Republicans back Trump in his trade war with Canada

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, centre, arrives to meet with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Republican lawmakers at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Wednesday. (J. Scott Applewhite/The Associated Press)

Photo: (J. Scott Applewhite/The Associated Press)

Mike Crawley (new window) · CBC News

Dozens of GOP House members gathered on Capitol Hill on Wednesday for a closed-door meeting with Trump's point man on tariffs, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

While some Republicans are quietly concerned that an escalation of costly tariffs could worsen their re-election prospects in the midterms in November, those who spoke with CBC News after meeting Greer generally expressed support for the president's trade strategy.

WATCH | How the trade war could impact Republicans ahead of midterms:

Trade war a campaign hurdle for some Republicans ahead of U.S. midterms

As Ontario’s premier and the U.S. president traded jabs online, Republican candidates in some border states are up against the real consequences of the revitalized trade war on their economies — which analysts say could prove to be a challenge in the upcoming U.S. midterms.

Texas Republican August Pfluger praised Trump for bringing manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. and pinned blame for the trade war on Ottawa.

It's a war that is perpetuated by Canada, Pfluger told CBC News. The Canadians need to get reasonable. They've taken advantage of the United States for a long time.

Brian Mast, a five-term Congressman from Florida, also criticized Canada for the breakdown in trade talks.

They were given the best possible deal, more generous than anybody else across the globe, and it's something that they turned their back on, Mast told CBC News.

When Greer emerged from the meeting, he did not respond to reporters' questions about the state of negotiations with Canada.

Trump criticizes Canada's banking policy

Meanwhile at the White House, Trump gave no sign of shifting his position that Canada has long taken advantage of the U.S. on trade.

Trump told reporters that one of his biggest grievances against Canada is the limits it puts on U.S. bank operations north of the border.

They basically don't allow banks of America to be in Canada, that's sort of emblematic of the way they treat us, Trump said in the Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon.

Canada has all of its major banks here, and we're their biggest source of income, far bigger than they are in Canada, he said.

WATCH | Trump's trade war is unpopular with Americans:

Republicans back Trump on Canada, even though most Americans don't

Republicans are publicly supporting U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war with Canada, even though polls show most Americans are against it. Trump himself showed no signs of backing down after hurling new insults at Ontario Premier Doug Ford who he called 'the slob.'

On Capitol Hill, the sole Republican who raised concerns about the impact of the trade war on voters was Ralph Norman, who represents a South Carolina district.

What I hear in South Carolina is affordability, said Norman. It all goes into affordability, whether it's this [trade war with Canada], whether it's tariffs, whether it's housing, gas.

He says Greer expressed willingness to address how tariffs are affecting each state.

The concerns, they were real, Norman said. I think the White House will be listening.

Although polling suggests Trump's tariffs are deeply unpopular, other Congressional Republicans lined up to defend the president's trade war with Canada, in some cases repeating his arguments almost word-for-word.

Missouri Congressman Eric Burlison said it would not be a smart move for Canada to levy counter-tariffs on U.S. exports, as Carney has threatened to do next week.

We're the economic powerhouse obviously compared to [Canada], Burlison said. I think Canada needs the United States more than we need them.