Trump Bans Canadian Booze, Motorcycles Starting Sept. 29 — SkimNews
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- Trump signed five proclamations banning imports of Canadian alcohol, motorcycles, whey products and molasses effective Sept. 29, with 50% tariffs on certain dairy, paper, wood, aluminum, furniture and mattresses starting next week.
- A senior Trump administration official told reporters the U.S. chose outright bans over tariffs because some Canadian provinces pulled American alcohol from provincially run stores, estimating the ban would hit 'single-digit billions' of dollars in Canadian goods.
- Trump invoked Section 338 of the U.S. Tariff Act — the Smoot-Hawley Act — to implement the bans, the same authority used to tariff Canadian imports last month on top of sectoral tariffs already in place for over a year.
- Trump also directed the General Services Administration to remove Canadian-origin products from its 'multiple award schedules,' a roughly $50 billion US federal procurement program, though only 58 Canadian companies held contracts through it in 2024-25.
- Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc called the U.S. response 'unjustified,' said he is in contact with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and affirmed Canada will engage 'in good faith' when Washington is ready.
- Prime Minister Mark Carney released a video warning Canadians that pivoting away from the U.S. 'will come at a cost,' saying the U.S. sought 'dependency' in too many areas and that his government walked away from a deal it deemed 'uneconomic.'
Why it matters: The Sept. 29 import ban deadline — affecting 'single-digit billions' of dollars in Canadian goods and U.S. consumer favorites like Canadian whiskey and beer — hits just weeks before Canada's potential negotiating window closes. Canadian PM Carney is already publicly framing a permanent economic pivot away from the U.S., meaning even a last-minute deal may not restore the status quo ante.
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