Speaking Wednesday at a campaign fundraiser, President Donald Trump admitted that he had made up information related to the trade relationship between the U.S. and Canada during a meeting with Prime Minister Trudeau.
Per a Washington Post report, Trump returned to his familiar improvisational style during the speech in Missouri, telling donors that he insisted the U.S. runs a trade deficit with Canada while speaking with Trudeau, despite having no idea if that was actually the case:
“Trudeau came to see me. He’s a good guy, Justin. He said, ‘No, no, we have no trade deficit with you, we have none. Donald, please,’” Trump said, according to audio of the private event in Missouri obtained by The Washington Post. “Nice guy, good-looking guy, comes in — ‘Donald, we have no trade deficit.’ He’s very proud because everybody else, you know, we’re getting killed….
“…So, he’s proud. I said, ‘Wrong, Justin, you do.’ I didn’t even know….I had no idea. I just said, ‘You’re wrong.’ You know why? Because we’re so stupid.…And I thought they were smart. I said, ‘You’re wrong, Justin.’ He said, ‘Nope, we have no trade deficit.’ I said, ‘Well, in that case, I feel differently,’ I said, ‘but I don’t believe it.’ I sent one of our guys out, his guy, my guy, they went out, I said, ‘Check, because I can’t believe it,’ he concluded.
‘Well, sir, you’re actually right. We have no deficit, but that doesn’t include energy and timber.…And when you do, we lose $17 billion a year.’ It’s incredible.
Despite Trump’s insistence that Trudeau ultimately confirmed the truth of his assertion, the U.S. in fact has a trade surplus relative to Canada, according to The Office of the United States Trade Representative.
Trump’s admission comes just one week after he signed off on 25 percent and 10 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, respectively. The White House opted to exempt Canada and Mexico from the tariffs contingent on their cooperation in NAFTA renegotiations.