President Donald Trump is quietly backing off an aggressive trade posture against Canada, which some were suspicious was an under-the-table handout to major GOP donors.
According to Politico, “Canada’s Housing and Infrastructure Department and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Friday” that the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a new suspension bridge connecting Detroit to Windsor, Ontario, “will open July 27. A statement from the Canadian government said the agreement was made ‘with the support of the United States Government.’”
The bridge has sat closed for months after its completion, because President Donald Trump refused to open it, ostensibly in protest of Canadian trade practices unfair to the United States.
“Trump demanded at the time that the U.S. be given at least half ownership of the bridge, which has been under construction since 2018 and funded by a corporation owned by the Canadian government,” said Politico — a contrast to the original agreement, under which “the U.S. and Canada would split toll revenue from the bridge 50/50 after Canada had recouped the amount it spent financing the project.”
However, some political observers pointed out that the Gordie Howe Bridge stands to compete with the Ambassador Bridge, a privately owned bridge across the Detroit River under the control of a powerful family of trucking magnates that contributed to Trump’s super PAC.
Whitmer cheered the development, saying in a statement, “This bridge is a testament to the enduring partnership between Michigan and Canada and what we can get done when we think big and bet on our shared future together. Thank you to our allies in Canada and to the Michiganders who advocated for years to get this done. Let’s keep working together to build a bright future for Michigan and Canada.”
The post Trump backs off his standoff in dispute over Canadian bridge appeared first on Raw Story.
