Trump continues meltdown over Canadian anti-tariff ad featuring Reagan: "That's dirty play"
Washington DC - President Donald Trump slammed Canada for playing "dirty" as a row over a political ad that prompted the Republican to scrap trade talks showed no sign of abating.
The Canadian province of Ontario said it would pull the offending anti-tariff ad on Monday so that negotiations could restart, after Trump alleged that the ad misrepresented the views of ex-President Ronald Reagan.
But Trump showed no sign of backing down, saying Ontario should not have let it air during the first two games this weekend of baseball's World Series.
Adding extra spice to the spat is the World Series, which saw the Toronto Blue Jays thrash the LA Dodgers 11-4 in Friday's Game 1.
"Canada got caught cheating on a commercial, can you believe it?" Trump told reporters before heading on a trip to Asia.
"And I heard they were pulling the ad – I didn't know they were putting it on a little bit more. They could have pulled it tonight," he added.
After a reporter said the ad would be pulled on Monday, Trump replied: "That's dirty play. But I can play dirtier than they can."
The 79-year-old announced Thursday that he had "terminated" all negotiations with Canada over what he called the "fake" ad campaign.
Less than 24 hours later, Ontario premier Doug Ford said he was suspending the ads after talking to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney about the spiraling clash with Washington.
"In speaking with Prime Minister Carney, Ontario will pause its US advertising campaign effective Monday so that trade talks can resume," Ford said in a post on X.
Reagan at the center of ad that blew up negotiations
The Canadian ad used quotes from a radio address on trade that Reagan delivered in 1987, in which he warned against ramifications that he said high tariffs on imports could have on the US economy.
It cited Reagan as saying that "high tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars," a quote that matches a transcript of his speech on the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library's website.
The Ronald Reagan foundation wrote on X on Thursday that the Ontario government had used "selective audio and video" and that it was reviewing its legal options.
Trump said on Friday night that it was a "crooked ad", adding that "they know Ronald Reagan loved tariffs."
Trump and Carney are both set to be at a dinner on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in South Korea on Wednesday, but there are no plans for the two to meet.
On Friday, Carney had sought to calm the situation, saying that his country was ready to resume "progress" on trade talks "when the Americans are ready."
Canada has "to focus on what we can control, and realize what we cannot control," he added as he headed to Asia.
Cover photo: REUTERS