this post was submitted on 04 Mar 2025
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The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on unjustified U.S. tariffs against Canada:

“Today, after a 30-day pause, the United States administration has decided to proceed with imposing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian exports and 10 per cent tariffs on Canadian energy. Let me be unequivocally clear – there is no justification for these actions.

“While less than 1 per cent 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. 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. 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. Because of this work – in partnership with the United States – fentanyl seizures from Canada have dropped 97 per cent between December 2024 and January 2025 to a near-zero low of 0.03 pounds seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

“Canada will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered. Should American tariffs come into effect tonight, Canada will, effective 12:01 a.m. EST tomorrow, respond with 25 per cent tariffs against $155 billion of American goods – starting with tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods immediately, and tariffs on the remaining $125 billion on American products in 21 days’ time. Our tariffs will remain in place until the U.S. trade action is withdrawn, and should U.S. tariffs not cease, we are in active and ongoing discussions with provinces and territories to pursue several non-tariff measures. 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.

“Because of the tariffs imposed by the U.S., Americans will pay more for groceries, gas, and cars, and potentially lose thousands of jobs. Tariffs will disrupt an incredibly successful trading relationship. They will violate the very trade agreement that was negotiated by President Trump in his last term.”

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[–] TropicalDingdong@lemmy.world 82 points 1 month ago

Please, all sane nations of the world, unite against the US.

We weren't able to stem the tide.

[–] JohnnyCanuck@lemmy.ca 68 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Part of the response should be to remove everything put in place to appease Trump. Pull back the new border plan, take away the fentanyl czar, remove the terrorist designation from cartels (and apologize to Mexico), etc.

And I also like Doctorow's idea of removing all the copyright protection shit we put in place to appease the U.S. in the past and anything else we can think of like that.

[–] imvii@lemmy.ca 8 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Part of the response should be to remove everything put in place to appease Trump.

Some of it, yes. But I think improved security is needed at the border now more than ever.

[–] JohnnyCanuck@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The point was to secure stuff going south. Who cares now?

[–] imvii@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I'm more interested in securing it for who is moving from US to Canada.

[–] JohnnyCanuck@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

But what was put in place recently won't do anything for that.

Now that I think about it, we should drastically reduce security going south (even beyond removing what was set up in the last month) to enable smuggling to get around the tariffs.

[–] cheerytext1981@lemmy.ca 65 points 1 month ago (3 children)

I’m glad to see Trudeau leaving the office, but he’s doing a hell of a send off.

[–] ivanafterall@lemmy.world 34 points 1 month ago (8 children)

As an American, I always assumed hate against him was like Canadian Fox News stuff. What did he (not?) do to turn people against him?

[–] cheerytext1981@lemmy.ca 42 points 1 month ago (1 children)

He’s been in office for nearly a decade. Canadians are tired of him. Realistically, he hasn’t done anything worse than any other politician — you make promises, some you deliver on, some you don’t. Eventually, the “don’t”s pile up, and folks get tired

[–] idunnololz@lemmy.world 35 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Yeah i don't really mind him. The one thing I am salty about is still the election reforms that he promised the first time he won. He was in a position to do something big but didnt. Such a missed opportunity.

[–] AlolanVulpix@lemmy.ca 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

Come join us over at !fairvote@lemmy.ca, we are trying to control of government back to the people!

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[–] healthetank@lemmy.ca 31 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I was hopeful when he got elected, and he fulfilled some promises, but he failed to move forward with proportional representation election overhaul, IMO a major flaw that could've been what he was known for in the future. He's also had scandals like any other PM. The Me to We charity scandal (where a charity was awarded a large govt contract. The charity had previously paid Trudeau and family to appear at its events) was ultimately cleared by the ethics commissioner. His SNC lavalin scandal where he attempted to directly influence our justice minister to intervene on an ongoing criminal case, then removed her from her position when she refused. SNC lavalin was also found to have made illegal party donations, which the liberals didn't reveal when the initially found them.

He was also the first PM in history to have been found to break the federal ethics rules by accepting a private vacation for his family from Aga Khan, breaking the conflict of interest rules.

He's always paraded himself as very progressive, but images circulated of him wearing brown face when he was slightly younger (but definitely old enough to know better).

Finally, a ton of people who were anti-mask were fed rhetoric that it was Trudeau's fault for the masking requirements, despite the fact that it was almost entirely Provincial restrictions. They also tried to cry overreach when Ford failed to remove the Ottawa encampment, and Trudeau enacted the emergency act to clear them, though again, reviews after the fact cleared him and agreed it was an acceptable use of the powers.

