Trump continues to aid neighbors and make America great again.

Here is how Trump continues to aid neighbors and make America great. No, this time we’re not talking about making war on Cuba or kidnapping the Venezuelan president after attacking Venezuelan boat in international waters.

No, we’re not talking about unilaterally breaking our treaty with Iran and threatening the exitance of our NATO allies.

No, we’re not talking about taking Greenland by force or stepping away from Ukraine to provide assistance to Russia.

This time, it’s “making America great again by” attacking Canada, rather than extending aid, while Canada suffers from wildfires.

Trump imposes 50% tariffs on Canadian goods, citing disputes over autos, alcohol and cheese

By Associated Press

PUBLISHED: July 20, 2026 at 5:01 PM EDT | UPDATED: July 20, 2026 at 6:51 PM EDT

By JOSH BOAK

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday imposed 50% tariffs on most Canadian goods, declaring that Canada has unfairly discriminated against American autos, alcohol and dairy products.

The move could unleash a new wave of economic chaos, with risks of higher inflation and further fraying of relations between two nations that had been closely woven together before Trump’s return to the White House.

The administration official previewing the action insisted on anonymity on a call with reporters to preview the president’s actions and said that Trump signed three proclamations to launch the tariffs under Section 338 of the 1930 Trade Act. Several Democratic lawmakers last year proposed repealing the section because they said Trump could use it to destabilize the economy.

The new 50% tariffs would exclude energy products, potash, fish and critical minerals, but they would include goods that had previously been protected from import taxes by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. That 2020 trade pact was not renewed by the U.S., triggering a new set of negotiations that could run until 2036.

Canada faces the risk of a broader trade war

The tariffs could escalate into a wider trade war as Canada seeks to defend its economy.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford saw a possible showdown ahead. “If these tariffs proceed, Canada should respond tariff for tariff, dollar for dollar,” Ford posted on social media.

Chris Swonger, CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, also called for a deal: “We encourage policymakers on both sides of the border to pursue a negotiated solution that restores market access for U.S. spirits and avoids further harm to the U.S. hospitality sector.”

But the use of a Great Depression-era law to impose the tariffs broadens some of the risks, as those tariffs could be applied to other U.S. trading partners, not just Canada, and inject “massive uncertainty” into the global economy, said Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.

In case you didn’t know, the Cato Institute is a right-wing organization that usually could be counted upon to back Trump. Even they seem to be growing tired of his lies and incompetence.

“We crossed the Rubicon,” Lincicome said. “The invocation of 338 is the nuclear option for Trump tariffs.”

Tariffs are also a political challenge for Trump

The new tariffs carry serious political and economic risks for Trump ahead of the November midterm elections for control of Congress. His “Liberation Day” tariffs last year in April provoked a financial market meltdown over concerns about inflation and a recession, prompting him to walk back the rates for a period of negotiation.

The Supreme Court ruled this February that Trump had lacked the legal authority to impose the tariffs by declaring an economic emergency, causing the administration to find alternative ways to raise import taxes based on a series of legal authorities.

Tariffs are taxes on imports, which companies can then pass along to consumers in the form of higher prices. The president maintains that the costs created by tariffs will cause manufacturing to relocate to the U.S., though there is little evidence of that in the economic data.

“These new taxes will raise prices on American families and likely lead to retaliation against the very industries Trump purportedly wants to protect,” said Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., who is chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

The latest import taxes could worsen Trump’s weak ratings on the economy. He promised voters when running for the presidency that he would bring prices down, but the annual inflation rate has risen since he became president because the tariffs and the war in Iran are pushing up oil prices.

Trump has repeatedly targeted Canada on trade issues

The Trump administration official said the president had also requested that his aides look into additional tariffs on Canada because its wildfires hurt air quality in the U.S. He had publicly threatened to do so in social media posts.

This is the same President who denies the global warming that makes wildfires more likely and more serious. Rather than help solar power, taxes it while promoting “beautiful clean coal.”

Trump claims in the proclamations that Canada discriminates against American autos, alcohol and cheese relative to other nations, but his argument rests in large part on retaliatory actions taken by Canada after the U.S. president imposed tariffs on Canada under the pretext that it should do more to stop fentanyl smuggling.

The White House said that, regarding alcohol, all but two Canadian provinces and territories halted the purchase and retailing of American alcoholic beverages beginning last year, which was also a response to Trump’s tariffs and taunts of making Canada the 51st state.

But Trump has long objected to Canada’s treatment of U.S. cheese, saying in his proclamation that Canada discriminates against the U.S. compared to Europe on dairy products.

Cheese? This is all about cheese? I am so proud of America, and the way we treat our neighbors. Oh, did  I mention Mexico, as yet another neighbor whose citizens suffer because of Trump’s neighborly actions.

Yes, we certainly are becoming great again, the envy of the world. Because of Trump’s leadership, everyone looks upon us as that “shining city on a hill” symbolizing America as a beacon of hope, exceptionalism and moral guidance. 

Rodger Mitchell