Conservatives call on Congress to hold hearings on Canada-U.S. trade in January ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House, as businesses and experts seek a coherent response to tariff threats are.
“We have a president-elect of the United States with great powers, and he is a strong negotiator who can spot weaknesses from a mile away,” Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poièvre said Tuesday. said.
President Trump has threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all goods coming from Canada unless they stop the flow of immigrants and illegal drugs into the United States, but officials have warned The amount is said to be very small.
Conservatives have expressed confidence in the Liberals’ ability to handle the situation after former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, who was supposed to play a key role in shaping Canada’s response to President Trump, resigned on Monday. It states that it has not been placed. Meanwhile, prime ministers are proposing conflicting policies to deal with the U.S.
The Conservatives want the House of Commons trade committee to hold hearings from the week of January 6 until President Trump’s inauguration on January 20 to hear from ministers, senior officials and Canada’s ambassador in Washington. There is.
Mr. Freeland played a pivotal role in negotiating the new North American Free Trade Agreement with the United States and Mexico during President Trump’s first presidency.
She chairs the cabinet’s Canada-U.S. Relations Committee, which was reinstated after President Trump won the November election, and has had two recent meetings with the prime minister seeking to form a united Team Canada approach. By participating in his first cabinet meeting, he intended to lead the way again. .
Mr. Freeland said Monday that Trudeau has offered him another job in the Cabinet, and that he disagrees with what Mr. Freeland calls an “expensive political gimmick” as Canada prepares for a tariff battle. He resigned from his position as minister.
“She did a great job renegotiating NAFTA,” said Roland Paris, director of the University of Ottawa’s School of International Relations. “The situation was clearly mishandled and Freeland felt humiliated.”
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s resignation has caused new turmoil in the federal government, and Liberal MPs have publicly called for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign, although Trudeau did not mention this.
But Paris, who previously advised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on foreign policy, said it’s clear that Freeland is irritating Trump. On Monday, the president-elect attacked Freeland on the platform Truth Social, saying he would not let her get away.
“Her actions were completely harmful and in no way conducive to a beneficial transaction for very unfortunate Canadians,” he wrote.
Mr Poiwavre argued that Mr Trump’s social media posts showed the Liberals were mismanaging relations with the US and argued Mr Trump would have done a better job as prime minister.
“President Trump has made it clear he wants our jobs and our money, and Justin Trudeau’s chaotic clown show is the only way he’ll get it,” Poièvre told reporters in Mississauga, Ont. It just helps.”
Liberals on Monday responded to President Trump’s concerns by allocating $1.3 billion over six years to strengthen border security and ensure the integrity of the immigration system.
Mr. Poiivre on Monday declined to say how much money he would spend on border security, insisting that the issue was not how much money was being spent, but the number of “boots on the ground” and helicopters and drones.
Meanwhile, states are at odds over how to respond to President Trump’s tariff threats. All have been asked to identify measures that Ottawa could use to retaliate against the United States if necessary, but some go further.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he is prepared to halt electricity exports to border provinces. Alberta Premier Daniel Smith ruled out similar measures for oil and gas exports.
Mr. Smith has proposed creating a provincial border force along the 300-kilometre border with the United States, while Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has proposed creating a federal border force based on how Canada should deal with Mr. Trump. called for an election to be held.
Still, Ford insisted Monday that the premiers will take a “Team Canada” approach to Ottawa and argue that the provinces and territories are more stable than the federal government.
He said all prime ministers agree on the need to strengthen border security, and that Canada is committed to NATO’s commitment to spend 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) on national defence, which Prime Minister Trudeau has pledged to achieve by 2032. He said that they should achieve their current goals.
“Ottawa is in turmoil right now, but it’s time, premiers, to do what we do every day. We’re going to step up and assure the world that there is stability here,” Ford said Monday. “We intend to convey this information to the following people,” the prime ministers said, adding: They are planning a mission to Washington DC in February.
Canadian prime ministers meet to discuss response to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs on Canadian goods, with talks prepared to proceed without key U.S. ally Chrystia Freeland Arranged.
Paris said the prime minister must take a consistent response in step with Ottawa or risk the U.S. government exploiting divisions at home.
“There is a huge temptation for politicians to try to exploit Justin Trudeau’s apparent unpopularity to their own local advantage,” he said.
“But now is a time when it is really in Canada’s national interest for Canadian leaders to coordinate their efforts and messages toward the United States to the extent possible.”
He said that “11 foreign ministers,” one for each state, is useless, and that some prime ministers are concerned about President Trump’s habit of trying to shake off opponents by making preemptive concessions before negotiations. He said he was being deceived. .
“Despite the instability in Ottawa, it is incumbent on the prime minister to work with the current government to coordinate efforts with the Trump administration,” he said. “We only have one prime minister at a time.”
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce held an emergency meeting Tuesday to discuss the expected impact of the U.S. tariffs. Over 100 sectoral groups are invited to participate.
