic woes, New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R) appeared on CNN and said, “You can’t disregard the damage that the Biden administration did to our economy with their regulations, with their inflationary spending, with the interest rates that have skyrocketed because of his policies. You can’t negate that.”
“You got to remember, President Trump has already brought in $2 trillion in private investment. He’s only been in office for a month,” she went on. “Every other week, we’re hearing about a new company that is repatriating, manufacturing, or expanding operations here in the United States, whether it’s a foreign entity or a domestic company like Apple.”
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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