US and Canada spar over anti-Trump tariff advertising campaign that derailed trade talks – live | Trump administration
White House economic adviser says it has been ‘difficult to negotiate’ with Canada
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett just gaggled with reporters. He said that the president’s decision to terminate trade talks with Canada was indicative of his “frustration” with the country after month of negotiations.
“The Canadians have been very difficult to negotiate with,” Hassett added. “You look at all the countries around the world that we’ve made deals with, and the fact that we’re now negotiating Mexico separately, reveals that it’s not just about what one ad, there’s frustration that’s built up.”
Hassett said he didn’t have any information about whether Trump would speak with Canadian prime minister Mark Carney while they’re both attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit this week.
Key events
Maya Yang
The East Wing of the White House has now been completely destroyed to pave way for Donald Trump’s $300m planned gilded ballroom, just days after the administration announced it would happen and contradicting Trump’s earlier promise that the existing building would not be touched.
Satellite images on Friday showed the historic building’s eastern section reduced to rubble, to the outrage of historians, former White House officials and much of the public.
The demolition marked a reversal of Trump’s earlier promise in July that none of the White House’s existing infrastructure would be torn down during construction of the ballroom.
Trump went ahead despite not first sending plans to the National Capital Planning Commission, the federal agency that oversees construction and renovations to government buildings across the region.
On Thursday, a White House official told Reuters that construction plans “will be soon” submitted. A White House official also told the Guardian that “The National [Capital] Planning Commission does not require permits for demolition, only for vertical construction. Permits will be submitted to the NPC at the appropriate time.”
Earlier this week, however, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a non-profit established by Congress, sent a letter to the White House stating that the demolition plans are “legally required” to undergo public review.
A federal judge in Virginia has tentatively set a trial date in Letitia James’s bank fraud case for 26 January 2026.
Carney says Canada ‘stands ready’ to continue trade talks with US
Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, said today that Canadian officials have been working with their American counterparts on “detailed, constructive negotiations” on “specific transactions, specific sectors, steel, aluminum and energy”.
Speaking to reporters before flying to Malaysia for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit, he added:
We stand ready to pick up on that progress and build on that progress when the Americans are ready to have those discussions, because it will be for the benefit of workers in the United States, workers in Canada’s and families in both of our countries.
This, amid the Trump administration’s about-turn on trade discussions, after the release of a Canadian television advertisement that criticizes the president’s tariff policy.
Letitia James pleads not guilty to charges of bank fraud
New York attorney general Letitia James has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution.
She was arraigned at a federal court in Norfolk, Virginia, in the latest example of what has been described a retribution campaign by Donald Trump against many of his political adversaries.
White House economic adviser says it has been ‘difficult to negotiate’ with Canada
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett just gaggled with reporters. He said that the president’s decision to terminate trade talks with Canada was indicative of his “frustration” with the country after month of negotiations.
“The Canadians have been very difficult to negotiate with,” Hassett added. “You look at all the countries around the world that we’ve made deals with, and the fact that we’re now negotiating Mexico separately, reveals that it’s not just about what one ad, there’s frustration that’s built up.”
Hassett said he didn’t have any information about whether Trump would speak with Canadian prime minister Mark Carney while they’re both attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit this week.
New York attorney general and Trump adversary, Letitia James, to make first appearance in federal court
Letitia James, the New York attorney general and noted adversary of Donald Trump, will make her first appearance at a federal court in Virginia today.
James was indicted on charges of bank fraud and false statements, after Trump launched a public campaign for the justice department to pursue her. My collegaue, Hugo Lowell, reports that James is expected to plead not guilty.
The five-page indictment against the attorney general accuses her of falsely claiming in loan documents that she would use a home she bought in Norfolk, Virginia, as a secondary residence in order to get more favorable loan terms, when she in fact used it as an investment property.
We’ll bring you the latest as it happens.
White House says there will probably be no October inflation report
The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said today that the ongoing government shutdown, will “likely result in no October inflation report”.
