OTTAWA — Amid a breakdown of trade talks and a simmering tariff war between Canada and the United States, Prime Minister Mark Carney says unelected U.S. officials should refrain from commenting on Canadian politics.
“I don’t think, with all respect, (that) appointed, unelected cabinet members in the United States are experts on Canadian politics,” Carney told reporters following an announcement in Thunder Bay, Ont. on Thursday, when asked about comments by U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick last week.
Lutnick denied that U.S. officials were hung up on French-language laws — one of the reported reasons talks collapsed — adding Canada walked away from a deal with the U.S. late last month “for political purposes.”
After weeks of intense talks throughout the summer, Canada and the U.S. failed to strike a last-minute trade deal, leading to U.S. President Donald Trump’s new slate of 50 per cent tariffs on billions of dollars worth of Canadian goods to come into effect.
The affected items include those covered under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).
In response, Carney has announced Canada will impose counter-tariffs on nearly $28 billion worth of American goods starting Sept. 8.
“Everything this government is doing, everything I’m trying to do, is to work with provinces, work with willing partners around the world, work with labour, work with business, to move forward to the benefit of our citizens,” Carney said.
“That’s the small p, if you want to call that politics, that’s small p politics,” Carney added, insisting Canadian negotiators are “not positioning on this stuff.”
Pointing to the failed deal, which reportedly fell apart at the 11th hour, Carney said the Americans had immovable red lines that Canada couldn’t accept.
“Boom it’s in there, you know, our way or the highway, take-it-or-leave it attitude,” Carney said, adding those red lines no longer seem to be there.
The prime minister said what U.S. officials now appear to be saying is different from the lines they drew during negotiations.
Carney’s comments on Thursday are not the first time he’s publicly taken aim at U.S. negotiators.
Speaking to reporters earlier this week, Carney called on them to quit their online attacks and take trade discussions more seriously, saying when they “stop doing memes, stop throwing shade, stop trying to be tough, and start being serious,” Canada will return to the negotiating table.
In a post to social media on Thursday, Trump wrote that it is all good for Canadian politicians, namely Carney, to make the U.S. president out to be “the enemy,” until Canada’s “economy collapses.”
