Ontario Premier Doug Ford hopes Trump loses Congress, calls for accountability amid trade dispute

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Thursday he hopes U.S. President Donald Trump’s Republicans lose both the House and Senate in the midterm elections, arguing voters should penalize the president for his escalating trade conflict with Canada.

"Hopefully he’s going to lose the Senate. He’s going to lose Congress. I hope so, and hold him accountable," Ford said. "But we’ll see how that goes. We aren’t going to interfere in the U.S. election."

Ford has become one of Trump’s most outspoken critics in Canada, accusing him of trying to strip industry from Ontario and relocate it south of the border as the two exchange personal insults and threats.

The comments came two days after Washington heightened the dispute by banning select Canadian dairy items, motorcycles, and most alcoholic beverages. The move followed Canadian retaliatory tariffs on roughly $20 billion in U.S. goods. Trump also barred Canadian products from major, long-term U.S. government contracts.

"He’s not reliable at all," Ford said. "He could make a deal today and then change his mind. And we’ve seen that over and over again."

Even so, Ford stated he believes Trump wants an agreement before the midterms and that Canada must return to the bargaining table as soon as possible.

"I truly believe President Trump wants a deal before the midterms," Ford said. "I could be wrong, but I think it’s best that we sit down and get a deal."

Carney noted later Thursday that he maintains regular contact with Trump, having spoken with him "a couple of times" in recent days concerning Ukraine, Iran, and other global matters.

"We continue to have work with the United States. We can compartmentalize across this," Carney said, noting that working together despite the trade friction is part of the two nations’ duty.

Last year, Trump abruptly halted trade negotiations after Ford’s Ontario government ran an anti-tariff television spot in the U.S. featuring former President Ronald Reagan’s anti-tariff views. The conflict has frequently turned personal.

In an interview with The Associated Press last month, Ford mocked Trump for keeping a portrait of Reagan near his desk while pursuing tariffs, saying Reagan would be "throwing up on him from the picture if he knew what was going on."

Trump countered by describing Ford as "the less charismatic, intelligent and overall unimpressive brother of the late, great, Rob Ford."

Trump also signed an executive order telling the U.S. government to name Lake Ontario "Lake America," a title Canada ignores.

Ford remarked Thursday that Trump had unintentionally bolstered Canada by forcing it to decrease its reliance on the U.S.

"The only two good things Donald Trump has ever done for Canada," Ford said, were that "he woke us up" and "he united the country like I’ve never seen before."