Continuing to blame Democratic lawmakers for the lapse in funding, she said that the lack of data “will leave businesses, markets, families, and the Federal Reserve in disarray”.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which produces the consumer price index report had to delay their September findings due to the shutdown. BLS has also suspended data collection during the government shutdown, affecting future economic forecasting.
US carries out 10th strike on alleged drug-carrying vessel, killing six people
The US has carried out its 10th strike on an alleged drug-carrying vessel, the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, said on Friday. The Pentagon chief added that six people were killed in the attack.
“The vessel was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics,” Hegseth wrote on social media, asserting that the vessel was operated by the Venezeualan gang known as Tren de Aragua.
Former top Trump adviser says ‘there’s a plan’ for a third term
Steve Bannon, one of Donald Trump’s top advisors during his first administration, has said that the president will seek and likely win a third term in office, despite the fact that this would violate the 22nd amendment of the US constitution.
“Trump is going to be president in ’28, and people ought to just get accommodated with that,” Bannon said in a video interview with the Economist.
When Zanny Minton Beddoes, the outlet’s editor, pushed back on the legality of the move, Bannon said: “At the appropriate time we’ll lay out what the plan is. But there’s a plan. We had longer odds in ’16 and longer odds in ’24 than we’ve got in ’28.”
The 22nd amendment, which was ratified in 1951, limits a US president to two elected terms in office.
A reminder that Bannon, Trump’s former chief strategist, was held in contempt of Congress, after he refused to comply with a subpoena from the January 6 House select committee. He served four months in federal prison in 2024.
Ontario premier doubles down on ad criticizing tariffs
The premier of Ontario, Doug Ford, has responded to Donald Trump’s move to terminate trade talks with Canada.
In a post on social media, Ford re-shared the advertisement – which his province’s government paid for and drew Trump’s ire.
“Canada and the United States are friends, neighbours and allies. President Ronald Reagan knew that we are stronger together,” Ford wrote, referencing the speech where the former president said that “trade barriers hurt every American worker” and is used prominently in the advertisement.
My colleague, Graeme Wearden, is covering the latest developments out of today’s consumer price index report.
He notes that core inflation across the US has fallen, in a boost for households. Adding that today’s inflation report shows that the “all items less food and energy index” rose by 3% in the year to September, down from 3.1% in August.
That is an encouraging sign that inflationary pressures are not accelerating, as the US economy responds to the Trump’s escalating trade war, Graeme notes.
US inflation rises to 3%, less than expected
Graeme Wearden
US inflation has risen, but not as much as expected, new delayed economic data shows.
The annual US consumer prices index rose to 3% in September, up from 2.9% in August, but lower than the 3.1% which economists had forecast.
That means the cost of living is continuing to rise faster than the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, as the US central bank comes under pressure from the White House to cut interest rates faster.
In September alone, prices rose by 0.3%, a slight slowdown after rising 0.4% in August.
The data, which had been delayed by the ongoing US government shutdown, also shows that gasoline prices rose by 4.1% in September, while food was up 0.2%.
My colleagues are covering the latest developments at our dedicated blog.
Government shutdown enters day 24, with no end in sight
Neither the House nor the Senate are in session today, as the shutdown drags on for its 24th day.
A reminder that, so far, there have been 12 failed votes in the upper chamber to pass a funding extension to reopen the government. Democrats and Republicans remain at a bitter impasse, with both parties blaming the other for the lapse in funding.
On Thursday, the Senate also failed to pass a bill, introduced by Republicans, to keep federal workers deemed essential, as well as active-duty troops, paid throughout the shutdown.
The legislation didn’t meet the 60-vote threshold to advance, with Democrats arguing that it would just give Donald Trump more power by letting him choose which employees receive pay. They offered two counterproposals, one of which out guarantee pay to all furloughed federal workers. Republicans, for their part, rejected these.
Donald Trump is preparing to leave for a multi-stop trip across Asia, which will culminate in a pivotal meeting with China’s Xi Jinping next week. He kicks things off in Malaysia, where he’ll take part in a bilateral meeting with the country’s prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim.
Trump will leave the White House at 10.40pm ET today, and he’s not expected to make any public appearances until then.
