President Donald Trump may have delayed most – though not all – of the tariffs he had imposed on Canada and Mexico, but that hasn’t stopped America’s northern neighbors from responding forcefully in retaliation. Ontario Premier Doug Ford at a press conference that he would move forward with a 25% surcharge on electricity exports to three US states starting Monday, warning that he will would turn off access if the United States adds new tariffs on Canadian goods. #CNN #news
00:00 Ontario Premier Doug Ford at press conference
04:31 Boris Sanchez interviews Doug Ford
09:54 Inside Politics panel on Canada’s tariffs
18:47 Zain Asher and Bianna Golodryga interview Matina Stevis-Gridneff, Canada bureau chief for The New York Times
00:00 Ontario Premier Doug Ford at press conference
04:31 Boris Sanchez interviews Doug Ford
09:54 Inside Politics panel on Canada’s tariffs
18:47 Zain Asher and Bianna Golodryga interview Matina Stevis-Gridneff, Canada bureau chief for The New York Times
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NewsTranscript
00:00For weeks now, we've been faced with so much uncertainty coming from President Trump.
00:06Each day brings new tariff threats.
00:09Now, President Trump is threatening tariffs on steel and aluminum.
00:13He's pointing his finger at dairy and lumber,
00:16shifting timelines, different excuses, chaos and confusion.
00:21It's hurting workers, it's hurting businesses, it's hurting investments,
00:25and it's hurting families on both sides of the border.
00:29It needs to end.
00:30That's why I've been crystal clear.
00:33Until these tariffs are off the table,
00:35until the threat of tariffs is gone for good,
00:38Ontario will not relent.
00:41We will not back down.
00:43Pausing some tariffs, making last-minute exemptions, it won't cut it.
00:48We need to end the chaos once and for all.
00:52We need to sit down, work together, and land a fair deal.
00:56A deal that gives businesses the confidence to invest.
01:00A deal that gives workers the security they need and deserve.
01:04Until then, Ontario will keep up the fight.
01:08We will apply maximum pressure to maximize our leverage.
01:12That's why today, we're moving forward with a 25% surcharge on electricity exports.
01:19For the 1.5 million American homes and businesses that Ontario powers,
01:24homes and businesses in Minnesota, Michigan, and New York.
01:29This surcharge will cost families and businesses in these states
01:33up to $400,000 each and every single day.
01:39On an average, this will add around $100 per month to the bills of hardworking Americans.
01:46Let me be clear.
01:47I will not hesitate to increase this charge.
01:51If necessary, if the United States escalates,
01:54I will not hesitate to shut the electricity off completely.
01:59Believe me when I say I do not want to do this.
02:03I feel terrible for the American people
02:05because it's not the American people who started this trade war.
02:09It's one person who's responsible.
02:12That's President Trump.
02:14I'd rather be working together.
02:16I want to sell the U.S. more energy, more electricity, more critical minerals.
02:21I want to make Canada and the United States the richest, most successful, safest,
02:26most secure two countries on the planet.
02:29But as Premier, my number one job is to protect the people of Ontario
02:34and in hand, protect the people of Canada.
02:37I will do whatever it takes.
02:39I will fight like I've never fought before to protect Ontario.
02:43Friends, none of this makes sense.
02:46Costly tariffs against your closest friends and allies do not make sense.
02:52The U.S. markets have lost trillions in value.
02:55Companies are second-guessing investments into the American economy.
03:00American workers' jobs are at risk as we speak right now.
03:04Cost of hardworking American families will only go up.
03:08It doesn't have to be this way.
03:10We are stronger when we work together.
03:13I hope we can get back to working together, creating jobs, growing our economies,
03:19lowering costs for families in both countries.
03:22We don't get there by easing up.
03:24We will remain strong.
03:26We will be relentless.
03:28We will do whatever it takes to protect Ontario.
03:31In addition to these new retaliatory tariffs from China,
03:34Canada's tariffs on the U.S. are still in place.
03:37Last week, it put a 25% levy on things like beer, fruit and vegetables,
03:42shoes, cosmetics, and more.
03:44And today, Ontario starts charging a 25% surcharge on electricity
03:50to three U.S. states, Minnesota, Michigan, and New York.
03:54The tariff war and opposition to President Trump has actually unified Canadians.
03:58Listen to these remarks from Mark Carney, who is expected to be Canada's next prime minister.
04:03He was just elected to head the Liberal Party yesterday.
