President Trump spewed dramatic threats against the World Trade Organization, aka "the single worst trade deal ever made," in a Bloomberg interview on Thursday. But some of his fiercest international comments remained unshared.
A slew of insults against Canada that Trump intended to leave unpublished came to light Friday morning, after the Toronto Star's Daniel Dale obtained off-the-record comments the president made in the Bloomberg interview. Trump's comments pertain to trade negotiations with Canada, and, in the president's own words, are "so insulting they're not going to be able to make a deal."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Star couldn't independently verify Trump's quotes, but the Canadian government has said they're authentic. White House Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters pointed out that "if this was said, it was in an off-the-record capacity" and said she was looking into its accuracy. Bloomberg editor-in-chief John Micklethwait, who interviewed Trump, wouldn't comment beyond telling Dale that "we should respect" Trump's request to be off the record.
Dale reported that the negotiating team for Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau "sprung" the comments on the Trump team at a meeting Friday morning. Read more at the Toronto Star. Kathryn Krawczyk
Update 2:46 p.m. ET: Trump tweeted a response to the Star's reporting.
-
Kim Ju Ae: North Korea’s next leader?The Explainer Kim Jong Un’s young daughter is being seen as his ‘recognised heir’ following a high-profile public appearance at China summit
-
Is the UK government getting too close to Big Tech?Today’s Big Question US-UK tech pact, supported by Nvidia and OpenAI, is part of Silicon Valley drive to 'lock in' American AI with US allies
-
Russia’s war games and the threat to NatoIn depth Incursion into Poland and Zapad 2025 exercises seen as a test for Europe
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
