Trump blames Canada for wildfire smoke, threatens to add pollution costs to tariffs

Published Jul 17, 11:08 PM UTC

President Donald Trump criticized Canada on Friday for massive wildfires whose smoke has caused hazardous air quality across the United States, threatening to add the costs of the pollution to existing tariffs on Canada. In a Truth Social post, Trump accused Ottawa of failing to properly maintain its forests, calling the situation 'totally unacceptable.' He said he would call Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to discuss the issue. The smoke has raised concerns about the FIFA World Cup final scheduled for Sunday in New Jersey, which Trump plans to attend. The New York Times reported that the Trump administration has recently moved to dismantle government labs researching wildfire smoke. EPA head Lee Zeldin said the agency is encouraging Canada to extinguish the fires as quickly as possible.