Ontario premier Doug Ford has reacted to Donald Trump calling his viral Reagan ad “fake” and a “fraud.” Last week Ford posted a new commercial on X (formerly Twitter) that used part of a speech from Ronald Reagan as a way to attack Trump’s continued tariffs on Canada. The minute-long political ad has since garnered over 1 million views on the platform as Trump fired back on Truth Social, saying that he would cease trade negotiations with the country. But Ford doesn’t appear to be backing down.
Trump says he has stopped trade negotiations with Canada
Trump’s reaction to Ford’s attack ad has been vociferous on Truth Social in posts partially written in all capital letters.
The president says the Ronald Reagan Foundation has called the commercial “fake” alongside an image of the institute saying that it used “selective audio and video of President Ronald Reagan” and “mispresents” his Presidential Radio Address that was delivered on April 25, 1985. The foundation further says it is “reviewing its legal options on the matter” as it accuses Ford and the Government of Ontario for not seeking permission to use and edit the speech.
Trump called the ad “egregious behavior” for its attempt to interfere with US Supreme Court case over the tariffs, writing “ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED.”
In a follow-up, the president stated that the ad was trying to paint the picture that “Ronald Reagan did not like Tariffs, when actually he LOVED TARIFFS FOR OUR COUTNRY, AND ITS NATIONAL SECURITY.” He says “Canada has long cheated on Tariffs, charging our farmers as much as 400%.”
In response to accusations that the ad “fraudulently” edited Reagan’s speech, Ford posted on X a link to the entire radio address by the Reagan Library. “Canada and the United States are friends, neighbours and allies,” he wrote. “President Ronald Reagan knew that we are stronger together.”
Last week senator Bernie Sanders called Trump a “pathological liar” for his video against the No Kings protestors.
