Trump to Trudeau in testy tariff call: ‘Didn’t you guys burn down the White House?’ (no, it was the British)
The US President turned to the War of 1812 to justify tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium on national security grounds
He has criticised Canada’s trade polices as “unfair” and dismissed its dairy policy as “a disgrace”.
Now, Donald Trump has reportedly added a 200-year-old battle to his litany of complaints against the United States’ northern neighbour.
During a tetchy phone call last month to discuss looming steel and aluminium tariffs, Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, reportedly asked how Trump could justify the new duties on national security grounds.
The White House was burned by British troops in 1814 as part of a failed invasion of the mid-Atlantic, more than 50 years before the signing of Canada’s confederation paved the way for the country to become independent.
Although the British successfully took Washington and burned much of the city, they failed in their major goal of taking Baltimore when their forces were rebuffed at the battle of Fort McHenry.
