Donald Trump's initial public reaction to Ontario's anti-tariffs TV ad gave absolutely no indication that it had triggered him so much that he would later kick the legs out from under the negotiating table.
The U.S. president first saw the ad on Monday night, three whole days before he abruptly announced in a social media post that he was terminating trade talks with Canada .
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Trump depicted the ad as evidence that his tariffs are making America rich again and dismissed it as unlikely to have any impact on its intended audience.
"I even see foreign countries — now that we are doing very well with [tariffs] — taking ads [that say], 'Don't go with tariffs!'" Trump told an audience of Republicans.
"I saw an ad last night from Canada," he continued, adding, "But I do believe that everybody's too smart for that."
Trump then shifted to other topics and went for another 30 minutes without mentioning the ad again. He didn't once complain about its use of Ronald Reagan's words to send an anti-tariff message to Americans.
WATCH | 'It's not just about one ad,' says Trump economic
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