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U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to revive his “51st state” rhetoric early Sunday as he made his first comments on the collapse of trade talks between Canada and the United States.
“Canada wants the benefits of being a State, without being one!!!” Trump wrote in a post on his social platform Truth Social. “They have charged our great farmers, for many years, massive amounts of Tariffs. No more!!! President DJT.”
On Friday, Trump expressed confidence a deal would be reached before the deadline for the talks which had been set for Saturday.
Hours later, Prime Minister Mark Carney called back his negotiators from Washington, D.C. and said Canada would match Trump’s 50 per cent tariffs “dollar-for-dollar” in industries such as steel and dairy.
“We cannot accept what they’ve offered, and we will not give what they asked,” Carney said.
In a readout from the prime minister’s office, Carney said the retaliatory tariffs would take effect on Sept. 8, the Tuesday after Labour Day.
The details of what was offered or asked for at the 11th hour by either side has been relatively limited, but on Saturday Carney outlined three issues he said torpedoed the negotiations.
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The prime minister said while there had been progress on an approach to auto tariffs, medium and heavy vehicles like trucks were not included.
Carney said the U.S. was only willing to agree to a trade deal on cars and would not extend it to larger vehicles, which would impact plants like Ford Motor in Oakville.
A source with direct knowledge of the talks told Global News the U.S. could cut steel and aluminum tariffs from 50 to 25 per cent and auto duties from 25 to 15 per cent, with two sources saying softwood lumber was also being discussed.
Carney’s decision to walk away from the table also centred around the U.S. wanting to include terms that would put limits on trade deals Canada could seek with other countries.
The condition may have jeopardized recent deals with Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as talks with India. The prime minister’s office has touted Carney’s record on trade, saying his leadership group has made 20 deals since the Liberal Party formed a government in the spring of 2025.
“We believe in free trade; we’re the partner of choice in many respects for countries around the world, and the Americans wanted to restrict that. They had language that they wanted to restrict. Unacceptable,” Carney said Saturday.
French language rules were the third factor to derail talks, with Carney saying in French there were “threats” from the U.S. in the deal over French language and Quebec culture, though he did not elaborate much further.
The prime minister chaired a meeting of Canada’s premiers on Saturday, with a readout from the PMO saying he outlined next steps to protect Canada’s interests — including the Sept. 8 date for retaliatory tariffs. He also spoke about additional measures to support Canadian workers and businesses impacted, with details to follow in the coming days.
“Prime Minister Carney underscored that Canada is strongest when governments stand together. To this end, he emphasized continued collaboration with provincial and territorial governments, noting that the Team Canada approach has been essential in navigating the challenging times since the start of this trade war,” the readout says.
Most of Canada’s premiers appeared to back Carney’s decision to walk away, with B.C. Premier David Eby saying he was in favour of a tough approach and Ontario Premier Doug Ford advocating for the “dollar-for-dollar, tariff-for-tariff response.”
—with files from Global News’ Isaac Callan
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