The Big Story Oops he did it again....another Trump social media post rattles Canada
Jun 28, 2025
Fen Hampson, a Professor of International Affairs at Carleton University and co-chair of an expert group on Canada-U.S. relations, discusses the latest tension arising from a Trump social media post. The conversation reveals how Trump's threats about tariffs and critiques of Canada’s digital services tax disrupt optimism for new trade deals. Hampson analyzes the implications of the 3% tax on tech giants and questions whether this digital tax could lead to a deadlock in Canada-U.S. negotiations, emphasizing the precarious nature of their relationship.
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DST Sparks U.S.-Canada Tensions
- Canada's digital services tax (DST) has been a known irritant with the U.S. for years, targeting mainly large American tech companies.
- Trump's announcement to end trade talks is a culmination of bipartisan U.S. opposition to this tax.
Digital Tax Targets Big Tech
- The digital services tax targets large digital platforms with a 3% tax and is retroactive to revenues from 2022.
- It is viewed as discriminatory since most Canadian companies do not meet the high revenue threshold.
Advocate Transparent Taxation
- If digital services are taxed, do it transparently at the point of consumption like other goods and services.
- Avoid narrow, upstream taxes that target only a few large firms as they invite retaliation and market distortions.