Ontario’s premier says he will stop anti-tariff ads that have angered Trump

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he would stop his province’s anti-tariff advertising campaign in the U.S. after it prompted President Donald Trump to abandon trade talks.

Ford said he made the decision after a conversation with Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday, adding that the TV ad would be paused on Monday “so that trade talks can resume.”

He said it would continue to air on U.S. channels on weekends, including during Major League Baseball World Series games.

Carney told reporters earlier Friday that Canada was ready to resume trade talks with the U.S. “as soon as the Americans are ready.”

Trump criticized the ad in a Truth Social post late Thursday night, calling it “FAKE” and “outrageous.” He said the trade talks were “hereby terminated.”

The ad, sponsored by the Ontario government, quotes former U.S. President Ronald Reagan, a Republican and symbol of U.S. conservatism, as saying that tariffs “hurt every American.”

The video includes excerpts from a 1987 national radio address by Reagan that discussed foreign trade.

Trump’s abandonment of trade talks came after the Ronald Reagan Foundation, charged with preserving Reagan’s legacy, released a statement saying the advertising used “selective” audio and video recordings of the former president’s remarks.

She accused the ad of misrepresenting Reagan’s address and said the Ontario government did not seek permission to use the ad.

On Friday, Ford said the intent of the ad was to “start a conversation about the type of economy Americans want to build” and the impact of tariffs.

“We achieved our goal of reaching U.S. audiences at the highest level,” Ford said.

Trump’s response to the ad has sparked a debate in Canada about whether Ford’s combative approach to U.S. trade talks is the right one or whether the country would be better off adopting a friendlier tone with its neighbor and closest trade ally.

Canada is still the only G7 country that has not struck a trade deal with Trump since he began imposing sweeping tariffs.

The US has imposed a 35% levy on all Canadian goods – but most are exempt under an existing free trade agreement. Sector-specific levies were also imposed on Canadian goods, including a 50% levy on metals and a 25% levy on motor vehicles.

These sector tariffs have particularly affected Ontario, where the majority of Canada’s automotive industry is located.

Prime Minister Carney has been trying for months to negotiate a deal that would ease tariffs. Three-quarters of Canada’s exports are sold to the United States, making the economy there particularly vulnerable.

He opted for friendly personal meetings and text messages with the US President.

Ford, on the other hand, has taken a more defiant stance. He pulled U.S. alcohol off Ontario shelves and briefly threatened to withhold energy exports.

Last week he told reporters he was “tired of sitting around and rolling around” after automaker Stellantis announced it would move some production from its Brampton, Ontario, plant to the United States.

“We have to fight back,” Ford said at the time.

The next day he launched the advertising campaign that eventually drew the ire of the US president.

Trump’s abrupt abandonment of trade talks came as no surprise to most Canadians, said Mahmood Nanji, a fellow at Western University’s Ivey Business School and a former deputy finance minister in Ontario.

The US president made a similar threat earlier this year after Ottawa announced it would impose a digital services tax on US technology companies.

“His contributions are usually full of theatricality and exaggeration,” Mr. Nanji said.

And while some appreciate Ford standing up for Ontario’s industries hardest hit by the tariffs, the timing and tone of Ford’s advertising campaign didn’t help Canada’s case and created an “unnecessary distraction,” Mr. Nanji added.

It’s unclear whether trade talks will actually resume after Ford withdraws the ad, and President Trump has not yet responded to the announcement that the ad is being pulled.

The White House expressed frustration Friday with Canada’s “long-standing, unfair trade barriers,” adding that efforts to address those issues “have not resulted in constructive progress.”

Carney has taken some appeasement measures to keep the talks going, including eliminating retaliatory tariffs and eliminating Canada’s digital services tax. But he has repeatedly said he is looking for the “best deal for Canada.”

Both Trump and Carney are traveling to Asia on Friday for the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur. The Canadian prime minister told reporters that the focus of his trip will be on “developing new partnerships and opportunities, including with Asia’s economic giants.”

But Carney also left the door open to continuing trade talks with the United States.

Mr. Nanji said the advertising saga is a reminder that the path to an agreement will not be easy for Canada, regardless of negotiation methods.

He pointed to comments made by Carney earlier in the week in which he declared that “the U.S. has fundamentally changed its approach to trade” and that Canada’s close ties to America have become a vulnerability.

“We have to take care of ourselves because we cannot rely on a single foreign partner,” Carney said Wednesday in a speech to announce his administration’s first budget, to be unveiled Nov. 4.

The speech, Mr. Nanji said, was also intended to “make Canadians aware that this is going to be a really rocky road with the Americans.”