President Donald Trump has abruptly terminated trade talks with Canada over a deceptive ad that used Ronald Reagan's words to attack Trump's protectionist agenda, the Daily Mail reported.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford released the ad, which selectively quotes a 1987 speech that Reagan gave defending so-called free trade.
"When someone says, 'Let's impose tariffs on foreign imports,' it looks like they're doing the patriotic thing by protecting American products and jobs," the 40th president says. "And sometimes for a short while it works, but only for a short time. But over the long run, such trade barriers hurt every American, worker and consumer."
It is true that Reagan was a staunch critic of tariffs in general, but the ad leaves out the context of his remarks, which related to his imposition of duties on Japanese electronics.
In the speech, Reagan argued that tariffs have limited uses, but in the long term, they "inevitably" lead to market contractions and unemployment.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute has called the Canadian ad misleading and has threatened legal action.
"The ad misrepresents the Presidential Radio Address, and the Government of Ontario did not seek nor receive permission to use and edit the remarks," the group tweeted Thursday.
In a Truth Social post, Trump announced that he is terminating trade negotiations because of Canada's "egregious behavior."
Trump accused Canada of peddling a "fake" ad to influence a pending Supreme Court decision on his tariffs.
"The Ronald Reagan Foundation has just announced that Canada has fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"They only did this to interfere with the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, and other courts. TARIFFS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY, AND ECONOMY, OF THE U.S.A. Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED."
The abrupt cessation of trade talks has blindsided Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has spent months negotiating with Trump and trying to get on his good side.
During a sit-down at the White House this month, Carney praised Trump as a "transformative president" and rattled off some of his achievements.
Trump raised tariffs on Canadian imports to 35% in July, in addition to sector-specific tariffs on things like steel and cars, placing enormous pressure on Canada's export-dependent economy.