Overall, an enormous step up from Harper says of no transparency, but he didn't quite live up to what many had hoped, and they're angry at the current situation, and blaming him is an easy scapegoat.

[–] AlolanVulpix@lemmy.ca 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

failed to move forward with proportional representation

Liberals (and Conservatives) actually don't want PR. In 2015, the LPC only promised that 2015 would be the last election under FPTP, not that they would implement PR.

Read more: Fact Checking Justin Trudeau on Electoral Reform

Come join us over at !fairvote@lemmy.ca, we are trying to control of government back to the people!

[–] Adderbox76@lemmy.ca 18 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I always assumed hate against him was like Canadian Fox News stuff.

It mostly is, yes. The Conservative Party leader is very much a Maple Maga fanboy, and (like all Conservatives before him) he appeals to the Prairie provinces; the oil workers, farmers, truckers, etc... Your basic Fox news crowd. His father was also very disliked by the same crowd, and so his last name itself triggers them like you wouldn't believe. (Think "Canadian Clintons")

But a large part of it (I initially thought), was also typical Canadian political trends. We tend to put the Liberals in power and then keep re-electing them long enough for them to inevitably become the villain (usually about a decade), and then over-correct and do the same thing with the Conservatives. Like clockwork, and it was coming up to about that time.

Now, though, with Trudeau stepping down, and the promise of a new leader...combined with the general hatred of Pierre Poppinfresh, the Liberals fortunes have turned around 180 degrees. So it's going to be an interesting federal election rather than the landslide that the Maple Maga fuckwits were expecting.

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[–] ProgrammingSocks@pawb.social 18 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I dislike him because he's a neoliberal and especially his broken promise to get rid of FPTP voting.

[–] AlolanVulpix@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 month ago

get rid of FPTP voting

Come join us over at !fairvote@lemmy.ca, we are trying to control of government back to the people!

[–] yarn@lemmy.ca 14 points 1 month ago

Honestly, people are just tired of him because he's been in office so long and has failed to deliver on some old promises.

[–] rabber@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

He only does something when backed into a corner. Otherwise he plays stupid political games and dresses up in costumes etc. I like crisis trudeau but not chilling trudeau.

Also he promised to change FPTP as someone else pointed out which is why I voted for him.

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[–] Revan343@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

He's a milquetoast centrist, so other centrists like him, idiotic right-wingers rave about him being a communist, and left-wingers wish it were true

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[–] Tencho@lemmy.world 20 points 1 month ago (5 children)

Agreed. I dont know if i remember a single positive thing he did before he announced his plan to resign from office. He's been doing gods work lately.

[–] assaultpotato@sh.itjust.works 61 points 1 month ago (2 children)

$10 a day child care was pretty good. I'm a fan of the dental coverage too. The carbon tax actually reduced our emissions for the first time and was overall a net financial benefit for most Canadians.

He wasn't amazing but he was not nearly the washout people act like he is.

[–] Thrillhouse@lemmy.world 19 points 1 month ago

And the dissatisfaction was boosted by Russian propaganda.

It’s not a coincidence that the convoy terrorists in Ottawa coincided with the invasion of Ukraine.

[–] lost_faith@lemmy.ca 12 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Dental came from the NDP pressuring them

[–] assaultpotato@sh.itjust.works 9 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Sure, but it was still part of "what he did" with a coalition government. Rare Jagmeet W I'll give you that.

[–] lost_faith@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Would he have tho, if not for the NDP?

[–] assaultpotato@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] lost_faith@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Canada Dental Plan

Applications now open for:

  • Seniors aged 65 and over
  • Children under the age of 18
  • Adults with a valid federal Disability Tax Credit certificate for 2023

Looks like it

[–] assaultpotato@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Thanks to the Liberal/NDP coalition government for improving some Canadians' access to dental care!

[–] Soleos@lemmy.world 40 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Federal pandemic response was a mixed bag, but far from the shitshow of governing that some other countries experienced. Trudeau showed strong leadership through that period in my books.

[–] MelodiousFunk@slrpnk.net 8 points 1 month ago

the shitshow of governing that some other countries experienced.

waves from the US

And now we get more. I hate this timeline.

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[–] swag_money@lemmy.world 18 points 1 month ago

fuckin weed, dude

[–] cyberpunk007@lemmy.ca 18 points 1 month ago

I know one. Legalized weed.

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[–] NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io 16 points 1 month ago

Trudeau teaching the whole world how to deal with strongmen.

