Senators seek to soothe relations with Canada
WASHINGTON — Senators from both parties sought to mend a frayed relationship with Canada during a closed- door meeting Wednesday with Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland.
The meeting involving members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee followed President Donald Trump calling Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “dishon- est” and “weak” after the Group of 7 summit in Quebec over the weekend.
Sen. Bob Corker, the Republican chairman of the committee, said senators expressed concerns about the president’s use of a national security waiver to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum from Canada. Corker said he believes it’s an abuse of presidential authority.
Freeland said Canada values its relationship with the U. S. However, she called the administration’s use of Section 232 tariffs “frankly absurd.”
“The notion that Canadian steel and aluminum could pose a national security threat to the United States, I think Americans understand it’s simply not the case,” she said.
She added that the action is il- legal under World Trade Organization rules and the North American Free Trade Agreement, “and we have raised cases in both tribunals.”
She said the answer to the dispute was simple: “The U. S. has to remove these unfair, illegal tariffs from Canada and from its allies.”
Trump enraged U. S. allies Canada, Mexico and the European Union two weeks ago by slapping tariffs on their steel and aluminum shipments to the United States.