UPDATE: D.C. trade meeting ‘productive,’ ‘positive,’ another scheduled: Ford

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article originally appeared on The Trillium, a Village Media website devoted to covering provincial politics at Queen’s Park.

Premier Doug Ford says his meeting with the U.S. Secretary of Commerce on Thursday was “productive” and “positive.” 

"But this, I can honestly say, was the best meeting I've ever had, coming down here,” Ford told reporters gathered outside of the Department of Commerce in Washington, D.C.

There will be another meeting — this one between officials rather than politicians — next week.

Ford would not speak on behalf of the American players, but said he feels like “the temperature is being lowered” in the trade war.

The meeting did not lead to any changes in policy — none of the U.S. tariffs nor Canadian counter-tariffs have been lifted.

The federal cabinet ministers who attended the meeting also characterized the sit-down as positive.

Dominic LeBlanc, the federal minister of finance, called the meeting “constructive” and said it was an opportunity to understand the Trump administration's “America first” trade plans for the coming weeks — which include a plan to unveil major new tariffs on April 2.

Federal Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne said he took the opportunity to suggest that the Americans “engage with the new prime minister in a different way, with respect.” 

Mark Carney is being sworn in as prime minister on Friday morning. 

The Thursday meeting was a focal point in an eventful week in Canada-U.S. relations that saw Ford become a major player.

On Monday, the premier announced a 25-per cent surtax on Ontario electricity exports to the U.S.

And while one expert said it was likely to have a marginal impact on U.S. prices, if any, it caught the attention of President Donald Trump, who threatened to double a planned  25-per cent tariff on steel and aluminum in retaliation. 

After his announcement, Ford spoke with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and agreed to suspend the surtax in exchange for the trade meeting, which took place Thursday afternoon.

Trump’s global 25-per cent tariff on steel and aluminum went ahead — the doubling for Canada did not.

At first, Trump expressed respect for Ford's negotiating, praising him as a "very strong man" on Tuesday. 

But as the meeting got closer, the rhetoric changed.

On Wednesday, Trump boasted about how he'd dealt with Ontario's "little threat" within one hour.

Lutnick used similarly dismissive language, claiming Trump had broken "some guy in Ontario" with a couple of social media posts, referring to Trump's threat to double planned steel and aluminum tariffs in response to Ontario's electricity surcharge.

On Thursday, prior to the meeting, Trump went on to say the U.S. has been “ripped off” by Canada for years and needs nothing from the country, which should be America's 51st state.

"No, I'm not going to bend at all on aluminum or steel or cars,” he said. “We're not going to bend."

Just ahead of Thursday’s meeting, Ford defended his move to lift the surcharge in exchange for the sit-down with Lutnick. "I would be foolish not to accept the negotiations, as there is a fever pitch right now," Ford said in an interview on Fox News Thursday afternoon. "We need to bring down the temperature. And I thought it would be in the best interest of America and Canada to go in there."

The Ontario premier also spoke of how his feelings about the president have changed. 

The interviewer, John Roberts, played a clip of Ford professing his unwavering support for Trump back in 2016.

Ford said he still respects Trump as a businessman and president.

"I was supporting him right up to this election, and then all of a sudden, he turned the guns on his closest friends and allies," he said. "It was so disappointing for the millions of Canadians that thought, 'Boy, we're going to have a better relationship. We're going to grow the economy.' And he let us down."

"Now, he wants to attack our families, take food off our table, shut down our manufacturing facilities, and as the Premier of Ontario, I'm supposed to roll over? I can tell you, I'll never roll over — never, ever."

Editor's note: This article was updated after Thursday's meeting concluded.