Man pleads not guilty to hate crimes in attack on Colorado demonstration for Israeli hostages
Colorado Governor Jared Polis speaks during an event outside the Boulder County Courthouse, Wednesday. June 4, 2025, in Boulder, Colo. (Matthew Jonas/The Denver Post via AP)
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CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
What to know about Canada's digital services tax — and the money at stake
Social Sharing In the last few weeks and months, U.S. President Donald Trump has given a number of rationales for escalating the trade dispute between Canada and the United States. On Friday, he zeroed in on Canada's digital services tax — a new levy expected to cost the largest American tech giants billions of dollars in the coming years after it kicks in on Monday. International trade lawyer William Pellerin was only shocked the U.S. president didn't bring it up sooner. "It's actually quite surprising that it took them this long to make a big stink about this issue," Pellerin, who works for McMillan LLP, told CBC News Network on Friday. "If the U.S. was going to take a run at this and really has had a beef with Canada on this issue for a really long time, they really had no choice but to escalate that issue at the last minute now." Here's what you need to know about the tax, which has been a thorn in the side of the Canada-U.S. relationship for years. What is the digital services tax? Canada's digital services tax (DST) affects mega companies that offer digital services — like online advertising or shopping — and earn more than $20 million in revenue from Canadian sources. Giant companies like Amazon, Apple, Airbnb, Google, Meta and Uber will be taxed three per cent on the money they make from Canadian users and customers. The levy has been in place since last year, but the first payments are due starting Monday. It's retroactive to 2022, so companies will end up with a $2-billion US bill due by the end of July. Why is Canada creating the tax? Revenue is one big benefit. The Parliamentary Budget Office estimated last year that the tax would bring in more than $7 billion over five years. The Liberals first promised the tax during the federal election in 2019, but it was delayed for years because a number of other nations wanted to work together on one, overarching digital taxation plan that could be applied in multiple countries. As the delays dragged on, Canada went ahead with its own tax plan. What is the U.S. stance on the tax? The United States has been hostile to the tax from the beginning because it largely affects American tech giants. Officials have argued the tax discriminates against American companies and Congress, notoriously divided between Democrats and Republicans, found a moment of common ground in criticizing Canada's plan. The Computer & Communications Industry Association has estimated U.S. companies could pay as much as $1 billion a year in tax if the measure remains on the books. A number of industry experts — from lawyers to cross-border groups and commerce associations — have warned for years that the tax would strain the relationship between Canada and the U.S., with one going so far as to predict in 2023 that the tax alone would be to blame for a trade war. WATCH | Trump says he's ending talks with Canada over DST: Trump says he's ending 'all discussions on trade with Canada' 2 hours ago Duration 2:28 Why won't Canada delay the tax until the trade war cools down? Canadian and U.S. business groups, organizations representing U.S. tech giants and American lawmakers all signed letters in recent weeks calling for the tax to be eliminated or paused. But Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the legislation was passed by Parliament, and Canada would be "going ahead" with the tax. Pellerin, the international trade lawyer, said he suspects the federal government will avoid changing its plan because it's taken a strategy of avoiding knee-jerk reactions to Trump's negotiation tactics. "The Trump administration is not known for negotiating quietly in the back rooms or in the hallways of power … so I don't think this is unexpected," he said. How could the U.S. retaliate? Trump says he's pulling back from the bilateral trade discussions because Canada plans to move ahead with its DST on Monday, a move he described online as "a direct and blatant attack on our country." The move put the 30-day deadline to reach an agreement in the trade dispute into doubt. The Biden administration also opposed the tax, but tried to resolve the issue differently: It asked Canada for dispute settlement consultations under the Canada-United States-Mexico-Agreement (CUSMA) last August. That consultation period ended in November without the Biden administration taking the case to the next step, but there is no time limit on when the U.S. could pick that plan back up — so the CUSMA route is still available to the current administration if Trump wanted to move away from his current tactic. Do other countries have similar taxes?
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
Canada's trade negotiations with the U.S. is like the ‘mouse and the elephant': Business analyst
Watch Business analyst Ian Lee says U.S. President Trump is using tariffs as a 'sledgehammer' to push Canada into removing 'protectionist' measures.
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
Trump tells Iran's supreme leader: ‘You got beat to hell'
U.S. President Donald Trump points to a reporter to take a question as he speaks to the media, Friday, June 27, 2025, in the briefing room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday scoffed at Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's heated warning to the U.S. not to launch future strikes on Iran, as well as the Iranian supreme leader's assertion that Tehran 'won the war' with Israel. Trump, in remarks to reporters and later in an extended statement on social media, said the ayatollah's comments defied reality after 12 days of Israeli strikes and the U.S. bombardment of three key nuclear sites inflicted severe damage on the country's nuclear program. The president suggested Khamenei's comments were unbecoming of Iran's most powerful political and religious figure. 'Look, you're a man of great faith. A man who's highly respected in his country. You have to tell the truth,' Trump said of Khamenei. 'You got beat to hell.' The U.S. president spoke out a day after Khamenei insisted Tehran had delivered a 'slap to America's face' by striking a U.S. air base in Qatar and warned against further attacks by the U.S. or Israel on Iran. Khamenei's pre-recorded statement, which aired on Iranian state television, was the first time that Iranians had heard directly from the supreme leader in days. The heated rhetoric from Trump and Khamenei continued as both leaders face difficult questions about the impact of the strikes. Trump and his aides have pushed back vociferously after an early damage assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency became public and indicated that the U.S. bombardment likely only set back Tehran's nuclear program by months. The 86-year-old Khamenei, the most powerful figure in Iran's theocracy, meanwhile, has appeared intent on demonstrating his authority and vigor amid speculation about his health and how involved he was in making Iran's wartime decisions through the 12-day conflict. In a social media post Friday, Trump also appeared to refer to a plan presented to the White House by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in the first days of the Israel-Iran conflict to try to kill Khamenei. Trump vetoed that plan, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity. 'His Country was decimated, his three evil Nuclear Sites were OBLITERATED, and I knew EXACTLY where he was sheltered, and would not let Israel, or the U.S. Armed Forces, by far the Greatest and Most Powerful in the World, terminate his life,' Trump posted on Truth Social. 'I SAVED HIM FROM A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH, and he does not have to say, 'THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP!' Trump, after the U.S. airstrikes, sent chilling warnings via social media to Khamenei that the U.S. knew where he was but had no plans to kill him, 'at least for now.' After launching the U.S. strikes — including with U.S.-made bunker-buster bombs — Trump has been insistent that Iran's nuclear sites have been 'obliterated.' Administration officials have not disputed the contents of the DIA report but have sought to focus on a CIA statement and other intelligence assessments, including those out of Iran and Israel, that said the strikes severely damaged the nuclear sites and rendered an enrichment facility inoperable. Trump also said that he expects Iran to open itself to international inspection to verify it doesn't restart its nuclear program. Asked if he would demand during expected talks with Iran that the International Atomic Energy Agency or some other organization be authorized to conduct inspections, Trump told reporters the Islamic Republic would have to cooperate with the IAEA 'or somebody that we respect, including ourselves.' White House officials have said they expect to restart talks soon with Iran, though nothing has been scheduled. U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff earlier this week said there has been direct and indirect communication between the countries. A sixth round of U.S.-Iran negotiations was scheduled for earlier this month in Oman but was canceled after Israel attacked Iran. Trump expressed confidence that Iran's nuclear ambition has faded. 'Can I tell you, they're exhausted. And Israel's exhausted, too,' Trump said. He added, 'The last thing they're thinking right now is nuclear.' Aamer Madhani and Will Weissert, The Associated Press
