‘The Bottom Line’ panelists Lee Carter and Liz Peek give their take on President Donald Trump confirming the 25% tariffs.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced 25% tariffs on American goods in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs that are going into effect on Canadian imports at midnight on Tuesday.
The retaliatory tariffs Canada is imposing on $155 billion of U.S. goods take effect Tuesday at 12:01 a.m.
Trump signed an executive order authorizing an additional 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, and an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports. Energy imported from Canada, including oil, natural gas and electricity, would be taxed at an additional 10%.
China has since imposed tariffs on U.S. goods and Mexico has vowed retaliatory tariffs.
TRUMP TARIFFS ON MEXICO, CANADA, CHINA ARE HOURS AWAY FROM HITTING AT MIDNIGHT
U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attend the NATO summit at the Grove Hotel on December 4, 2019, in Watford, England. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The Trump administration agreed last month to a 30-day delay in imposing the 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods. Officials from both countries have carried out negotiations with the Trump administration in recent weeks, but there has been no agreement to reduce the tariffs.
Trudeau said Monday “there is no justification for these actions,” pointing to the White House’s argument that the flow of drugs, including fentanyl, into the U.S. warranted the tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, though the amount of fentanyl coming across the northern border is very low.
“While less than 1% of the fentanyl intercepted at the U.S. border comes from Canada, we have worked relentlessly to address this scourge that affects Canadians and Americans alike,” Trudeau said in a statement. “We implemented a $1.3 billion border plan with new choppers, boots on the ground, more co-ordination, and increased resources to stop the flow of fentanyl.”
WHAT’S HAPPENING WITH TRUMP’S TARIFFS ON CHINA, CANADA AND MEXICO?
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister, speaks at the National Caucus holiday party in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024. (Kamara Morozuk/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“We appointed a Fentanyl Czar, listed transnational criminal cartels as terrorist organizations, launched the Joint Operational Intelligence Cell, and are establishing a Canada-U.S. Joint Strike Force on organized crime,” he continued. “Because of this work – in partnership with the United States – fentanyl seizures from Canada have dropped 97% between December 2024 and January 2025 to a near-zero low of 0.03 pounds seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.”
Trudeau said Canada “will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered” and announced that tariffs on American goods would go into effect at 12:01 a.m. if the Trump tariffs go into effect at midnight as promised.
Canada said it will start with tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods, followed by tariffs on $125 billion of American products in 21 days.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office of the White House on February 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)
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“Our tariffs will remain in place until the U.S. trade action is withdrawn, and should U.S. tariffs not cease, we are in active and ongoing discussions with provinces and territories to pursue several non-tariff measures,” the prime minister said. “While we urge the U.S. administration to reconsider their tariffs, Canada remains firm in standing up for our economy, our jobs, our workers, and for a fair deal.”
Trudeau said Americans will pay more for groceries, gas and cars, and could lose thousands of jobs as a result of Trump’s tariffs.
“Tariffs will disrupt an incredibly successful trading relationship,” he said. “They will violate the very trade agreement that was negotiated by President Trump in his last term.”
