Blame Canada: Trump’s New Trade Threat

In the days before the 25th anniversary of 9/11, New York City released over 170,000 documents showing that officials knew the air around Ground Zero was far more toxic than they told the public — and that they acted to limit legal liability rather than warn people. That revelation is one of three major developments covered in this episode of Start Here, alongside the escalation of the US-Canada trade war into direct product bans and the first-ever midterm convention hosted by a sitting president.

Tariffs Escalate Into Direct Bans on Canadian Goods

The US-Canada trade relationship took a sharp turn this week. New US tariffs on Canadian goods took effect, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded with retaliatory tariffs described as "dollar for dollar." "The cumulative US demands revealed that they wanted us to become even more reliant on them, not less," Carney said. "In too many areas they wanted dependency, not a true partnership." The Canadian tariffs target steel, dairy, appliances, farming equipment, paper products, and electronics — sectors Carney says are most impacted by the US tariffs on Canadian shipments.