U.S. demands immediate return of American alcohol as trade negotiations stall
With tariffs set for Aug. 19, the U.S. refuses to cut softwood lumber duties but insists Canadian provinces restore American booze sales.
What to know
- U.S. negotiators are refusing to cut softwood lumber tariffs—a pillar of Canadian trade concerns—arguing it is a long-standing pre-Trump issue outside scope of current talks.
- The immediate return of American alcohol to Canadian provincial shelves has become the U.S.'s top priority in negotiations, despite Canadian insistence on broader industrial relief.
- Both sides are 'quite far apart' with only days until Aug. 19 deadline for new 50% U.S. tariffs; Trump's final decision hinges on his mood when the deal is presented.
- Canadian public opposition to American goods is hardening on social media due to broader diplomatic tensions, suggesting even restored shelf access may not translate to consumer demand.
Jamieson Greer U.S. Trade Representative
David Eby B.C. Premier
Dominic LeBlanc Canada-U.S. Trade Minister
Janice Charette Canada's Chief Trade Negotiator
Donald Trump U.S. President
How it unfolded 4 events · last 2 days pressvideopostscomments
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Social media commentary reflects broader Canadian frustration with U.S. approach, citing Trump's rhetoric toward Canada, broken promises on infrastructure, and overall erosion of goodwill that makes alcohol restocking a symbolic non-issue if underlying relationship remains damaged.
“They hate our approach to them—calling them a 51st state, their PM a governor, not honoring our commitment to the new bridge, etc. American MAGA are the biggest morons in the history of the country.”
— tellingitlikeitis338 -
Reddit commenters express skepticism that Canadians will buy American alcohol even if shelves restock, and warn of Trump's pattern of breaking agreements. Some argue any deal must include ironclad leverage to prevent future presidential reversals.
“Any agreement must have an ironclad, conditional link between returning American alcohol to our shelves and securing our concessions.”
— ContentAd1722 -
Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Chief Trade Negotiator Janice Charette brief the Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations and provincial trade ministers after meeting twice with Greer in Washington. Sources report the two countries are "still quite far apart."
“The alcohol ban has been 'absolute top of mind' for American officials during the trade war.”
— American source (unnamed), U.S. negotiator · source -
Reaction U.S. Trade Rep Greer calls discussions 'constructive' amid standoff
At the Iowa State Fair, Jamieson Greer characterizes Canada-U.S. discussions as constructive but frames tariffs as response to Canadian retaliatory measures similar to Chinese tactics.
“These tariffs that are coming in, they are a response to Canadian retaliatory measures, like the kind of things that China would do.”
— U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer -
Reaction B.C. Premier Eby rejects alcohol return, demands lumber relief
David Eby says his position is unchanged and there is 'not a chance in hell' U.S. alcohol returns to B.C. shelves. He emphasizes the softwood lumber sector is larger than auto parts and steel combined and must be central to negotiations.
“The softwood lumber sector is bigger than auto parts and steel combined in terms of the Canadian economy, and it needs to be front and centre at the table.”
— B.C. Premier David Eby -
CTV News reports that U.S. proposals do not include significant softwood lumber tariff reductions and demand immediate return of American booze to shelves. The U.S. views lumber tariffs as a long-standing pre-Trump issue outside current negotiations and is willing to reduce Section 232 tariffs on autos, steel, and aluminum instead.
“The alcohol ban has been 'absolute top of mind' for American officials during the trade war.”
— American source (unnamed)
The conversation 56 comments and posts from 1 site · verbatim
The conversation centers on whether Canada should restore American alcohol sales as part of a trade deal, but sentiment reveals deeper skepticism about U.S. trustworthiness and doubt that Canadian consumers will buy American products regardless of shelf availability. Multiple voices warn of Trump's pattern of breaking agreements and question whether re-stocking serves Canadian interests at all.
The dispute Whether restocking American alcohol represents a meaningful concession or a symbolic surrender that yields nothing in return, given that Canadian consumer demand has already shifted and Trump's agreements are unreliable.
Accept the alcohol concession as minor and unavoidable; focus on securing reductions in autos, steel, and aluminum tariffs instead.
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“Azure1203: I think we're dreaming if we think softwood lumber is not going to be major focus by the US. If we can get reductions on other sectors that's a win and we should take it.”
Azure1203 · Reddit ↗ -
“lucaskywalker: No we should, but then no one buys it. That way we get our end and they don't get theirs, in the long run.”
lucaskywalker · Reddit ↗
Do not return alcohol without ironclad enforcement mechanisms; Trump will break any deal within months and then punish Canada for re-removing products.
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“ContentAd1722: Any agreement must have an ironclad, conditional link between returning American alcohol to our shelves and securing our concessions. If we don't have that hard leverage baked in, do not put the booze back.”
ContentAd1722 · Reddit ↗ -
“Formal_Specific1473: No matter what deal is agreed to we all know full well that Trump will just change it again in a few days, in a few weeks, in a few months anyways.”
Formal_Specific1473 · Reddit ↗
Even if alcohol returns to shelves, Canadians will not buy American products due to erosion of trust and cultural backlash over Trump's treatment of Canada.
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“tellingitlikeitis338: They hate our approach to them—calling them a 51st state, their PM a governor, not honoring our commitment to the new bridge, etc. American MAGA are the biggest morons in the history of the country.”
tellingitlikeitis338 · Reddit ↗ -
“Virtual-Reach: Even if it's back on the shelves, I won't buy it. Which sucks because I was on a bourbon kick before your leader decided to shit all over their closest ally.”
