The fallout from the collapse of trade talks between Canada and the United States is reverberating on both sides of the border, with U.S. President Donald Trump escalating his rhetoric while facing growing opposition to a broader trade war at home. Trump weighed in on the failed negotiations with Canada for the first time overnight, taking to social media to criticize the Canadian government. “Canada wants the benefits of being a State, without being one!!!,” the president wrote. “They have also charged our great farmers, for many years, massive amounts of Tariffs. No more!!! President DJT” The comments came as the trade dispute received prominent coverage on U.S. television networks Sunday, with ABC News framing the dispute as “Canada vs. the United States” and NBC’s Meet the Press asking how much more Americans can afford as trade talks fall apart. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also took a hard line against Canada. “To think that they’re going to go to war with Donald Trump and actually win that war with he U.S. I think it’s foolish on their part,” he told Fox News Sunday. But the president is facing pushback from some Americans, including former vice-president Mike Pence. “I think the last thing we need right now as our economy is getting back on its feet is a trade war with Canada,” Pence told CNN’s State of The Union, on Sunday. American business groups have also been raising concerns about further escalation, warning that tariffs could increase costs for consumers and urging both countries to return to the negotiating table. CTV News U.S. political commentator Eric Ham said Trump’s support among the business community could be tested by the escalating dispute. “Donald Trump cares about the business class. He cares about those billionaires,” Ham said. “They don’t want this and they’re speaking out.” In Canada, Prime Minister Mark Carney has promised retaliatory measures, including dollar-for-dollar tariffs on U.S. goods. Those measures are set to take effect Sept. 8, creating a potential window for negotiations to resume. Former Liberal MP Ralph Goodale, who sits on the prime minister’s advisory council on Canada-U.S. economic relations, said the pause could give the American side an opportunity to reconsider its approach. “There may be an opportunity in this pause for the American side to regroup and to become a bit more coherent,” Goodale said. Polling conducted before the latest breakdown in talks suggested Carney has political room to continue pushing back against the Trump administration. CTV News political commentator Scott Reid said the dispute could be a prolonged one. “I think we’re in this for a while,” Reid said, adding that a meaningful agreement may require a change in the political calculations south of the border. “I think we’re going to have to see real change on the American side, a weakened political position, a drive and a desire that it’s in their self interest to strike a deal before we get back to the table in any meaningful way,” he added. Carney has yet to release the full list of Canadian goods that would face retaliatory tariffs. Release U.S. trade offer details: Conservatives Meanwhile, federal Conservatives are calling for more transparency from the government. In a letter to Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Conservative shadow minister for Canada-U.S. relations Shuvaloy Majumdar is asking the government to release the full details of the trade offer from the U.S. that Canada rejected. “If there was a draft text of any agreement that both governments have seen, please release it. The U.S. administration has seen it. Your government has seen it. Canadians deserve to see it,” Majumdar wrote. In an interview with CTV News Sunday, Majumdar said his party supports the prime minister’s decision to walk away from the deal, but said to “release the deal, let us see the facts for what they are.” “Canadians are sick and tired of being used as a punching bag by President Trump and want to see the certainty of a good deal for this country a tariff free deal for this country, we want to support the government in accomplishing that,” he said. -With files from the Canadian Press