[–] AlolanVulpix@lemmy.ca 39 points 1 month ago (3 children)
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[–] ZC3rr0r@lemmy.ca 18 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Honest question: Does anyone know if those tariffs apply retroactively? Say you purchased something a couple weeks ago, but it hasn't crossed the border yet due to shipping delays, would it get taxed under the old rules? Or does it incur the tariff?

[–] breakfastmtn@lemmy.ca 18 points 1 month ago

The tariffs shouldn't apply:

Canada’s countermeasures do not apply to U.S. goods that are in transit to Canada on the day on which they come into force.

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2025/02/list-of-products-from-the-united-states-subject-to-25-per-cent-tariffs-effective-february-4-2025.html

[–] phoenixz@lemmy.ca 15 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Even when these tarrifs are gone, Canada, Europe and Mexico should continue to move away from the US economy as the US has shown time and again that it's current political system is so horrendously corrupt that it can't be trusted as a partner.

Do NOT buy US built weapons anymore either as there is an actual non zero chance you'll have to use these weapons against the US. Especially the more advanced weapons like the F35, which is already a shit bucket on its own, pose a huge risk as you can rest assured knowing that the US has a kill switch for these when needed.

Until the US completely rebuilds it political system from the ground up, new constitution and all, it should be ignored and left out of the sandbox where the rest of the world is pkaying

[–] Beetschnapps@lemmy.world 3 points 1 month ago

The kill switch is maintenance. Parts and supply are the constraints. In a way it should engender cooperation and partnership, but if you let republicans take control partnership becomes abusive

[–] jballs@sh.itjust.works 12 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Not trying to victim blame here, but Canada's mistake was thinking these tariffs had anything to do with fentanyl or border security. These tariffs are literally just an ego thing for Trump. Outside of building a giant golden Trump monument and gifting it to the US like the Statue of Liberty, I don't think there's much they could have done.

Either that or take a note from Putin and find some kompromat.

[–] IronKrill@lemmy.ca 21 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I wouldn't call it a mistake, personally. Even knowing the farce that it is, acting nice gave us an extra 30 days to talk deals with other leaders plus gives us the moral highground to say we tried before beginning a counter with full resolve. Any concessions we gave were small.

[–] xmunk@sh.itjust.works 17 points 1 month ago

We obviously don't think the US is genuine in their justification and the statement is designed to highlight how patently ridiculous it is.

The fentanyl/border security tariff allowance is just a thin justification to avoid outright violating the terms of the treaty Trump previously negotiated.

[–] humanspiral@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 month ago (9 children)

Could suspend all/most tariffs from China while "illegitmate/unjustified" extortion is in place. That could help retailers with US crossborder shopping into Canada, and encourage US to drop tariffs quickly before alternate supply chains/brands take hold in Canada.

It doesn't make sense for Auto industry to start new US investments if tariffs go away in 2 or 4 years. But auto sector commitment to Canada is needed to not shift our auto consumption to better value imports. "National security" restrictions on FDI from China in our resource sector have to be eliminated today. Negotiate processing plants for resources in Canada, to ship more finished products elsewhere, but we need to stop having only US control our economy/security.

US behaviour is unacceptable and based on lies. There is no negotiation that will work with such terrorists. Need to start permanent structural economic/security shifts now, and force US to beg forgiveness for their mistake.

[–] HikingVet@lemmy.ca 15 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

Why do you have such a hard on to trade with china? The country who has a an opaque court to go after trade partners in Canada?

You never seem to promote Africa other asian countries, europe (outside of russia) unless prompted.

Edit: I keep forgetting South and Central America, don't mean to not include them. Unlike sprial.

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[–] Professorozone@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I really wish they would stop phrasing it as if the tariffs are against countries. They are against the people of the country imposing the tariffs, in this case the US. And it just continues the false perception that China, Canada, etc are paying. I'm really disappointed that Canada is imposing tariffs on its people in retaliation. A better response would have been to launch a massive publicity campaign to encourage Canadians to boycott American products; maybe post en masse what products are from which countries. That seemed to be gaining traction in Canada without the campaign.

Yes I do know that tariffs CAN negatively impact the county the tariff is imposed on, but face it, you can impose a 100% tariff on China and they can still undersell our products at half the cost and if they can't, the Chinese government can just subsidize that product.

[–] freeman@sh.itjust.works 11 points 1 month ago (9 children)

Politically an effort to be strong-armed must be answered in terms that the aggressor will perceive as strong. A call for a voluntary boycott will not cut it. It will also not be as effective at reducing reliance on US which Canada probably actually needs.

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