President Donald Trump fired back Friday after Canada canceled a planned joint ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Gordie Howe International Bridge following the administration’s announcement of steep new tariffs on Canadian goods.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was unbothered by Canada’s decision to disinvite the United States from the bridge opening while also announcing what he described as revised financial terms governing the project.
“Canada disinvited the United States of America to the opening of the Gordie Howe Bridge, which is fine, considering they are paying substantial TARIFFS to the United States, but the original Deal on the Bridge, which was terribly negotiated by a previous Administration, no longer stands,” Trump wrote.
The president continued by saying his administration had renegotiated the arrangement.
“We changed the terms of the Deal so that the United States of America now gets 50% of the Profit. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump wrote, signing the post, “President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
The exchange comes after Trump unveiled an additional 50% tariff on Canada earlier this week, saying the move was made “in response to Canada’s discriminatory treatment of American products.”
The tariff announcement added another point of tension in the relationship between the neighboring countries.
Earlier this month, Trump also pledged to hold Canada “responsible” for smoke from hundreds of wildfires that drifted into the United States and prompted air quality warnings across at least a dozen states.
In a July 17 Truth Social post, the president argued that Canada had failed to properly manage its forests.
“We are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush therein, and the United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air, the quality of which is dangerous, and totally unacceptable!” Trump wrote.
The latest dispute spilled over into the planned opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a $4.4 billion project connecting Detroit, Michigan, with Windsor, Ontario.
The bridge, named after hockey legend Gordie Howe, had been scheduled to be celebrated Friday with a joint ribbon-cutting ceremony involving officials from both the United States and Canada.
However, Canadian officials canceled the shared celebration following the latest trade dispute.
“In light of trade action threatened by the United States earlier this week, it would be inappropriate to proceed with a celebratory event between the two countries,” Jenna Ghassabeh, a spokesperson for Canadian Infrastructure Minister Gregor Robertson, told The Associated Press.
Despite the cancellation of the joint ceremony, Canada’s celebration proceeded Friday afternoon.
The bridge is expected to open to vehicle traffic on Monday. Officials also plan to open the crossing to cyclists and pedestrians on Aug. 5.
The financial structure of the bridge was also highlighted this week.
According to the CBC, a “proposed agreement in principle” released late Tuesday states that Canada will receive 50% of the bridge’s net toll revenues during the first 15 years of operation.
The report added that the remaining half of the toll revenue will be directed to an economic development fund that will be “solely controlled” by the United States.
Trump’s Friday comments suggested his administration views the updated arrangement as a more favorable outcome for the United States than the original agreement.
The president also criticized the previous administration’s handling of the initial bridge deal, describing it as one that had been “terribly negotiated.”
The dispute over the bridge ceremony marks the latest development in an increasingly strained relationship between Washington and Ottawa following the administration’s new tariffs and recent disagreements over trade and environmental issues.
While the joint celebration was called off, the bridge itself remains on schedule to begin operations, with traffic expected to start crossing the new international span next week as both countries continue navigating broader trade tensions.
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