After Trump's address to Congress, MUN prof isn't sure U.S. has appetite for trade war

Elizabeth Whitten · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 05, 2025 12:06 PM EST | Last Updated: March 5

U.S. President Donald Trump defended his trade war in Washington, D.C. Tuesday nighttime — but a Memorial University prof says residents south of Canada's border whitethorn not person an appetite to endure the tactic.

MUN governmental idiosyncratic Russell Williams, who stayed up precocious to ticker the address, said Republicans seemed to positively respond to comments about Mexico's borderline information and migration issues. 

But while the assemblage applauded tariff talks, they appeared were little interested, helium said.

"I felt similar the lawsuit went a small level erstwhile helium talked astir the commercialized relationship. That was not what was animating that mostly Republican audience," Williams told CBC Radio's The St. John's Morning Show.

"I'm not definite the appetite successful Congress and the appetite successful the Senate is rather determination for what Trump is doing."

Trump's code was agelong and meandering, filled with grievances and falsehoods, Williams said.

"I deliberation really erstwhile we perceive to Trump speech astir trade, we each get dumber. He says things that marque nary sense," helium said.

WATCH | What radical successful St. John's are saying astir tariffs, commercialized wars, and Donald Trump:

If borderline information and fentanyl are superior concerns successful Trump's eyes, Williams said Trump wouldn't beryllium mocking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Canada.

"They're making it harder for Canadian policymakers to co-operate with them connected immoderate they want," helium said.

The U.S. banal marketplace dropped in effect to Trump's tariffs, but the U.S. president didn't code the marketplace successful his speech. He did say, however, the American nationalist could consciousness short-term pain.

Canada has nary prime but to retaliate with counter-tariffs, said Williams, and it volition request to beryllium organized and cohesive successful the effect to the commercialized war.

"If we privation it much than Americans privation it, we tin past this and hopefully get the United States to rethink what it's doing," helium said.

Wait and see

There are concern leaders successful Newfoundland and Labrador who believe U.S. tariffs won't enactment successful spot for long.

Peter Woodward, president and CEO of Woodward Group of Companies successful Happy Valley-Goose Bay, believes the 25 per cent tariffs connected Canadian goods is simply a dialog maneuver for Trump.

"What helium wants astatine the end, I'm not sure, but I'm reasonably assured that you're going to spot immoderate important changes successful his negotiating," helium told CBC Radio's Labrador Morning.

Woodward said radical shouldn't interest implicit the commercialized war, and that Trump is known to rapidly alteration people connected policies. 

"I'll beryllium precise amazed if helium doesn't bash different 180 connected a batch of the worldly successful the adjacent aboriginal and we'll find retired really what helium wants," helium said.

Woodward said tariffs haven't impacted the outgo of nutrient oregon vehicles conscionable yet, which could instrumentality months. He said a conveyance portion crosses the borderline respective times during the manufacturing process.

"That becomes precise costly if it collects work each clip that it goes crossed the border," said Woodward.

But, helium believes the existent absorption isn't Canada but China, owed to its capableness to physique acold much cars.

"The president likes to support everybody disconnected balance. He likes to propulsion radical disconnected the borderline of the array and marque them teeter," Woodward said.

But immoderate are already disquieted astir the future.

Deborah Osborne, vice-president of customs and consulting with planetary trading institution P.F. Collins, says her clients are panicking.

"They're each up successful arms reasoning that this is going to interaction them successful a large way, that they don't cognize if they proceed business," she said.

Osborne said clients aren't definite however the tariffs are going to specifically interaction them, but to assistance them she has been holding seminars to sermon the importer broadside of concern and springiness suggestions connected diversification options.

She said this isn't the archetypal clip radical person panicked astir Canada becoming the 51st state. When the archetypal escaped commercialized woody was signed betwixt the U.S. and Canada radical had akin fears.

"I deliberation we're conscionable successful the fog. We volition travel retired of it. We Canadians are resilient. We're smart. We're educated," said Osborne.

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