TORONTO — The U.S. ambassador to Canada should apologize to Ontario’s representative in Washington after the ambassador reportedly shouted obscenities at him about the province, the leader of Canada’s most populous province said Wednesday. Anti-tariff declaration.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Ambassador Pete Hoekstra owes David Paterson an apology for a “completely unacceptable” tirade that Ford called “inappropriate for an ambassador.”
An official familiar with the matter confirmed that Hoekstra shouted at Patterson during a reception hosted by the Canada-US Business Council in Ottawa on Monday evening. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
“Pete, you should call Dave and apologize. It’s simple,” Ford told reporters, adding, “I understand. You’re angry. But call the guy, because you’re a good guy.”
A US embassy spokesman declined to comment.
Television commercial in Ontario He criticizes the tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump By citing a speech by former U.S President Ronald Reagan. The ad sparked outrage TrumpWho said he intends to raise customs duties on imports of Canadian goods by an additional 10%.
Trump said the ad misrepresents the position of Reagan, a two-term president and a popular figure in the Republican Party. But Reagan was cautious about tariffs and used much of a 1987 speech that appeared in the Ontario Declaration to make the case against tariffs.
“The intent was not to poke the president in the eye,” Ford said. “My goal was to start the conversation.”
Ford said Hoekstra Canadians should understand why they’re upset: “You have someone attacking your province, attacking your country, constantly saying it’s the 51st state, trying to move our auto jobs to the United States, taking our manufacturing and life sciences jobs, trying to take our steel jobs. What do they expect me to do?”
Ford pulled the ad on Monday after it ran during the first two World Series baseball games over the weekend. Trump said he would not speak with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney for a while.