analysis
Trump’s reaction to Ontario’s anti-tariff ad reveals how fast a movement can be toppled
Published
October 30, 2025 9:14AM (EDT)
Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump (Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump is worried. Besides the recent concerns he expressed about the state of his soul, he fears the Supreme Court will strip him of his tariff privileges. We know this because he had a temper tantrum upon hearing that Ontario had produced a television advertisement featuring President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs — a response that was revealing, both about his mindset and strategy, and about how MAGA has turned away from Reagan’s once-mythic legacy.
The commercial itself was simple and effective. Against bucolic and urban images of industry and humanity, Reagan begins in his unmistakable voice, “When someone says ‘Let’s impose tariffs on foreign imports,’ it looks like they’re doing the patriotic thing.” For a certain swath of Americans old enough to remember his optimism and storytelling — and to ignore the extensive damage he did to the country — hearing his voice doubtless carries them back to a gentler time. Excerpted from a 1987 radio address, the remarks warn against protectionism broadly. (In the full five-minute address, Reagan also condemns pending congressional trade legislation aimed at Japan.)
Trump, a master of modern media, must have immediately recognized the ad’s power. He took to Truth Social, accusing Ontario — and Canada more broadly — of “cheating” and “trying to illegally influence the United States Supreme Court in one of the most important rulings in the history of our Country.” He continued, “They fraudulently took a big buy ad saying that Ronald Reagan did not like Tariffs, when actually he LOVED TARIFFS FOR OUR COUNTRY, AND ITS NATIONAL SECURITY.” Trump was so mad that he slapped an additional 10% tariff on Canadian goods, which came on top of the 35% he had already imposed. He also declared the bilateral trade talks over.
The high court is scheduled to hear arguments in the case brought by some small businesses and other groups who claim the president exceeded his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) in imposing tariffs. In August, the administration lost the case in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, but they temporarily stayed the decision pending the Supreme Court appeal, which was accepted by the justices with lightning speed.
Trump’s notion that, without Ontario’s ad, the Supreme Court justices wouldn’t know about Reagan’s free trade philosophy is unintentionally hilarious. Chief Justice John Roberts, as well as Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, worked in the Reagan administration. Justice Neil Gorsuch’s mother was an infamous member of his cabinet. All of the court’s conservatives were schooled in the Reagan Revolution philosophy of free markets. They don’t need the premier of Ontario to instruct them on the subject.
The court’s decision will have massive effects on the American — and the world — economy.