Canada's Retaliatory Tariffs On US, Trumpapalooza Convention, Miami Cargo Plane Crash

Steve Inskeep (0:00)

Over the weekend, I was in Rochester, New York, visiting my kid there, and we went to this breakfast place called The Toast Factory.

And this man walks up to me and says, excuse me, are you Steve Inskeep? And he says, George Robinson, huge listener, he's from Pittsburgh. And he said, if you say my name on the air, I will be Public Radio Royalty.

Leila Fadel (0:21)

George Robinson is now Public Royalty on the air.

Steve Inskeep (0:24)

Yes, thanks for listening. Canada's retaliatory tariffs on US goods went into effect overnight.

Leila Fadel (0:32)

Prime Minister Mark Carney matched President Trump's latest taxes, dollar for dollar, both sides have stopped talking. So how does this trade war end?

Steve Inskeep (0:39)

I'm Steve Inskeep with Leila Fadel, and this is Up First from NPR News.

Republicans are meeting this week in Texas for something they're calling Trumpapalooza. The president is headlining an unconventional convention, calling his base voters' attention to himself for the midterms.

SPEAKER_3 (0:58)

What I really want you to do is pretend please that I'm on the ballot.

Steve Inskeep (1:03)

Why are some Republican candidates staying away?

Leila Fadel (1:06)

And investigators are still trying to figure out why a cargo plane crashed at Miami International Airport. All of the people killed were sitting in their vehicles when the plane hit them. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

Canada's latest tariffs on American products are in place.

Steve Inskeep (1:29)

Prime Minister Mark Carney imposed taxes of up to 50 percent on a range of American goods entering Canada. He's retaliating for tariffs that President Trump placed on Canadian products like aluminum, steel and dairy.

Leila Fadel (1:42)

Reporter Peter Armstrong in Toronto has been following the trade war and joins me now. Good morning, Peter. Good morning.

Peter, what is the state of things this morning?

Peter Armstrong (1:51)

Well, so as you say, that midnight last night, this latest round, these counter-terrorists in the Canadian government kicked in. And it's like, you know, this is the retaliation to the retaliation of the retaliation to those first tariffs that were imposed 18 months ago, back when Donald Trump first returned to the White House. We're talking about like a $20 billion swath of tariffs, and they are dollar for dollar, though not product for product, with the latest US tariffs imposed when those talks between Canada and the US fell apart last month. But you know, I really think the line by line, sector by sector breakdown isn't really the concern. The concern isn't really now into an escalatory cycle. It'll drive up costs and hurt businesses on both sides of the border.

The expectation, of course, is that the US is going to respond.

And we all know this isn't going to have a huge impact on like the macro economy in the US., but where this hits, it hurts, right? Kentucky bourbon makers, California winemakers, tourism in all these areas that used to be so frequented by Canadian tourists, that's cost billions of dollars. The auto industry spent like $110 billion on tariffs and tariff related costs. Canada is the biggest market for US cars, right? US auto exports to Canada plummeted 22% since all this started.

Leila Fadel (3:05)

So it will be felt in some sectors. How are Canadians feeling this morning?

Peter Armstrong (3:10)

You know, I think it'd be hard to overstate just how angry Canadians are. You know, it's not just these latest tariffs. And it's not even just the 51st state stuff or, you know, the disrespectful way the administration calls the prime minister governor and all of that. It's the totality of the way Canadians and Canadian businesses feel they've been treated over the last 18 months. Trump has said very clearly that he wants to make Canada a state, though he doesn't have the power to do that. He was asked, you know, if he would use force to make that happen and responded that he would use economic force, well, Canadians hear that. They see his actions and they feel really that they're very independent as the country is at stake. So they're very firmly behind the Prime Minister on this. But remember, Leila, Canada and the US don't just trade stuff. Those two countries build stuff together. We've built up these incredible and efficient huge supply chains aimed at bringing down costs and taking advantage of this competitive advantage we have in North America. Trump has said he wants that to stop. And Canada looks at that and says, we're the largest customer for 26 states. We're a top three customer for 45 states. Canada is the biggest supplier of US oil, electricity, fertilizer. We're the biggest export markets for autos more than China, the UK and Japan combined.