Another day, another win for President Trump. This time, the battlefield was trade, and the opponent was Canada’s protectionist economic policies. After Trump threatened to slap a 50% tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum, Ontario Premier Doug Ford quickly caved, announcing that Canada would suspend its 25% surcharge on electricity exports to the United States.
Please see a joint statement from United States Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and myself:
Today, United States Secretary of Commerce @howardlutnick and Premier of Ontario Doug Ford had a productive conversation about the economic relationship between the United States…— Doug Ford (@fordnation) March 11, 2025
Let’s be honest—Ford put up a good act at first. He ran to MSNBC, threw a little tantrum about Trump’s “unprovoked attack,” and warned that U.S. consumers and businesses would suffer. Classic globalist fear-mongering. But just a few hours later, he folded like a cheap lawn chair. Why? Because Canada simply cannot afford to go toe-to-toe with the United States in a trade war, especially when Trump is in charge.
President Trump launched an unprovoked trade and tariff war with America’s closest friend and ally. Until the threat of tariffs is gone for good, we won’t back down. pic.twitter.com/eH85Dv0iJO
— Doug Ford (@fordnation) March 11, 2025
Trump played this perfectly. First, he hiked tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50%, immediately putting pressure on Canada’s biggest exports. Then, he reminded everyone about Canada’s outrageous dairy tariffs—some as high as 390%—and made it clear that if Canada didn’t drop its protectionist nonsense, he was ready to go even further. And just to make sure Ford got the message, Trump floated the idea of hitting Canada’s auto industry next. That was the knockout punch.
Anyone who understands Canada’s economy knows that the auto sector is its lifeline. The second Trump threatened to slap tariffs on Canadian cars, it was game over. No way was Ford going to let that happen. That’s why he suddenly reversed course and dropped the electricity surcharge. In other words, Trump got exactly what he wanted without giving up anything in return.
This is why Trump’s approach to trade works. For decades, weak U.S. politicians let other countries walk all over us, accepting terrible trade deals that benefited everyone except the American worker. Trump flipped the script. He’s using tariffs as leverage, making it clear that if you take advantage of the U.S., there will be consequences. And guess what? It works.
Ford’s backpedaling is proof that no country, not even our polite northern neighbor, can afford to ignore Trump’s warnings. And with more negotiations on the horizon—like upcoming revisions to the USMCA—you can bet Trump is going to keep fighting for American workers and American industries.
The left will scream about “trade wars” and “economic instability,” but here’s the reality: Trump just forced Canada to back down in less than 24 hours. That’s called winning.
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