President Donald Trump shut down trade talks with Canada after seeing a misleading ad on Canadian television that featured the late President Ronald Reagan slamming tariffs.
Trump said the ad creators also did not get permission from the Ronald Reagan Foundation to use the late president’s audio in its anti-U.S. propaganda.
In a blistering Truth Social post late-Thursday, Trump wrote: “The Ronald Reagan Foundation has just announced that Canada has fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs. The ad was for $75,000,000.”
Trump continued: “They only did this to interfere with the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, and other courts. TARIFFS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY, AND ECONOMY, OF THE U.S.A.”
“Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED,” the president concluded.
Donald J. Trump Truth Social Post 10:39 PM EST 10/23/25
The Ronald Reagan Foundation has just announced that Canada has fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs. The ad was for $75,000. They only did this to…
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) October 24, 2025
Per the New York Times, the ad cost $75 million Canadian ($53.5 million U.S.), and it was set to air in the U.S. on Newsmax and Bloomberg this week, with plans to expand to other outlets in the next two weeks.
Trump has used tariffs to pressure America’s trade partners to negotiate mutually-beneficial deals — and not the historically lopsided transactions we’ve seen that took advantage of U.S. generosity.
Should the Reagan Library sue Canada for using Ronald Reagan’s voice to mislead Americans and Canadians?
For reference, Reagan was a vocal proponent of free trade who viewed broad tariffs as harmful to economic growth, consumers, and global prosperity.
He also warned that tariffs could lead to trade wars and retaliation.
However, Reagan supported using tariffs to enforce fair play and to protect American industries when dealing with foreign nations that used unfair trade practices.
So while it’s true that Reagan was not a blanket supporter of tariffs, he acknowledged their usefulness in instances involving unfair trade.
🚨 BREAKING: Canada caught FRAUDULENTLY twisting Ronald Reagan’s words in a FAKE $75K ad to attack U.S. TARIFFS—aimed at swaying Supreme Court! Reagan Foundation calls it out. Trump calls it out!
DISGRACEFUL move! ALL TRADE TALKS WITH CANADA TERMINATED. America First! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/tkgo4fsI86
— Alec Lace (@AlecLace) October 24, 2025
So with regard to the Canadian TV ad, it is true that Reagan made some of those statements about tariffs, but they were taken out of context to deride Trump and the United States.
Notably, Trump issued his scathing statement after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney issued a threat, saying he plans to double his nation’s exports to other countries — and to exclude the United States — because he’s upset about Trump’s tariffs.
However, when all is said and done, Canada simply does not have the leverage to threaten the United States.
The U.S. is by far Canada’s largest trade partner, accounting for more than 76.9 percent of its exports.
If the U.S. stopped trading with Canada, its economy would crater overnight. Think about that, eh?
As a reminder, more than 85 percent of Canada-U.S. trade is tariff-free, and America’s average tariff on Canadian goods is 5.6 percent — the lowest of any trading partner.
The actual U.S. average tariff rate on Canadian goods is 5.6% its the lowest of all its trading partners, and more than 85% of Canada-U.S. trade is tariff-free.
The economy was already in a recession and Trump had nothing to do with it. But our Government will forward all blame… pic.twitter.com/rAWbuHrpQd— Ryan Gerritsen🇨🇦🇳🇱 (@ryangerritsen) October 15, 2025
Trump should take all this trash-talking with foreign countries in stride.
However, the U.S. should not get complacent and take its superpower status for granted. After all, it wasn’t too long ago that the British Empire crumbled after a legendary, 400-year span.
Now look at the United Kingdom — it’s a sad shell of its former greatness, thanks to runaway, third-world immigration and toxic, “woke” policies that have eroded social cohesion.
By maintaining its uniquely American resilience and identity and not getting dragged into endless foreign wars, the U.S. will hopefully maintain its dominant standing in the world for centuries to come.
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