04:06Soon, potentially, to be sworn in as PM.
04:10The Canadian government has rightly retaliated and is rightly retaliating
04:15with our own tariffs that will have maximum impact in the United States
04:19and minimum impact here in Canada.
04:23And my government will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect.
04:31Let's discuss with Doug Ford, the Premier of Ontario,
04:34which is the province that started to impose that surcharge
04:37on 1.5 million homes and businesses in the United States.
04:40He also ordered all U.S. alcohol to be removed from Ontario's shelves.
04:46Premier, thank you so much for sharing part of the afternoon with us.
04:49What do you hope to achieve with this surcharge?
04:52What needs to happen for you to remove it?
04:56Well, first of all, thanks so much for having me on, Boris.
04:59And I start off every interview with telling Americans that Canadians love Americans.
05:03I love Americans.
05:05It's one person that's caused this problem, and that's President Trump.
05:09As he is putting tariffs on us, even if he says he's putting it on hold,
05:15there's still 60% of goods that are crossing the borders that will be tariffed.
05:20And it's hurting both economies.
05:22It's hurting the American economy.
05:24It's hurting the Canadian economy.
05:26Uncertainty is what people don't like hearing in general life,
05:30not to mention the markets are tumbling.
05:33And investors from around the world are looking twice at America and Canada to invest in.
05:40There's no reason for a recession.
05:42I call it the self-made Donald Trump recession.
05:45He ran on a mandate to lower prices, to make sure we didn't have inflation,
05:51to create more jobs, and it's backfired.
05:54So let's sit down at the table and let's start working on a new USMCA deal,
05:59even though President Trump said it was the greatest deal he's ever made.
06:03Nothing's changed, so I guess it's not the greatest deal now.
06:07His argument would be that he's trying to remake the American economy
06:12to produce more goods that are currently imported into the US here at home.
06:18With these electricity surcharges, you say that the move is designed to protect your province.
06:23The administration, if they see it as an escalation,
06:27with tariffs on lumber, steel, and dairy.
06:29Ultimately, doesn't that hurt your constituents?
06:34No, we're looking at negotiating through strength.
06:38If he cuts off the lumber or puts a tariff, do you know whose costs are going up?
06:43It's the American people that want to buy a home.
06:46They're going to pay more for their home or steel that they need or aluminum.
06:51There's only 16% of aluminum that's manufactured in the US.
06:55They rely on over 60% aluminum to come down there for their goods.
06:59High-grade nickel coming out of Ontario.
07:0250% of the high-grade nickel for your military aerospace and manufacturing comes from Ontario.
07:08The list keeps going on and on and on,
07:10not to mention the 4.3 million barrels of crude oil that we ship down every single day.
07:18I believe in building an Amcan fortress.
07:21Let's make sure that we focus on having the two greatest countries in the world,
07:26the most prosperous, the richest, the safest.
07:28The problem is not Canada. It's China right now.
07:31And he has to keep an eye on China.
07:34I do want to ask you about the question of fairness and specifically on one claim
07:38because I've heard it from Trump and a number of officials in his administration.
07:42Most recently, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick,
07:44he argues that Canada has a 255% tariff on dairy imports.
07:50The administration has cited that over and over again.
07:53Is that number accurate? Do you think it's fair for American dairy farmers?
08:00Well, what I'd like to do is sit down and discuss these issues with them at the USMCA table.
08:06What I will tell you this,
08:08if we take the 4.3 million barrels a day that we ship down there to keep your economy going off the balance sheet,
08:15the US has a $56 billion surplus, a trade surplus with Canada.
08:21I'm okay with that. That's fine.
08:23Things were going fine. Everything was moving forward.
08:26Market was going up a little bit.
08:28Everyone was optimistic and all of a sudden, out of nowhere,
08:31he wants to attack his closest neighbor and ally.
08:34And his number, I call their number one customer.
08:37You don't attack your number one customer and expect the results that he thought were going to happen.
08:43Protectionism does not work, especially between Canada and the US.
08:48Maybe you should read it. Take a page out of Ronald Reagan's book.
08:53Premier, I do want to ask you about Mark Carney.
08:56He is in line to become the next prime minister.
08:59We saw Justin Trudeau's relationship with Trump evolve and then ultimately degrade.
09:05How do you think Mark Carney is going to approach President Trump?
09:10Well, Mr. Carney is a very, very bright individual.
