What do recent threats from top Trump officials, and the president himself, have to do with the U.S.-Canada-Mexico free trade talks?
CBC News · Posted: Feb 05, 2026 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: February 5
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President Donald Trump speaks as Bill Ford, executive chairman of Ford, left, and Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, listen during a tour of the Ford River Rogue complex on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Dearborn, Mich. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)LISTEN | FRONT BURNER:
Front Burner30:56What’s behind Trump’s latest Canada threats?
Last week the U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent issued a very public warning to Prime Minister Mark Carney. At the centre of that warning is the USMCA trade deal, which kept Trump’s tariffs from unleashing even deeper damage to the Canadian economy.
A mandatory review of the US-Mexico-Canada pact is kicking-off now. It has turned into a high stakes negotiation, with the U.S. poised to squeeze Canada and Mexico and to use the negotiation itself as leverage to advance the administration’s interests.
Today, trade expert Eric Miller is back to talk about where the trade talks are headed, what the Americans are hoping for, and what would happen if the deal got ripped up altogether. Miller is the president of Rideau Potomac Strategy Group and a fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.
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