Doug Ford isn't going to take President Donald Trump's promised 25% tariffs on Canadian goods on the chin.
The top official in Ontario told Politico he's ready to hit back “twice as hard” if Trump starts a trade war with the country's largest trading partner. The right-wing populist premier explained that he was ready to pull his own economic levers against American consumers in an interview published on Saturday.
“I’m a street fighter in politics,” Ford told Politico. “If someone throws a punch at me, I’m going to hit him back twice as hard.”
Ford, who has taken to wearing a MAGA-esque, deep-blue “Canada is not for sale” hat in recent weeks, called for early elections in the province on Friday. Ford is seeking a strengthened majority to “fight with Donald Trump to make sure we stop the tariffs.”
In a Canadian political atmosphere with few clear leaders following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation announcement, the leader of the center-right Ontario Progressive Conservative Party has made headline-grabbing moves to counter Trump’s economic aggression.
In December, Ford warned he could cut off electricity exports to Michigan, Minnesota and New York as a “last resort” to a bout of high tariffs. He’s also suggested cutting off American liquor imports in his province.
But Ford, a staunch conservative who endorsed Trump’s first stint in the White House, says he would much rather play ball. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Monday, Ford shared that more synergy between the North American nations was his preferred way forward.
“Canada and the U.S. must remain united and focused on the threats that risk undermining our success. A costly trade and tariff war between the U.S. and Canada would benefit only China,” the premier wrote.
Still, he's making a bet that Trump will respond better to cut-throat deals-manship than weak-kneed obeying in advance. He agreed that his grumbling had quite a bit in common with pro wrestling promos, a world that Trump knows well.
Speaking to Politico, Ford made it clear that his pledged retaliation is “the last thing I want to do.”
“I want to work with President Trump,” he said. “There’s no one that loves the U.S. up here in Canada more than I do.”
