President Trump said Friday that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney apologized for an ad that used former President Reagan’s criticism of tariffs in an attempt to tweak the White House’s trade policies.
The Ontario ad aired during the World Series game between the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers — and clearly irked Trump, who vowed to end trade talks with Canada over the issue. Trump claimed the ad had misrepresented Reagan’s statements by changing the order of some sentences in remarks he gave about tariffs in the 1980s.
Trump and Carney interacted at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit on Wednesday.
The president said Carney was “very nice.”
“He apologized for what they did with the commercial because it was a false commercial. You know, it was the exact opposite. Ronald Reagan loved tariffs and they tried to make it look the other way. And he did apologize and I appreciate it,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
“We had a great dinner, you know, with other countries as you know, and I think we have a very good relationship. Personally I think what they did was wrong, but he did apologize,” he added.
The Hill has reached out to Carney’s office for comment.
When Trump was asked Friday if he would resume negotiations with Canada he told reporters, “no, but I have a very good relationship. I like [Carney] a lot.”