USA

Donald Trump has stated his intent to impose 25-per-cent tariffs on all imports from Canada on his first day in office. Let’s consider what we did the last time Mr. Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian exports.

In 2018, Mr. Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian exports of steel and aluminum under the national security provision (Section 232) of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act. Canada retaliated tit-for-tat, and the American tariffs were withdrawn under a deal that put a ceiling on increases in Canadian exports.

In Canada’s arsenal of possible responses to a Trump tariff, the nuclear option is the threat to withhold, reduce or place export tariffs on Canadian energy.

Already, the mere suggestion of such a tactic has caused a split between the government of Alberta, on one side, and the governments of Canada and all other provinces on the other.

Tariffs on imports from the U.S. have the potential to cause pain to certain industries and regions, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself has acknowledged that the effect of Canada’s import tariffs would be diluted by the size of the U.S. population and economy.

The Trump tariffs are coming Monday and Canada simply isn’t ready.

We don’t know the full extent of the tariffs, such as whether there will be a carve out for oil, but barring a miracle, we should expect sweeping measures to be imposed on Canadian imports by early Monday afternoon.

As Albertans will testify after experiencing the Tory dynasty and the last couple of UCP premiers, conservatives are not all built the same.

Jason Kenney took Alberta in directions past Progressive Conservative leaders never dared to, while Danielle Smith rose to leadership by repudiating Kenney’s COVID management — and he did his share of rebuking her Sovereignty Act idea.

WASHINGTON—Days before his inauguration, President-elect Donald Trump made clear in a two-hour private meeting with Senate Republicans that he wouldn’t wait on them to start implementing his biggest policy priorities: overhauling the immigration system and dramatically reshaping the country’s relationship with its economic allies and adversaries.

With the experience of governing and a better knowledge of the levers of power, Trump has drafted expansive plans for tariffs and border restrictions, the centerpieces of his 2024 campaign. He has already prepared roughly 100 executive orders, Trump told lawmakers in the meeting, and said he would press the limits of his presidential authority at times to go it alone on those issues, according to people who attended.

Trump’s emphasis on immigration and trade reforms—the North Stars of his “America First” worldview—catapulted him to the presidency in 2016 and drove his historic return to the White House in the latest election. It sustained his fervent base of supporters over the past four years after he was defeated by President Biden in 2020 and admonished by many in his party over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.