09:15And it's up to Mr. Carney to build that relationship with President Trump.
09:20They're both bright people. Let's make no mistake about it.
09:24Agree or disagree with President Trump, he understands finances.
09:28So does Mark Carney and so do I.
09:31We're business people and if we sit down around the table,
09:35we can resolve the problem and make sure that both countries prosper.
09:40Like the likes of which this country's never seen or the likes of which the US has never seen if we work together.
09:46Premier Doug Ford, we appreciate you joining us and sharing your point of view.
09:50Thank you so much and God bless America and God bless Canada. Thank you so much.
09:54Best friends forever.
09:57The Americans want our resources, our water, our land, our country.
10:05Think about it.
10:07If they succeeded, they would destroy our way of life.
10:13We didn't ask for this fight. We didn't ask for this fight.
10:16The Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves.
10:21So the Americans, they should make no mistake, in trade as in hockey, Canada will win.
10:30That was Mark Carney, the soon to be Canadian Prime Minister.
10:34And what you just saw and listened to is the latest example of how a once unbreakable bond between the US and Canada has fractured
10:43as President Trump advances his trade war against both Canada and Mexico.
10:48Tariffs on Canada are expected to go into effect on April 2nd.
10:52My panel is back now.
10:54Nia, you know, Canada has it in them.
10:59Let's see how he takes it.
11:01Yeah.
11:02As he takes over.
11:03I think that's right.
11:04I mean, you saw over the last many weeks Donald Trump talking about Canada as the 51st state.
11:11We're talking about Trudeau as Governor Trudeau.
11:15That's become sort of his moniker.
11:17And now this is a new person.
11:20What's been interesting is that Trump has brought Trudeau's party back to life, right?
11:25There was this really sort of resurgent interest in a more conservative party.
11:32And now you have in this person somebody who's really benefiting from this fight with Donald Trump.
11:37Who knew that America would want to be at war with the Canadians?
11:42But apparently it's based on a South Park movie.
11:45Okay, so bring us up to speed on that.
11:48And if the South Park guys are listening, please come on any time and talk about it.
11:53That was the premise of that movie.
11:55Going to war with Canada.
11:56And that's essentially, you know, what's interesting is the rhetoric also from the new incoming Canadian prime minister.
12:02Much different than what we're seeing from, you know, our Mexican partners.
12:06Claudia Sheinbaum, the way she has approached Donald Trump.
12:09Which is a little bit, you know, obviously what we've seen other leaders do.
12:12Reach, try to softer rhetoric, if you will.
12:16This is, we're going right at him.
12:18But he is absolutely right.
12:20The domestic politics in Canada are absolutely fascinating.
12:23It has led to this nationalistic fervor within Canada that has boosted the Trudeau's party.
12:31And potentially could ultimately undercut what Donald Trump wants to achieve here.
12:35But if he's talking tough, the new incoming leader on Donald Trump, I doubt Donald Trump is going to back off.
12:41He wants people to talk nicely to him for him to back off.
12:44But the rhetoric will only be ratcheted up.
12:47Inside Canadian politics.
12:48Yes.
12:49Let's look a little bit at the U.S.-Canada alliance, the economic alliance.
12:54And the bilateral trade is about $2.5 billion in goods and services a day.
13:01400,000 people cross between countries every day.
13:04The U.S. has maintained the official presence and official presence in Canada since 1833.
13:11And I didn't actually realize this, that they share the world's longest undefended border.
13:18Yeah.
13:19And it's the bottom line there is that there is a lot of opportunity for Canada to channel this nationalistic fervor into making Americans feel real political pain.
13:28I mean, there's no corresponding anti-Canada faction in the U.S. that also wants to get the bit in their teeth and really go sock it to those guys.
13:37By and large, U.S. consumers just want to see lower prices, a strong economy.
13:41And now we are kind of creating with our own political moves this new guerrilla faction that's just determined to stop that from happening for our people in order to try to shake loose some kind of change at the top level.
13:54The other weird thing about it is just the fact that, like you say, Canada and Mexico are pursuing such different strategies.
14:03And you can see Trump react to those in real time, right, where he is sort of showering praise on Mexican President Claudio Scheinbaum, meanwhile getting angrier and angrier at Canadian leadership, while supposedly the pretext for all these things is drugs coming over the borders and things like that.
14:20So, as you say, it's definitely a risky strategy if the goal is to get Trump to back off.
