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“Our intention was always to initiate a conversation about the kind of economy that Americans want to build and the impact of tariffs on workers and businesses,” Premier Doug Ford said Friday.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.
If Premier Doug Ford’s objective was to get President Donald Trump’s attention, he achieved that in spades.
The U.S. president, known for his thin skin, took exception to Ontario’s latest $75-million ad campaign featuring a speech by Ronald Reagan on the issue of tariffs. Trump, in a late-night post on Truth Social, declared the trade talks with Canada were over.
The premier, who has been a vocal critic of Trump, appears to have derailed the negotiations at a sensitive time and may have given the president the excuse he was looking for to reset things in his favour.
Ford, who has had one of the highest ratings for a politician in Canada and appeared to have a Teflon coating, may now be the scapegoat if negotiations fail.
No other Canadian premier has taken such an aggressive campaign against Trump. Ford’s actions may have repercussions not just in Ontario but across the country. Prime Minister Mark Carney and his fellow premiers will now have to do a damage assessment and devise a strategy to get the U.S. back to the negotiating table.
For Carney, Ford’s actions give him a way out if things go south. He can say that they were very close to getting a deal on key sectors before Ford’s ad campaign hit the airwaves. Now, if he can’t get the deal he wants, he can point to this as the reason why.
In Ontario, the recent announcements by Stellantis and GM have rocked the province. In Windsor and Ingersoll, which are represented by Progressive Conservative MPPs, this gaffe only creates more problems for Ford.
The premier has been a regular guest on American television newscasts. These appearances helped him in his re-election campaign. He donned the Captain Canada cape and proclaimed he would take on the Trump administration at a time when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled his exit from politics.
Ford believed his own hubris — that by launching this ad blitz, he could rally support against Trump and his administration. He made a fundamental political mistake in not anticipating Trump’s reaction. As a result, not only will Ontarians suffer, but so will all Canadians. This could seriously fracture the Team Canada approach that has worked up until now.
And while these ads may have appealed to the Project Ontario crowd who revere Ronald Reagan, progressives will seize this as a reminder of the failures of that era and link Ford to that ideology.
This unforced error by Ford has been a godsend for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been struggling to explain comments he made about the RCMP protecting Justin Trudeau. Poilievre’s comments drew widespread criticism from all directions, including a scathing op-ed by Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper’s former director of communications. Now, Ford has conveniently knocked Poilievre off the front pages.
If Carney can’t rescue the trade talks because of the ad campaign, it could end any speculation that Ford might take over the Conservative Party leadership should Poilievre fail his review.
At Queen’s Park, the Opposition smells blood in the water. With a labour minister on the ropes over the Skills Development Fund scandal, they now have a new target to go after — with the premier directly at the centre of this controversy.
Ford has been able to deflect the Greenbelt scandal and the SDF scandal, but now he’s directly implicated in this Reagan ad scandal. Can his Teflon coating take another blow, or will this be his political demise?
In the end, it may be Donald Trump who decides his fate.
Marcel Wieder is President of Aurora Strategy Global, a Toronto-based public affairs and communications. He is the Vice President of the International Association of Political Consultants.