U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order Wednesday demanding senior officials find a way to bar Canadian goods from all U.S. government procurement, widening a ban first proposed earlier this month.
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officials → sign → ban
In a presidential memorandum titled Restoring Reciprocity in Government Procurement, Trump ordered all U.S. government agencies and departments to eliminate Canadian products from $280 billion (U.S.) in American federal procurement.
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Trump → title → procurement
“President Trump is taking action to hold Canada accountable for its continued unreasonable and discriminatory treatment of U.S. goods, which has burdened and disadvantaged hardworking Americans,” the White House said in a “fact sheet” accompanying the memorandum.
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House → take → memorandum
A spokesperson for Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said the federal government will take a close look at the new measure.
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government → say → measure
“We take note of the Administration’s latest update, which advances previously announced procurement restrictions.
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which → take → restrictions
As is always the case, we will review these measures with a focus on the best interest of Canadian businesses and workers,” said LeBlanc’s spokesperson Gabriel Brunet.
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spokesperson → review → businesses
The new procurement amount is a significantly bigger ban than Trump first threatened Sept. 8, when he called for Canadian products to be barred from the $50 billion (U.S.) in procurement overseen by the General Services Administration, said trade lawyer Barry Appleton.
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Appleton → threaten → Administration
Today it is a formal signed order, and it covers almost everything the U.S. government buys for civilian use.
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government → sign → use
Canadian manufacturers should take it seriously,” said Appleton, co-director of the Center for International Law at New York Law School, and a fellow at the University of Waterloo’s Balsillie School of International Affairs.
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Appleton → take → Affairs
Still, Appleton pointed out, the ban isn’t actually in effect yet.
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ban → point → effect
“The order tells officials to find every step the law allows.
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law → tell → step
It does not say what the law allows.
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law → say → what
Right now, Canadian-made goods are still legally eligible for American federal contracts, and nothing signed today changes that on its own,” said Appleton.
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Appleton → make → own
“The real change comes if Washington formally strips Canada of that status.
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Washington → come → status
That is the next thing to watch for.
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That → watch → ?
It’s not precisely clear just what Canada’s share of U.S. government procurement actually is, said veteran international trade lawyer John Boscariol.
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Boscariol → ’ → procurement
“That’s a hard figure to nail down.
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That → ’ → ?
Already we don’t have access to big highway projects.
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we → have → projects
That’s all Buy America already,” said Boscariol, head of the trade law group at McCarthy Tetrault.
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Boscariol → ’ → Tetrault
“It’s certainly not $280 billion of Canadian goods.
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It → ’ → goods
While some provincial governments specifically bar U.S. goods from being purchased by government agencies, Boscariol said those measures were only instituted in response to Trump’s initial tariffs and other trade war measures.
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measures → bar → tariffs
“These are measures that we took in retaliation for his tariffs, and now the U.S. is saying ‘hey you’re discriminating against us,’ and taking more retaliation,” said Boscariol.
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Boscariol → take → retaliation
The federal government’s Buy Canadian procurement philosophy doesn’t specifically single out U.S. goods, Boscariol said.
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Boscariol → buy → goods
The procurement move came as Trump also threatened the European Union with more tariffs if it admitted Canada, saying it would be a hostile act for the EU to do so.
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EU → come → Canada
A White House official, speaking on background, said that order banning Canadian goods from U.S. procurement, was not related to the European Union forging closer ties with Canada.
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Union → speak → Canada
Earlier Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen invited Canada to become the EU’s first “associate member,” a term which has yet to be precisely defined.
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which → invite → Canada
In her state of the union speech, von der Leyen directly addressed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
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Leyen → address → Carney
“I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the EU,” von der Leyen said.
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Leyen → like → EU
“We share one ocean, one set of values, one way of seeing the world ...
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We → share → world
We will now build our shared future as well.”
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We → build → future
The Aporia
