Dominic LeBlanc says Trump is 'vandalizing' agreement between countries

Oliver Pearson · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 04, 2025 5:51 PM EDT | Last Updated: 18 minutes ago

Dominic LeBlanc says U.S. President Donald Trump is destroying commercialized agreements following new car tariffs connected Canada.

Leblanc, the curate of planetary commercialized and New Brunswick MP, said that "what Mr. Trump is doing he's fundamentally vandalizing the economical statement betwixt Canada and the United States."

Canada was deed with a caller 25 per cent car tariff connected assembled vehicles portion erstwhile levies of the aforesaid magnitude connected aluminum and alloy inactive stand.

Trump announced 10 per cent tariffs connected dozens of countries connected Wednesday arsenic good arsenic a higher interest connected China, the European Union and Vietnam.

David Campbell, an economical advisor based Moncton, believes that Canada has "certainly dodged a bullet" compared to different countries facing steeper tariffs.

"These are inactive very, precise ample multi-billion dollar tariffs that are going to person impacts crossed the country, but it's surely a fraction of what the interest was," said Campbell.

Canada has struck backmost astatine the U.S. with "dollar-for-dollar" car tariffs that "will spell into effect this weekend," according to LeBlanc.

He believes that "all of this is perfectly counterproductive to gathering a increasing economy."

WATCH | Dominic LeBlanc connected Canada's effect to tariffs imposed by U.S. and China:

This follows dollar-for-dollar antagonistic tariffs against U.S. aluminum and alloy that are already successful place.

The wealth received from the antagonistic tariffs volition beryllium utilized to enactment Canadian businesses and workers successful impacted industries, said LeBlanc.

He said that antagonistic tariffs are intended to origin economical hardship successful the U.S. successful hope that they assistance their tariffs.

"At the extremity of the day, 1 of the things we deliberation volition beryllium astir important is for the Americans to spot the economical harm they're doing to themselves."

The U.S. banal markets reacted to the commercialized warfare connected Thursday experiencing a COVID-19 similar crash. 

"If you look astatine the banal markets, I would deliberation President Trump, Secretary Howard Lutnick, these radical cognize the American banal markets precise well. It hasn't been a bully week successful the United States economy," said LeBlanc.

Tariffs from the U.S. person been antecedently delayed and Campbell said that present Trump volition beryllium evaluating negotiations moving forward.

"Maybe the logic determination is alternatively of putting the tariffs connected close now, hold to spot however those negotiations travel retired and past determine what you're going to bash aft that," said Campbell.

LeBlanc has been astatine the centre of commercialized negotiations and listened to Prime Minister Mark Carney's astir caller telephone telephone with President Trump. He said that Carney and Trump some agreed that whoever wins Canada's April 28 predetermination would request to "sit down with Mr. Trump."

"We person semipermanent concerns astir the, of course, reliability of our astir important trading partner. That's wherefore we deliberation it's overmuch much productive to person a discussion," said LeBlanc.

Impact connected New Brunswick

Campbell said that New Brunswick volition consciousness a nonstop and an indirect interaction from Trump's astir caller tariffs.

Just implicit 90 per cent of New Brunswick's exports caput southbound of the borderline but the state won't consciousness car tariffs similar Ontario will.

New Brunswick inactive has its ain companies successful the car industry, specified as Malley Industries, that produces ambulances successful Dieppe.

"We person ambulance manufacturers and different suppliers. So, it's surely conscionable a fraction of what you would spot successful Ontario, but we bash person immoderate of that," said Campbell.

Indirectly, Ontario is the largest system successful Canada and according to Campbell, immoderate economical downturn determination volition nonstop a "ripple" crossed the country.

He said that New Brunswick tin expect a fig of economical impacts, including inflation.

Long-term threats

LeBlanc said that successful the agelong word determination are 5 sectors that Trump intends to permission tariffs on.

"The president is going to effort and reconstruct oregon physique up home capableness successful the United States successful 5 sectors by putting tariffs connected planetary trading partners successful alloy and aluminum, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, lumber and semiconductor chips," said LeBlanc.

He said that helium worries astir the forestry manufacture the most. 

Campbell said that Canadian businesses "are going to beryllium forced to put successful the U.S." by gathering accumulation facilities successful the state to debar tariffs. 

Both Campbell and LeBlanc hold that Canada needs to diversify itself to minimize its reliance connected the U.S.

"We desperately person to get Canadian businesses successful a presumption wherever we tin diversify our markets," said LeBlanc.

Campbell said Canada should beryllium promoting much inter-provincial commercialized and look astatine processing caller planetary markets.

"We've got to diversify distant from the U.S."