Ford calls Trump ‘probably the most disliked politician in the world’
Premier Doug Ford says United States President Donald Trump is “probably the most disliked politician in the world,” intensifying a war of words and tariffs between Canada and its neighbour to the south.
Ford made the comments during an appearance on CNN Thursday morning, where the Ontario premier talked about Canada’s response to tariffs.
Asked how Canadians viewed the U.S. president after months of tariffs and now-dormant talk of becoming the 51st state, Ford said Trump was deeply unpopular.
“He’s probably the most disliked politician in the world in Canada because he’s attacked his closest family member and that’s the way we look on it,” he told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.
“When I talk to the governors and senators and Congress people — even Republicans — totally disagree, but they’re too scared to come out and say anything because the president will go after them.”
At the beginning of the month, Trump added 35 per cent tariffs to all Canadian products sold in America not covered under the current trade deal.
While Ford has advocated dollar-for-dollar counter tariffs in response, Prime Minister Mark Carney has not taken the advice, not introducing new measures on U.S. products.
On Wednesday, Ford had suggested he was concerned Trump could tear up the existing Canada-U.S. trade deal and start new negotiations early.
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“This guy’s coming at us,” he said. “This isn’t going to be a church picnic. Let’s get down to it, and we’ll see what happens. I’m praying everything is going to go fine, but if it doesn’t. I am going to ask the people: Do you trust President Trump? I don’t.”
Speaking on CNN, he didn’t elaborate on why he was concerned early negotiations were possible.
Ford previously railed against Trump during February’s snap election campaign and after his third majority victory.
He took aim at him in March by cancelling a contract with Elon Musk’s Starlink and removing U.S. alcohol from the shelves of the LCBO.
Trump himself has broadly ignored Ontario’s premier and his comments.
Ford caught his attention once earlier in the year with a short-lived surcharge on electricity exports to the United States and a threat to cut northern states, like New York, off entirely.
The threat sparked a contradictory response from the U.S. president, who called Ford a “strong man” before bragging about how the threat had been withdrawn.
“We had a problem with Ontario and they dropped that,” Trump said in March. “We let them know what we were going to be doing, they dropped it immediately. Electricity, you shouldn’t be playing with electricity, it affects people’s lives here.”
Ford stood the energy surcharge down after barely 24 hours in exchange for a meeting with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik in Washington, D.C.
While he has said the idea is still “on the table,” Ford has only talked about it in response to questions and showed no indication he’ll reintroduce the charge.
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Spirits maker Diageo will cease operations at its bottling facility in Amherstburg, Ont., early next year, as it shifts some bottling volume to the U.S., the company announced on Thursday.
The facility, which bottles Crown Royal products, will close in February in a move aimed at improving its North American supply chain.
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About 200 jobs will be affected.
“This was a difficult decision, but one that is crucial to improving the efficiency and resiliency of our supply chain network,” Marsha McIntosh, Diageo’s president of North America supply, said in a statement.
Diageo said it will engage with the community and find ways to support its employees through the transition, and work alongside Unifor to assist unionized workers.
The company said it will still maintain a “significant” footprint in Canada — including its headquarters and warehouse operations in the Greater Toronto Area, and bottling and distillation facilities in Manitoba and Quebec.
McIntosh added the company’s Crown Royal products will continue to be mashed, distilled and aged at its Canadian facilities.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Toronto police say a 33-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after allegedly striking two men with his car Wednesday evening.
Officers say they responded to reports of a collision in the area of Don Mills Road and Gateway Boulevard in the city’s North York neighbourhood just before 10:30 p.m.
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Police say two men got into an argument, leading to one man getting into his car and hitting the other man with it.
They say the man then put his car into reverse, striking a second man.
A man in his 50s was transported to hospital with serious injuries and the second man, in his 20s, had minor injuries.
Police say the suspect from Markham, Ont., faces several other charges as well, including two counts of assault with a weapon, uttering threats and dangerous driving.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
A court document shows a Lindsay, Ont., man facing charges for allegedly breaking into an apartment was carrying a crossbow when he was confronted by a tenant.
The resident, Jeremy David McDonald, is also facing assault charges in the incident on Aug. 18 — a fact that has generated widespread interest in the case.
Police information filed in court alleges that Michael Kyle Breen damaged a window and screen at McDonald’s home and carried a crossbow.
The court document says the 41-year-old Breen is charged with break and enter, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, mischief under $5,000 and failing to comply with a probation order.
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Police have said that Breen, who is scheduled to appear in court for a bail hearing next week, was already wanted for unrelated offences.
McDonald, the 44-year-old resident, was charged with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon after he allegedly “did endanger the life” of Breen.
Premier Doug Ford blasted the decision to charge the apartment resident, saying last week that it shows “something is broken.”
Kawartha Lakes Police Chief Kirk Robertson wrote in a statement Wednesday that he recognizes the incident has generated significant public interest and “emotional” responses, but called some of the reaction “unjust and inaccurate.”
Robertson wrote that individuals have the right to defend themselves and their property, but the law requires that any defensive action be proportionate to the threat faced.
“This means that while homeowners do have the right to protect themselves and their property, the use of force must be reasonable given the circumstances,” he wrote.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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