Virtual-Reach · Reddit ↗
- Yesterday
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I love Willamette Pinot Noir. Would by it in cases once upon a time. I say let the booze back on the shelf. Let's see our bretherens resolve. Cause I will never by American Booze ever again. Fuck I don't even buy Nikes anymore. I just hope the provincial board only buys a very small amount cause they about to waste shelf space.
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Don’t EVER purchase kitchen aid or any of their associated brands like jenn air, maytag, amana. My kitchen aid fridge was new two years ago and has broken down three times. Whirlpool customer service is the 1,000th circle of hell.
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She was going to make it easier for people to buy homes, that also includes rural people, but look what we got instead. Who cares about homes? America came so close to having a competent black woman as president, something had to be done.
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That also took the Nuremberg trials to punish everyone involved with the previous governments wrongdoings and a very comprehensive overhaul of the German constitution, judicial system and pretty much everything government related. Unless something similar happens in the US, it would be insane to trust the US again. No amount of time can change…
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The context of him asking more than once and how strongly she rejected him before is important to determine if he's a creepy guy who can't take no for an answer or if she's a moody bitch.
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Do the USers really believe that people will buy their subpar booze just because it’s back on the shelf? That everyone will just forget and forgive what they have done? Get real…
- Aug 14
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In BC, Port Moody's Murray and Clark Streets are full of local wines and breweries. No need to buy US crap. Also, what does US beer and making love in a canoe have in common?... Both are f*cking near water.
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Alcohol purchases are under the authority of the provinces. The federal government can't do much about it. I think it's ok to put US alcohol back on the shelves as long as it's segregated from all other product and clearly labeled as American products. I think most Canadians will still boycott it.
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I disagree with the American source. Softwood lumber tariffs predate Trump, but he increased them during the trade war. They should, at the very least, be reduced to pre-Trump levels. The Quebec premier recently signaled a higher willingness to put US booze back on shelves than BC has signaled. My suspicion is that it might be because the…
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You could argue that the bridge has already achieved the gordie howe hat trick, a goal of another crossing over the detroit river, assisting the abassador bridge and windsor tunnel with vehicle traffic and the fight to actually open the thing.
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Only if there is a humongous tariff. Like the best tariff ever. So that people have to pay multiple multiple times what Canadian brands cost. Would be the most beautiful tariff. Only then.
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I don't know. I think if we write him off as just plain stupid then we'd have to be willing to believe he's trying to do good, he just keeps messing it up. I don't think that's the case. I think he's trying to do bad things and he's succeeding. He's intelligent at that.
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Trump didn't think of this himself. He was told to do this. Some of the people pushing for isolationist policies within the US believe this is a good idea. Tariffs were generally debunked as a useful economic tool centuries ago due to impeding the free market and free flow of goods.
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No we should, but then no one buys it. That way we get our end and they don't get theirs, in the long run. It's just about the smallest concession they could ask for imo. With 3/4 Canadians abstaining from buying, thry won't see the influx of sales they are expecting!
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I know how this plays out: we reach a deal today, put American alcohol back on the shelves, and three months from now Trump changes his mind and breaks the agreement. Then, when we pull those products again, he’ll be furious. Any agreement must have an ironclad, conditional link between returning American alcohol to our shelves and securing our…
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There is a pricate liquor store real close to my house in Surrey, BC that has a shelf full of dusty JD, JimBeam and some other nice bourbons gathering dust. They are right next to the high volume Canadian, Indian and Scotch whiskeys, but they still sit there that I have noticed for at least a year. So to say even if they are brought back onto the…
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You willingly elected the aggressive pedophile. There is nothing you can do to suggest that you would not elect another America First asshole again, so why would the sane world ever want anything to do with you? You have proved that you are not our friends, not our allies and not to be trusted. When I grew up America was viewed as something cool…
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No matter what deal is agreed to we all know full well that Trump will just change it again in a few days, in a few weeks, in a few months anyways. I personally hope there is no deal and thus Congress will get the whole tariff file back to them after the Democrats hopefully win back the House.
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I don’t think it’ll go back to normal, although it might bounce back some. People have spent the past while finding new favourites and alcohol tends to have a lot of brand loyalty
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Would it really matter if booze was back on the shelves? It feels like even if they didn't embargo booze the stores wouldn't want to deal with American booze because no one would buy them, wasting space that could be used for things that will sell.
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The one benefit from state controlled liquor is stores don't get to set their own prices. I went to florida and paid literally double for a bottle of Blanton's than I would have in Oregon, straight off the shelf.
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Yeah he's profoundly stupid when it comes to most things, but you can't deny that he's very intelligent when it comes to self-promotion. The guy can read a room and knows what people like to hear. Assuming the guy is too stupid to win is why we're in this mess to begin with
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I think we're dreaming if we think softwood lumber is not going to be major focus by the US. For decades now it's been a dispute for the US. If we can get reductions on other sectors that's a win and we should take it.
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It won’t matter - Canadians are not buying American booze. They hate our approach to them - calling them a 51st state, their PM a governor, not honoring our commitment to the new bridge, etc. They’ve already negotiated a trade deal with China. American MAGA are the biggest morons in the history of the country — successfully turning an almost…