Forced labour or leverage: What Trump’s new tariffs are really about

The Trump administration says it’s hitting Canada and dozens of other countries with double-digit tariffs because they’re not doing enough to fight forced labour — but not everyone is convinced.

United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced the new duties Thursday just hours before a different stopgap tariff authority was set to expire.

Many observers say the rushed trade investigations into forced labour show it’s only a pretext allowing U.S. President Donald Trump to rebuild his tariff wall around the United States.

Canada is being lumped in with countries like Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka that are getting hit with 10 per cent duties, while other countries face a 12.5 per cent levy.

Scott Lincicome of the Washington-based Cato Institute says forced labour needs to be stamped out but the Trump administration’s justification is a “sham.”

In an analysis published Thursday, Lincicome wrote the findings of the trade investigations were clearly predetermined and the “remedy is both ridiculously blunt and wildly out of proportion.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 24, 2026.

By Kelly Geraldine Malone | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.