Ford says Canada must come first as Smith breaks with premiers on Trump retaliation
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith won't sign plan to take on Trump
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Wednesday the country's leaders must put Canada first and forcefully hit back against president-elect Donald Trump if he goes ahead with punishing tariffs on all of our goods — while singling out Alberta Premier Danielle Smith for her reluctance to go all-in on retaliation.
Speaking to reporters after an hours-long meeting between the 13 premiers and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa, Ford said Canada must unite to confront Trump's proposed economic aggression and his promise of a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian imports.
Ford said he and the other premiers are in agreement with Trudeau that Canada must be prepared to use "every tool in its toolbox" to make the U.S. pay if it goes ahead with tariffs that have the potential to throw the economy into a tailspin.
Ford said Smith is focused on protecting Alberta's oil patch.
"That's her choice. I have a little different theory: protect your jurisdiction but country comes first, Canada's the priority," he said.
"He's going full tilt at Canadians as a whole," Ford said of Trump. "We need to be united. United we stand, divided we fall."
Smith did not come to Ottawa for the meeting and joined the discussion virtually from Panama. She also did not attend the closing press conference with Trudeau and the other premiers nor sign the final communique.
In the communique signed by 12 of the premiers and Trudeau, the first ministers said they will do all they can to stop Trump from slapping tariffs on Canadian goods in the first place — even if time is running out with the president-elect set to be sworn in next Monday.
There was a note appended to that document stating that "the government of Alberta did not approve the joint statement."
Smith posted on social media saying she could not go along with the Canadian plan to take on Trump because federal government officials "continue to publicly and privately float the idea of cutting off energy supply to the U.S. and imposing export tariffs on Alberta energy and other products to the United States."
"Until these threats cease, Alberta will not be able to fully support the federal government's plan in dealing with the threatened tariffs," she said.
Trudeau said Canada is preparing a "robust" response to Trump if he goes ahead with the tariffs. The prime minister said there's an outside chance Trump drops his trade threats against Canada given the possible effects on the U.S. economy.
Trudeau said any sort of retaliation will not be borne by one region of the country.
"We will be equitable and fair but we also know we will be resolute," he said.
Trudeau suggested blocking the flow of oil and gas to the U.S. is a possibility, even if Smith is steadfastly opposed, but he stressed no decisions have been made at this point.
"We're going to have to look at everything we can. Nothing can be off the table if the U.S. chooses to move forward with these punishing tariffs," he said.
Oil could be a crucial bargaining chip for Canada — the country exports roughly four million barrels to the U.S. every day.
Many U.S. refineries are almost entirely dependent on heavy crude oil from Canada and any disruption to that supply could have many knock-on effects to the American economy.
Earlier Wednesday, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe signalled his discomfort with a tit-for-tat trade war.
"Canada does not do well in that environment. North Americans will not do well. Americans and Canadians will pay more for everything that we ultimately purchase," he said.
Saskatchewan does big business with the U.S., selling natural resources like potash for fertilizer and uranium to power nuclear reactors.
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey told reporters that Canada should make sure the U.S. is aware of its critical reliance on Canadian energy but not pull back on those exports just yet.
"I see energy as Canada's queen in this game of chess," he said. "The opposition needs to know that the queen exists but they don't need to know what we're going to do with the queen."
But ultimately it was only Smith who refused to sign the communique.
Trudeau praised Ford, who is currently serving as the chair of the Council of the Federation — the congress of the 13 premiers — for putting Canada first and not being parochial about protecting Ontario's interests alone.
More drones, drug-sniffing dogs at the border
Trump has said that, shortly after taking office, he will implement his campaign commitment to levy steep tariffs on imports from some countries, including Canada, to try and force action on border issues.
In response, Ottawa is stepping up with a billion-dollar border plan designed to curb the flow of drugs and migrants into the U.S. — a key Trump demand.
As part of a $1.3-billion package, Ottawa is planning to deploy more border and RCMP personnel along the 49th parallel, put more drones and Black Hawk helicopters in the sky over the border and fund the creation of some 80 new K-9 units to better search for drugs like fentanyl at land crossings, among other initiatives.
Public Safety Minister David McGuinty told reporters Canada is also setting up new surveillance towers along the 8,891-kilometre border. The government is acquiring new technology, such as X-rays and hand-held chemical analyzers, to curb drug smuggling, McGuinty said.
The federal government will also require visas for most Mexicans to stop bogus refugee claims and implement stricter vetting for visitor visa applications to weed out people who want to come to Canada, only to sneak into the U.S.
And Trudeau is promising to spend more on the military and reach NATO's two-per-cent spending target to satisfy one of Trump's other gripes about Canada.
Lobbying will continue
All signatories to the joint communique agreed to continue lobbying the incoming Trump administration and congressional and business leaders to convince them that punitive tariffs on Canadian goods would be bad for businesses and workers on both sides of the border.
A tariff on Canadian oil would send oil prices in the U.S. soaring while tariffs on Canadian cars and parts would be hugely disruptive to the manufacturing sector south of the border, the federal government has said. A tariff on Canadian critical minerals could deprive the U.S. military of the materials they need for crucial weapons systems, among other possible effects of a blanket tariff.
The priority is to get that message across to Trump and his team, the communique says.
But, if all of that fails, the first ministers, again without Smith in agreement, said they would pursue "a full range of measures to ensure a robust response" to possible tariffs.
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