Billionaires, Execs Urge Trump to Rethink Canada, Mexico Tariffs
- Industry and business leaders are reacting to President Donald Trump’s latest tariffs.
- The Trump administration said Saturday it had imposed new levies on Canada, Mexico, and China.
- All three countries vowed to retaliate, threatening a trade war.
Billionaires, industry leaders, and executives are reacting to President Donald Trump’s tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and China.
The Trump administration said Saturday it had imposed a 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on China.
The announcement sparked swift responses from all three countries. Canada and Mexico promised retaliatory tariffs, and China vowed “corresponding countermeasures.”
Trump says the tariffs are necessary to pressure Mexico, Canada, and China to do more to stem the flow of illegal fentanyl into the United States. Addiction and overdoses related to fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, have gripped the United States for years, hollowing out towns and city neighborhoods all over the country. The drug is often produced in China and smuggled over US borders.
“Trump is taking bold action to hold Mexico, Canada, and China accountable to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into our country,” the White House said in a statement on Saturday.
Business leaders, however, are urging Trump to reconsider, fearing a global trade war that could wreak havoc on American industries.
Mark Cuban, billionaire entrepreneur
In a post on Bluesky, Cuban warned that the new levies would cost people money and hurt businesses.
“I’m going to put my rich guy hat on and say I hope that Mexico and Canada issue equal, retaliatory tariffs and stick to them for an extended period,” Cuban wrote.
“I apologize to all the people it will cost money and the businesses it will hurt. But it’s the only way for tariffs to be seen for what they are.”
Tobi Lütke, Shopify CEO
In a post on X, Lütke, the CEO of the Canadian firm Shopify, said he was disappointed with the US tariffs and Canada’s government’s response.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday that Canada would impose 25% tariffs on C$155 billion (around $106 billion) of US goods following the Trump administration’s decision.
But Lütke said hitting back would “not lead to anything good.”
“Canada thrives when it works with America together. Win by helping America win,” he wrote. “These tariffs are going to be devastating to so many people’s lives and small businesses.”
Ricardo Salinas Pliego, Mexican billionaire
Pliego, the chairman of the retail and banking conglomerate Grupo Elektra, slammed the tariffs in a series of posts on X but said Mexico should not retaliate.
“As things stand, there is nothing to do but endure this misfortune imposed on us,” he wrote. “Perhaps, with the passage of time, more prepared and sensible minds will prevail in the USA and things will change, but that is not in our hands.”
“What we definitely SHOULD NOT DO is play the ‘Boy Hero’ and throw ourselves into the void, by putting MORE taxes on Mexican citizens, who are already screwed by Trump’s actions,” he added.
Aluminum Association
The Aluminum Association has urged Trump to exempt Canada from the tariffs, saying it was vital to help protect jobs and local manufacturers.
In a statement on Saturday, Charles Johnson, the president and CEO of the association, which represents aluminum production and jobs in the United States, welcomed Trump’s efforts to “support American manufacturing” but said the industry’s strength relied on imports from the north.
“Thanks to robust domestic demand and coming investment, the US aluminum industry needs a steady and predictable supply of primary, secondary and scrap aluminum,” Johnson said. “Today, much of that metal comes from North American trading partners, especially Canada.”
United Steelworkers
The USW, representing 850,000 workers in metals, mining, and other industries, has also called for Trump to reconsider tariffs on Canada.
In a statement, USW International President David McCall said the union had “long called for systemic reform of our broken trade system, but lashing out at key allies like Canada is not the way forward.”
“Canada has proven itself time and again to be one of our strongest partners when it comes to national security, and our economies are deeply integrated,” the statement continued.
National Association of Manufacturers
NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said manufacturers were already facing increasing cost pressures and that the latest tariffs on Canada and Mexico threatened “to upend the very supply chains that have made US manufacturing more competitive globally.”
“The ripple effects will be severe, particularly for small and medium-sized manufacturers,” Timmons added. “Ultimately, manufacturers will bear the brunt of these tariffs, undermining our ability to sell our products at a competitive price and putting American jobs at risk.”
