It is official. The United States will impose 25% tariffs on Canadian goods and 10% on Canadian energy starting February 4th. President Donald Trump claims that the extraordinary threat posed by drugs, including deadly fentanyl, constitutes a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Still, if we look at the data, it is clear. Canada is not the problem when it comes to fentanyl in the U.S.
According to the United States Customs and Border Protection, in 2024, 43 lbs of fentanyl was seized coming in from Canada, compared to approximately 21’100 lbs seized coming in from Mexico. This means 0.2% of fentanyl coming into the United States from land borders is coming from Canada. You are telling me that 0.2% of the U.S. fentanyl problems justifies starting a trade war with your closest ally.
President Trump also asserts a significant trade imbalance between Canada and the United States. Often sighting a 200 Billion dollar trade deficit. This number is a gross exaggeration. According to the United States Census, there was a 55 billion dollar deficit in 2024. To make matters even more aggravating, if you remove oil and gas, the United States will have a surplus of approximately 47 billion in 2023. Canada’s crude oil sells at a steep discount and is what most U.S. refineries are designed to process. Refining Canadian crude oil and exporting it to other continents generates $688 billion in annual economic activity and supports nearly three million jobs. So why is this a bad deal for the United States?
There is only one rational explanation for the aggression seen from these economic threats: for Canada to become the “51st State”. President Trump said it himself that he would use “economic force” to annex Canada.
As a Canadian, I am angered by the aggression on Canadian sovereignty caused by Donald Trump. It was not so long ago that we saw the tragic events of September 11th, 2001. Canadians stepped up and deployed thousands of troops to defend the security and sovereignty of the United States. Canada took control of the Afghanistan province of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban. We fought, and 158 Canadians died for the United States.
The United States is a great country and the most powerful economic and military force the world has ever seen, but Canada is not weak, and we will not be broken by economic force. I choose to view these tariffs as an opportunity to grow the Canadian economy into a global powerhouse. We can build more refineries and open Canadian extruded and refined energy to international markets. Canada is the 4th largest oil producer and the 6th largest producer of natural gas in the world. Canada has often been divided and unable to tap into the full potential of its natural resources. No longer is this the case. Canada is poised to have a majority government likely elected by the summer, and these Trump tariffs are only furthering the rallying cry for change and unity.
The future leader of Canada will need to cut interprovincial barriers. An Albertan energy engineer iterated to me that projects that cross provincial lines are burdensome and slow down projects extensively. Instead of getting approval from one governing body, they must obtain approval from many. The federal government has the constitutional authority to intervene when interprovincial barriers stall projects of national interest. It’s time to unite the provinces to unlock Canada’s full economic potential. Cut the red tape while ensuring accountability.
Canadians need to focus on the future, how we overcome these obstacles, and how we can become the great country we are destined for. It starts with awareness, productivity and execution.
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