Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow is accusing U.S. President Donald Trump of waging a “senseless brutal attack” on Canada and is urging him to “take a page” from the late Dolly Parton. Chow made the comment during an interview with CBS Mornings on Wednesday before repeating it during a subsequent interview with CNN. Chow’s U.S. media appearances come in the wake of a similar media blitz by Ontario Premier Doug Ford one day prior in which he conceded that the war of words between him and Trump got “a little personal” after he called the U.S. president a “loser” and the “king of bankruptcies” while speaking with reporters in Hamilton. “I think Mr. Trump should take a page from Dolly Parton,” Chow said of the late singer, who died on Tuesday at age 80. “She is loving, she is generous, she is joyous. That is the way to treat your best neighbour and your friend. Not bullying. That is not who we are.” Chow told CBS News that she believes Trump has “lost his way” as he pursues a trade war that will only result in rising prices on both sides of the border. She then expressed dismay at why the U.S. president continues to escalate the trade war and urged Americans to call their elected representatives to speak out. “For generations, our close relationships have produced a lot of prosperity on both sides of the border, so I don’t really understand why President Trump is attacking us because the price of everything is going to go up,” she said. “We are supposed to love our neighbour. My brother, my cousins are all Americans. We are so tied economically and you get the best deal on our oil, lumber and auto parts, so to do this kind of senseless brutal attack … why? There is absolutely no reason.” In the appearance on CNN, Chow was pressed on whether she would support placing a surtax on electricity exports to the U.S. amid the trade war and responded that Ford should do “whatever it takes.” “We cannot continue this way because our economy is quite integrated,” she said.