National Association of Home Builders
The NAHB said the tariffs on Canada and Mexico could increase construction costs and ultimately lead to higher home prices.
“More than 70% of the imports of two essential materials that home builders rely on—softwood lumber and gypsum (used for drywall)—come from Canada and Mexico, respectively,” NAHB Chairman Carl Harris said in a statement.
“NAHB urges the administration to reconsider this action on tariffs.”
National Retail Federation
David French, the executive vice president of government relations for the National Retail Federation, said in a statement the trade association backs Trump’s push to solidify trade ties and ensure that the US has favorable trade conditions.
However, French called the tariffs on the three countries a “serious step.”
“We strongly encourage all parties to continue negotiating to find solutions that will strengthen trade relationships and avoid shifting the costs of shared policy failures onto the backs of American families, workers and small businesses,” he said in a statement.
“The retail industry is committed to working with President Trump and his administration to achieve his campaign promises, including strengthening the US economy, extending his successful Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and ensuring that American families are protected from higher costs,” he added.
Distilled Spirits Council of the US, the Mexican Chamber of the Tequila Industry, and Spirits Canada
In a joint statement, the Distilled Spirits Council of the US, the Mexican Chamber of the Tequila Industry, and Spirits Canada, said the implementation of tariffs threatens the growth of trade in spirits across the three countries, a major issue given setbacks related to COVID-19 and inflation.
“Our associations are committed to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to explore solutions that prevent potential tariffs on distilled spirits,” the groups said in their statement. “We are deeply concerned that US tariffs on imported spirits from Canada and Mexico will significantly harm all three countries and lead to a cycle of retaliatory tariffs that negatively impacts our shared industry.”
“Maintaining fair and reciprocal duty-free access for all distilled spirits is crucial for supporting jobs and shared growth across North America,” they added.
American Automotive Policy Council
Matt Blunt, former governor of Missouri and president of the American Automotive Policy Council, which represents Ford Motor, General Motors, and Stellantis, told BI that he doesn’t believe that vehicles and parts that meet the USMCA’s requirements — agreed upon by the US, Canada, and Mexico in 2020 — should be subject to increased tariffs.
“Our American automakers, who invested billions in the US to meet these requirements, should not have their competitiveness undermined by tariffs that will raise the cost of building vehicles in the United States and stymie investment in the American workforce,” Blunt said.
Canadian Chamber of Commerce
Candace Laing, president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, representing more than 200,000 businesses, called Trump’s tariffs “self-defeating” and “profoundly disturbing” in a statement.
“Our supply chains are so deeply integrated that you can’t unwind them overnight,” wrote Laing, “Which is why if President Trump truly wanted to bring down costs for Americans, he would be looking at strengthening our trade ties, not tearing them apart.”
Laing recounted how the US relies on Canadian imports, such as crude oil and critical minerals, and said that Canada’s “job number one” right now is to build resilience and provide security to Canadian families and businesses that are “rightly scared” by the tariffs.
“If we can’t trade south, let’s diversify our trading partners and dismantle unnecessary internal trade barriers to keep goods and services flowing north, east, and west,” she added, “A strong, united, and competitive Canadian economy will thrive no matter what gets thrown our way.”
American Petroleum Institute
Mike Sommers, president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute, with some 600 members that produce and distribute the majority of the nation’s energy, called energy markets “highly integrated” and Canadian crude oil “critical” for American consumers in a statement.
“The US is the largest market for Canadian crude oil exports and Mexico is the No. 1 destination for US refined product exports,” said Sommers, “We will continue to work with the Trump administration on full exclusions that protect energy affordability for consumers, expand the nation’s energy advantage and support American jobs.”
United Auto Workers Union
Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers Union, said in a statement on Saturday that his union “supports aggressive tariff action to protect American manufacturing jobs as a good first step to undoing decades of anti-worker trade policy.”
According to the UAW website, the union has over 400,000 active members and more than 580,000 retired members in the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico.
“If Trump is serious about bringing back good blue collar jobs destroyed by NAFTA, the USMCA, and the WTO, he should go a step further and immediately seek to renegotiate our broken trade deals,” Fain added.
