Trump appears to confirm leaked remarks on NAFTA talks with Canada

U.S.
President Donald Trump departs the White House in Washington,
U.S., August 31, 2018.
Reuters/Chris
Wattie

• President Donald Trump on Friday responded to reports
  that he had privately said he wouldn’t compromise with Canada
  on the North American Free Trade Agreement
  negotiations.
• He tweeted, “At least Canada knows where I stand!” and
  blamed Bloomberg reporters for leaking a private discussion,
  though a Bloomberg spokesperson said the company had respected
  the off-the-record agreement.
• NAFTA talks between US and Canadian officials remained
  ongoing Friday afternoon, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin
  Trudeau said officials will stay “constructive” and
  “positive.”

President Donald Trump on Friday appeared to confirm reports that
he had privately said the US would not compromise at all
with Canadian officials during negotiations on the North American
Free Trade Agreement.

“Wow, I made OFF THE RECORD COMMENTS to Bloomberg concerning
Canada, and this powerful understanding was BLATANTLY VIOLATED.
Oh well, just more dishonest reporting. I am used to it,” he
tweeted. “At least Canada
knows where I stand!”

According to The Toronto Star, Trump told
Bloomberg News reporters in an off-the-record discussion on
Thursday that any NAFTA deal reached would be “totally on our
terms.”

Trump reportedly also suggested that Canadians would have “no
choice” but to go along with the deal, because they would fear
Trump might impose auto tariffs.

“Off the record, Canada’s working their ass off. And every time
we have a problem with a point, I just put up a picture of a
Chevrolet Impala,” Trump said, according to The Star. The
Chevrolet Impala is produced at a General Motors plant in Canada.

But according to the leaked remarks, Trump also appeared
concerned that stating his views publicly would insult Canadian
leaders, who have been trying to persuade US officials to make
several key concessions on NAFTA provisions.

“Here’s the problem,” Trump said, according to The Star. “If I
say no — the answer’s no. If I say no, then you’re going to put
that, and it’s going to be so insulting they’re not going to be
able to make a deal … I can’t kill these people.”

The Star said that the remarks were made to Bloomberg News
reporters on condition they not be published and that it had
obtained them from a source and published them because it was not
bound by Bloomberg’s agreement with Trump.

Though Trump appeared to blame the leak on the Bloomberg
reporters, a spokesperson for the news outlet told Business
Insider in a statement, “When we agree that something is off the
record, we respect that.”

NAFTA talks between US and Canadian officials were ongoing Friday
afternoon. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau weighed in from
an event in Oshawa, Ontario, saying Canadians would continue
negotiating and would remain “unequivocal” about standing up for
Canadians’ interests.

“Over the past year and a half, there’s a lot of things that have
been said from time to time,” he said. “I think people have
noticed our government’s approach is always to stay constructive,
positive, to engage on the substance of issues, and to
demonstrate that we understand that the path forward is one of
making sure that there’s a win-win-win on all sides.”