Donald Trump said the US was ‘subsidising’ Canada to the tune of $200bn a year and he got his economics so wrong it hurts
Time now to return to the megamind himself, Donald Trump, the self-proclaimed stable genius who appears to be plunging the US headlong into recession since his return to the White House.
A lot of this is down to his obsession with tariffs, which Trump thinks will return the country to a probably never seen before golden age.
But if you’re wondering whether his economics add up, then watch this, a typically Trumpian rant about how the US is ‘subsidising’ Canada to the tune of $200bn a year.
Trump: “I love Canada … But the United States can’t subsidize a country for $200 billion a year … You have to run your own country. And to be honest with you, Canada only works as a state … I’m sorry, we have to do this.” pic.twitter.com/PDiH5ve53a
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) March 16, 2025
Except …
1.
Your reminder that having a trade deficit does not mean that you are “subsidising” a country, it means that you buy more from that country than it buys from you and indicates spectacular ignorance of how trade works. pic.twitter.com/pn7KAT70N9
— Bearly Politics (@i_iratus) March 17, 2025
2.
“I love Canada, but the United States can’t subsidize a country for $200 billion a year. You have to run your own country”.
It is interesting that the President of the United States is economically illiterate and innumerate.
Always a good sign.
— Spencer Hakimian (@SpencerHakimian) March 16, 2025
3.
Trade is not a subsidy. The problem here is you are an idiot surrounded by clowns.
— DrPareto (@DrPareto2025) March 16, 2025
4.
You mean subsidizing Canada like Canada spending $19 billion on F-35s, exporting over 3.5 million barrels of oil per day to the US, being America’s largest trade partner with $900 billion in annual trade, sending over 20 million tourists (and their dollars) south every year, and…
— Ilyas Ibrahim Mohamed (@iiliyaa) March 16, 2025
5.
Oh my gosh, this is so dumb. We’re not “subsidizing” Canada. We’re purchasing inexpensive natural resources from a supplier with an abundance of them.
— TheProletariat (@_ThePr0letariat) March 16, 2025
6.
Yup…he keeps using the word “subsidize” knowing full well it riles up folks and knowing full well that the U.S. does NOT subsidize Canada. Worst, he assumes his target audience are morons.
— Qubit (@QubitXplorer) March 16, 2025
7.
I used to feel angry enough about Trump’s economic illiteracy to write pieces explaining why he is wrong. But now I just feel tired. https://t.co/KWsZPMEcm8
— Frances ‘Cassandra’ Coppola (@Frances_Coppola) March 17, 2025
8.
This $200 billion Trump keeps claiming the US subsidises Canada by is a total fiction. Just another made up Trump stat, like the $350 billion he keeps on falsely claiming the US has given Ukraine. https://t.co/jffVaWndiW
— Andrew Neil (@afneil) March 16, 2025
9.
How did we elect such an ignorant president? Trade is not a subsidy. Americans and Canadians buy billions of dollars of goods & services from each other. Each transaction is freely made; each benefits both parties. The longer Trump’s trade war lasts, the more harm it will cause. https://t.co/AUBU08iJto
— Jeff Jacoby (@Jeff_Jacoby) March 16, 2025
To conclude …
Just total nonsense from start to finish. https://t.co/UI7o6gEMx9
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) March 16, 2025
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