Trump trade rep says Washington 'not going to tolerate' retaliation as tariff deadline looms

Darren Major · CBC News

· Posted: Aug 14, 2026 11:59 AM EDT | Last Updated: August 14

Donald Trump's trade envoy says the administration will not accept any form of retaliation from Canada if the U.S. president follows through on his latest tariff threat.

"For us, this is not a trade war. We have domestic supply chains we're trying to protect," U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters in Des Moines, Iowa, on Friday.

"It's not Canada-specific, we're doing this globally. If a country retaliates against us, we're not going to tolerate that. We'll take action."

Canada and the U.S. have ramped up trade talks after Trump threatened to slap a hefty 50 per cent tariff on hundreds of Canadian goods starting on Aug. 19. Those tariffs would be on top of sectoral levies already in place.

Greer has met with Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc multiple times in recent weeks and characterized the talks as "constructive."

"My sense is the Canadians, they want to have a more conciliatory approach but we'll see," Greer said.

WATCH | New tariffs 'in response to Canadian retaliatory measures,' USTR says:

Industry sources with knowledge of the trade talks have previously told CBC News that the Canadian side has made it clear that they see the Aug. 19 date as a cliff-type moment, meaning there would be no political appetite among Canadians to keep talks going if the tariffs come into place.

"At the end of the day, we're going to do what's best for America. If there's a way to bring Canada along with that, we're happy to do that. But we're mostly focused, first and foremost, on making sure President Trump's trade policy is executed," Greer said Friday.

On Thursday Greer said Trump and Prime Minister Mark Carney will now be given "options" ahead of the Aug. 19 deadline. CBC News previously reported that the president could be presented with a potential path forward on Monday.

In addition to getting the U.S. to drop the incoming 50 per cent levy, Carney has said Canada is pushing for an agreement that also addresses the tariffs currently in place on industries like autos and steel.

As previously reported, sources on both sides of the border say the Americans offered a new proposal on Tuesday which would lower some of the sectoral tariffs but not to the degree that the Canadian side would like to see.

WATCH | 'For decades we have had major trade issues with Canada,' says Greer:

Trump made his latest tariff threat while citing complaints about provincial booze bans, dairy import quotas and the auto tariffs. The Canadian side is willing to offer movement on those concerns, according to industry sources with knowledge of the negotiations.

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said Friday he's not convinced a deal is imminent and urged the government not to cede any ground on dairy negotiations.

"It seems the U.S. has become more greedy in the last few days. And Canada has a huge challenge," he told reporters during a campaign event for the upcoming Chicoutimi-Le Fjord byelection.

"There's a very important risk that this will not go as we want it to go. And I would remind the government that a bill has been adopted by the Parliament … that says that supply management is not to be touched."

WATCH | U.S. becoming 'more greedy' in trade negotiations, Bloc leader says:

Greer said there are more than "one or two" issues the U.S. has with Canada on trade, but specifically called out the alcohol bans and retaliatory tariffs on Friday. 

"For everything that we've done in the Trump administration — essentially, assessing a fee on foreign goods made by foreign workers — we're not in the business of banning these things from Canada," he said, likening Canada's retaliation to "the kind of things that China would do."

Former Canadian ambassador to the U.S. Frank McKenna pushed back against Greer's argument during an interview with CBC News Network.

"All we are guilty of is standing up for ourselves, retaliating [against] the unfair measures, illegal measures that they've imposed on us," McKenna told host Aarti Pole.

"So essentially what the United States is saying is we can do anything that we want to anybody in the world, and you can't do a thing in your own defence, because might is right."