14:25So, on that note, now it's time for our truth sandwich portion of the lunch hour, if you will.
14:34And we're going to start by referring to what Nia was talking about earlier, and that is the whole question of fentanyl and whether or not that is one of the really big problems coming from Canada.
14:46It is a very big problem in the U.S., but not from Canada.
14:51Let's, though, listen to what some of the Republicans, including in the president's administration, are claiming.
14:59We launched a drug war, not a trade war, and it was part of a negotiation to get Canada and Mexico to stop shipping fentanyl across our borders.
15:07You're saying this really is about fentanyl?
15:09It really is about fentanyl. It really is. And I think the president obviously wants a strong economy, obviously wants better trade deals as well. But this is about fentanyl.
15:19Now, again, it is a problem in the United States. It is a problem when it comes to the southern border of the United States, where it's coming in much more from Mexico.
15:29But when it comes to Canada, check this out. So, the total pounds seized of fentanyl, almost 22,000 pounds.
15:39The northern border, 43 pounds. So, it's less than 1% of the very dangerous and scary fentanyl problem.
15:47And that's the reality.
15:49Yeah, and the thing is, you have seen Canada make some moves around this. Again, they're barely part of the problem. It is a big problem.
15:55Mexico is a really big part of the problem. And they, too, Claudia Schaumbach, even before Trump was in office, wanted to go aggressively at some of these drug cartels.
16:04She's doing that. You saw them cooperate in trying to have some of these drug warlords prosecuted.
16:11So, there is something happening with this. The question, I think, for Trump is, will it be enough, or are there just going to be sort of shifting explanations for why these tariffs are happening or aren't happening?
16:21I mean, they could say it's a drug war, not a trade war all they want, but it is a trade war.
16:25Yeah, it is.
16:26And people will feel it. And, you know, I'll be interested in, from my perch, watching how some of those members from northern states in Maine,
16:33Senator Susan Collins is very concerned about the impacts on tariffs impacting the Maine economy.
16:38Wisconsin House members are concerned about the impact on the agriculture.
16:42Even Ron Johnson.
16:43Ron Johnson is concerned. Chuck Grassley from the Iowa members and how it will impact their farmers.
16:49So, this is, yes, they could say drug war. That could be their argument to try to ease concerns.
16:54But people start feeling it, and that's going to change the dynamics.
16:57And it's important to note, too, that one of the reasons that Canada is so upset and aggrieved over this whole thing is that even though they were a small part of the problem last year,
17:05they had already also taken significant steps to try to show Donald Trump they were doing more to police the small bit of fentanyl that was coming over their border.
17:14I mean, CBP data for January had a fraction of a single pound of fentanyl seized.
17:19I think I saw the size of a AAA battery was the amount of fentanyl that was seized at that border in January.
17:25And then on the back of that, Trump ratchets up the trade war.
17:27So, they're like, what do you want us to do? What's the standard you want us to meet?
17:30Well, Canada's Liberal Party has picked Mark Carney to be the party leader and Canada's next prime minister.
17:36Carney, a former central banker, got the backing of 85% of his party.
17:40And he says in government, he'll keep the interests of Canadians front and center.
17:47I pledge to you and to all Canadians that I will follow their example.
17:56I will work day and night with one purpose, which is to build a stronger Canada for everyone.
18:07Carney is expected to be sworn in in the coming days.
18:10His most urgent task will be managing Canada's increasingly fraught relationship with the Trump White House.
18:15On Sunday, the outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had this warning about relations with the United States.
18:21As Canadians face from our neighbor an existential challenge, an economic crisis,
18:29Canadians are showing exactly what we are made of.
18:37That comment said in reference to the U.S. President's tariff threats and his calls to make Canada the 51st state of the United States.
18:45Martina Steves-Grednef, Canada's Bureau Chief at The New York Times, joins us live now from Ottawa.
18:50Martina, thank you so much for being with us. Let's talk about Mark Carney.
18:54I mean, this is a very, very accomplished individual.
18:57We're talking Harvard educated, Oxford educated, former governor of the Bank of Canada,
19:02former governor of the Bank of England, the only non-British person to have that role, by the way.
19:06He led Canada and steered Canada through the 2008 financial crisis as well.
19:12So clearly, when it comes to having economic chops, I mean, he is the man.
19:17But given what's happening with the United States right now, you really need somebody who is a talented politician.
