The U.S.-Canada trade war is deepening after talks collapsed without a deal on Friday. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney accused the Trump administration of issuing demands that would compromise Canada’s sovereignty and undermine key industries. On Saturday, the United States slapped 50% tariffs on around $20 billion worth of imports from Canada, and Carney announced retaliatory tariffs on $20 billion of U.S. products set to go into effect on September 8.
“Canadians are sick of this,” says Avi Lewis, leader of Canada’s progressive New Democratic Party. He says that while the Liberal government has correctly identified voters’ anger, its policies still favor international investors and the fossil fuel industry rather than truly “Trump-proofing” the economy.
We also speak with trade expert Lori Wallach, who says the U.S.-Canada trade war is pitting Trump’s vision of “oligarchic trade grift” against a dead neoliberal consensus represented by Carney. The two countries have balanced trade, and Wallach says the United States is being far more lenient with China despite Beijing’s much more serious threat to the U.S. and wider global economy through its “beggar-thy-neighbor” policies.
This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.
Democracy Now! | Radio Free (2026-08-24T12:12:58+00:00) “Most Stupid Trade Fight in History”: U.S. & Canadian Workers Stand to Lose in Trump’s New Tariff War. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2026/08/24/most-stupid-trade-fight-in-history-u-s-canadian-workers-stand-to-lose-in-trumps-new-tariff-war/
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