Here’s Trudeau’s full speech in response to Trump’s tariffs on Canada

Tariffs will be imposed by the United States on Canada starting this week. Earlier today, Trump’s campaign promise became an executive order and will result in 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods as well as 10 per cent tariffs on oil exports and other energy.

Tariffs are charged to the buyer of products not the seller meaning that it will be U.S. businesses (importers) and consumers who are forced to pay a higher price for Canadian goods.

This makes these goods more expensive to buy and the hope for Trump is that Americans will choose to purchase cheaper American-made products rather than foreign imports.

The tariffs are expected to negatively impact Canadian businesses (and therefore jobs and the Canadian economy) since higher prices for these goods in the United States will likely reduce the demand for these products.

The tariffs begin on Tuesday, Feb. 4.

Trump also imposed tariffs on Mexico and China. 

The three separate executive orders were signed by the U.S. President today at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.

The orders also include a retaliation clause meaning that tariffs will likely increase as Canada retaliates with new tariffs of their own.

In anticipation of today’s announcement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau warned that if tariffs were imposed Canada would be “ready with a forceful and immediate response.” 

Just after 9.p.m. this evening Trudeau addressed Canadians to let them know Canada will be retaliating with tariffs of 25 percent on $155 billion worth of American goods.

Watch Trudeau’s full speech in response to Trump’s tariffs on Canada

Here’s the transcript of Trudeau’s reponse to Trump’s tariffs on Canada

Tonight, first, I want to speak directly to Americans, our closest friends and neighbours. 

This is a choice that, yes, will harm Canadians, but beyond that, it will have real consequences for you, the American people, as I have consistently said, tariffs again against Canada will put your jobs at risk, potentially shutting down American auto assembly plants and other manufacturing facilities, they will raise costs for you, including food at the grocery stores and gas at the pump. 

They will impede your access to an affordable supply of vital goods crucial for us, security such as nickel, potash, uranium, steel and aluminum, they will violate the free trade agreement that the President and I, along with our Mexican partner, negotiated and signed a few years ago. 

But it doesn’t have to be this way, as President John F Kennedy said many years ago, geography has made us neighbours. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners, and necessity has made us allies. 

That rang true for many decades prior to President Kennedy’s time in office and in the decades since, from the beaches of Normandy to the mountains of the Korean Peninsula, from the fields of Flanders to the streets of Kandahar, we have fought and died alongside you during your darkest hours during the Iranian hostage crisis, those 444 days, we worked around the clock from our embassy to get your innocent compatriots home during the summer of 2005 when Hurricane Katrina ravaged your great city of New Orleans, or mere weeks ago, when we sent water bombers to tackle the wildfires in California and during the day, the world stood still, September 11, 2001 when we provided refuge to stranded passengers and planes, we were always there standing with you, grieving with you, the American people, together, we’ve built the most successful economic, military and security partnership the world has ever seen, a relationship that has been the envy of the world. 

Yes, we’ve had our differences in the past, but we’ve always found a way to get past them. As I’ve said before, if President Trump wants to usher in a new golden age for the United States, the better path is to partner with Canada, not to punish us. 

Canada has critical minerals, reliable and affordable energy, stable, democratic institutions, shared values and the natural resources you need. Canada has the ingredients necessary to build a booming and secure partnership for the North American economy and we stand at the ready to work together.

Let’s take a moment to talk about our shared border. Our border is already safe and secure, but there’s always, always more work to do. Less than one per cent of fentanyl, less than one per cent of illegal crossings into the United States come from Canada.

But hearing concerns from both Canadians and Americans, including the American President himself, we’re taking action.

We launched a $1.3 billion border plan that is already showing results, because we too are devastated by the scourge that is fentanyl, a drug that has torn apart communities and caused so much pain and torment for countless families across Canada, just like in the United States, a drug that we too want to see wiped from the face of this earth, a drug whose traffickers must be punished as neighbors, we must work collaboratively to fix this. 

Unfortunately, the actions taken today by the White House split us apart instead of bringing us together.

Tonight, I am announcing Canada will be responding to the US trade action with 25 per cent tariffs against $155 billion worth of American goods.

This will include immediate tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods as of Tuesday, followed by further tariffs on $125 billion worth of American products in 21 days time to allow Canadian companies and supply chains to seek to find alternatives.

Our response will also be far reaching and include everyday items such as American beer, wine and bourbon, fruits and fruit juices, including Orange Juice, along with vegetables, perfume, clothing and shoes, it’ll include major consumer products like household appliances, furniture and sports equipment and materials like lumber and plastics, along with much, much more. 

And as part of our response, we are considering with the provinces and territories, several non tariff measures, including some relating to critical minerals, energy procurement and other partnerships.

We will stand strong for Canada. We will stand strong to ensure our countries continue to be the best neighbors in the world. 

With all that said, I also want to speak directly to Canadians in this moment. I’m sure many of you are anxious, but I want you to know we are all in this together, the Canadian government, Canadian businesses, Canadian organized labor, Canadian civil society.

Canada’s premiers and tens of millions of Canadians from coast to coast to coast are united. This is Team Canada at its best. 

I spoke with the President of Mexico. We committed to work together to face them down.

I have something to ask Canadians, to be in solidarity together. I ask you to be here for each other. 

Now is also the time to choose Canada. There are many ways for you to do your part. It might mean checking the labels at the supermarket and picking Canadian made products.

It might mean opting for Canadian rye over Kentucky bourbon, or foregoing Florida orange juice altogether.

It might mean changing your summer vacation plans to stay here in Canada and explore the many national provincial parks, historical sites and tourist destinations our great country has to offer. 

Support our manufacturers, our workers, entrepreneurs and artists. It might mean doing all of these things, or finding your own way to stand up for Canada in this moment, we must pull together, because we love this country. 

We pride ourselves on braving the cold during the long winter months. We don’t like to beat our chests, but we’re always out there waving the maple leaf loudly and proudly to celebrate an Olympic gold medal city.

Canada is home to bountiful resources, breathtaking beauty, the proud people who’ve come from every corner of the globe to forge a nation with a unique identity, with embracing and celebrating. 

We don’t pretend to be perfect, but Canada is the best country on Earth. 

There’s nowhere else that I and our 41 million strong family would rather be, and we will get through this challenge just as we’ve been done countless times before, together.

Thank you. Merci.