“We are an energy powerhouse. We could dismantle the US if we wanted to, if we all worked together,” Ford said. “They need to feel the pain.”
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford warned that Canada could seriously hurt the United States economically if provinces and the federal government unite against President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Speaking ahead of a first ministers’ meeting in Charlottetown, Ford said Canada has spent too much time responding to decisions from Washington instead of taking a more aggressive approach.
“We are an energy powerhouse. We could dismantle the US if we wanted to, if we all worked together,” Ford said. “They need to feel the pain.”
Ford said Canada needs to stop allowing itself to be pushed around during trade disputes with its largest trading partner. “I’m tired of the bully trying to take our lunch money all the time,” Ford said. “We always seem to be on our back heels. We need to be on the offence.”
The comments came after Trump announced sweeping 50 percent tariffs on a range of Canadian imports, escalating tensions between Ottawa and Washington.
The tariffs target products connected to the automotive, alcohol, and dairy industries and were issued under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, an authority that allows the president to impose tariffs of up to 50 percent on countries found to discriminate against American commerce.
A senior Trump administration official said, according to CBC, the tariffs were necessary because “Canada has to be held accountable for this continued discrimination.”
Ford previously vowed Canada would respond if the tariffs move forward, writing on X that “If these tariffs proceed, Canada should respond tariff for tariff, dollar for dollar.”
The new measures represent another major strain in the US-Canada trade relationship. Earlier this month, the Trump administration announced it would not renew the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in its current form, instead moving toward annual reviews of the agreement.
The White House has also criticized Canada over wildfires in northwestern Ontario, after smoke from the fires spread into parts of the United States. Trump argued earlier that wildfire management could factor into future trade decisions, though he said the latest tariffs were unrelated.
“We’re looking at those separately… if they managed their forests, they wouldn’t have the fires,” Trump said from the White House on Tuesday.