By Ben Meiselas
Donald Trump’s unraveling on Friday morning marked yet another low point in his erratic foreign policy, this time targeting one of America’s closest allies: Canada. Yes, again.
Following an unhinged late-night post announcing that he was terminating all trade negotiations with Canada, Trump spent the early hours rage-posting on Truth Social, falsely claiming that the Canadian province of Ontario had created a “fake” advertisement featuring former President Ronald Reagan speaking against tariffs.
To be clear, the video is entirely real. The ad used authentic footage and audio from a 1987 radio address in which Reagan warned against the dangers of protectionism, saying that tariffs “greatly deepened the Depression and prevented economic recovery.” In that address, Reagan explained that “the way to prosperity for all nations is rejecting protectionist legislation and promoting fair and free competition.”
Trump’s insistence that Reagan “loved tariffs” is a blatant fabrication, one that’s easily disproven by decades of Reagan’s public statements and policy record. But that hasn’t stopped Trump from turning the incident into yet another international crisis.
After his tantrum, Canadian leaders, from Prime Minister Mark Carney to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, refused to be drawn into Trump’s theatrics. “We can only control what we can control here in Canada,” Carney said calmly when asked about Trump’s posts. “If the U.S. wants to talk about certain sectors where there’s overlap, we’re happy to have those conversations. But I don’t listen to all of that noise.” Ford took a similar approach, reposting the full Reagan speech with the caption, “Listen for yourself.”
Canada responded with composure and focus. Trump, meanwhile, is spiraling, using his social media megaphone to accuse Canada of “fraudulently” influencing the U.S. Supreme Court and claiming without evidence that “Canada cheated and got caught.”
Trump’s claim that the Reagan Foundation “exposed this fraud” is also misleading. The foundation, now run by a former Trump administration official and Fox News alumnus, issued a statement echoing Trump’s language, calling the ad “misrepresentative.” Yet the Reagan Library’s own YouTube posting of the 1987 address lists its use restrictions as “unrestricted.” The video is public domain. The foundation’s saber-rattling is political theater, not legal fact. And it’s an affront to the very legacy they are supposed to protect.
It’s also a revealing glimpse into the extent to which once-respected conservative institutions have been captured by Trump loyalists. The Reagan Foundation’s recent social media content includes promoting conversations with Eric Trump and Elon Musk under the guise of “saving free speech.” That’s not Reagan’s legacy. It’s Trump’s cult of grievance and misinformation.
Meanwhile, Trump’s own economic adviser, Kevin Hassett, struggled to defend his boss’s outburst when pressed on television. “Negotiations with the Canadians have not been very collegial,” Hassett said weakly. Translation: Trump is angry that Canada won’t bend the knee. I’ve been doing this long enough where I unfortunately know how to understand MAGA.
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Back to my report.
At the heart of this tantrum is a simple truth. Donald Trump doesn’t understand how trade, diplomacy, or leadership work. Reagan, for all his flaws, at least grasped that blanket tariffs and trade wars hurt American workers. Trump’s self-serving nationalism, dressed up as patriotism, has done the opposite.
When Trump declared, in all caps, that “THE UNITED STATES IS WEALTHY, POWERFUL, AND NATIONALLY SECURE AGAIN, ALL BECAUSE OF TARIFFS,” the reality couldn’t be further from the truth. Under his policies, ordinary Americans are struggling with soaring prices and uncertainty, while the billionaire class he caters to is thriving.
Canada’s leaders are moving ahead, with or without Trump. PM Carney is heading to China to forge new trade alliances, leaving the United States in the dust. He’s leading with steady governance over reactionary rage. To be honest, this response will probably get under Trump’s skin the most — far more than if he took a confrontational approach.