19:24You think about how the Mexican president, Jordi Ashombom, has handled Donald Trump.
19:28I mean, it's been a mix of sort of being strong and firm and standing her on ground,
19:33while at the same time allowing for a diplomatic off-ramp.
19:37That seems to be the language Donald Trump understands.
19:41How will Mark Carney, I mean, obviously, he understands how to deal with this economically in terms of retaliatory tariffs.
19:49Does he have what it takes at this point, given that he has no experience in terms of elected office?
19:54Does he have what it takes to handle this diplomatically and politically?
19:59I think it's really the most important question.
20:02And, you know, as central bank governor, Mark Carney has held public office, as you mentioned,
20:08during major meltdowns, also during Brexit, when he was Bank of England governor.
20:14Those are actually political jobs.
20:17They're just not overtly political in the elected sense that we're used to.
20:20And the reality is, even though he's been in the public eye for so many years, really throughout his career,
20:25we don't know that much about him.
20:26What we do know is that he's been in the room when very difficult conversations have been held in those previous roles.
20:33His challenge really right now is not just that he needs to reboot the relationship with Donald Trump.
20:39We know that Donald Trump did not get along with Justin Trudeau,
20:41and perhaps that influenced part of the predicament the relationship is in right now.
20:46But he's also going to have to call a federal election very soon.
20:50That means he's going to have to lean into that aggressive anti-Trump, anti-U.S. rhetoric.
20:55That's what Canada wants right now.
20:57That's what voters are looking for.
20:59But that may not play very well when he is in the room or he's on the phone with President Trump.
21:04Exactly.
21:05And he is promising to go toe-to-toe.
21:07He said that he would be prepared for a dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariff.
21:12Also said he's prepared to the U.S.-Canadian exports to be tariffed as well.
21:17And Canada is the largest supplier of energy to the United States, we should note.
21:22It's interesting, the Donald Trump effect, because as accomplished as Mark Carney is,
21:28I don't know how familiar he was to every Canadian prior to the last few months.
21:33And now here you have a Liberal Party that's neck and neck with the Conservative Party.
21:38And in terms of playing to his advantage, when do you expect to see a general election called?
21:45It has to be called by October.
21:47But given how close these two parties are now in polling, do you think it will happen much sooner?
21:54It has to happen sooner, in fact.
21:57Mark Carney does not hold a seat in Parliament.
22:00He will be sworn in as prime minister, but he needs to call a federal election as soon as possible.
22:06His party, the Liberals, do not command a majority in the House of Commons here in Parliament.
22:12That means that what we understand from his team, what he said to people already,
22:17our reporting shows that he will be calling a federal election.
22:20So my bets, I'm not a betting woman, is that we will have an election in the course of May.
22:26And that will mean that we are entering a very intense campaigning period.
22:31He's going to have to carry on with that energy he's built up over the last two months
22:35trying to secure his party's vote.
22:37But the new audience will not be the party faithful who rallied around him
22:41in such a dramatic way last night here in Ottawa.
22:44It will be the entire population who are fatigued after 10 years of Trudeau,
22:48are terrified and angry with the Trump threat.
22:51And so they'll be looking to him for real answers, and there'll be more scrutiny on him.
22:56How seriously are Canadians taking Donald Trump's threat to make Canada the 51st state?
23:04Based on what I'm seeing in terms of comments from Justin Trudeau and Mark Carney,
23:10they are taking it extremely seriously.
23:12Donald Trump went so far as referring to Justin Trudeau as governor many, many times.
23:16Take us through that.
23:18Sure.
23:20I should say they're taking it deadly seriously, and they have some reason for that.
23:26Last week we had an exclusive report in The New York Times, my sources,
23:30for individuals directly familiar with communications between the president and Prime Minister Trudeau,
23:36who said that in an early February phone call between the two men,
23:40President Trump, while raising trade concerns and irritants in their relationship that we know he's upset about,
23:47also raised the 1908 border treaty between the two countries and called that into question.
23:52He also raised questions about how the two countries manage their shared water resources.
23:58These are pretty existential things for Canadians.
24:02They're taking it very seriously.
24:04The government is taking it seriously.
24:06The opposition Conservative Party is taking it seriously, which I think speaks to just the gravity of the moment.
24:12It's not a joke, and it goes well beyond the trolling online.
24:16Right.
24:17Matinah Stavis-Gardiner, thank you so much.
24:19We appreciate it.