N.B. premier says Canada will ‘hit them where it hurts’ if Trump imposes tariffs

New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt met with other premiers and Prime Minister Trudeau on Wednesday.

New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt says Canada’s premiers and prime minister have designed a “really strategic retaliation strategy” if U.S. president-elect Donald Trump imposes devastating tariffs on Canada.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the premiers met Wednesday to discuss Canada’s tariff strategy if imposed.

Holt says the strategy would “hit them where it hurts” and “really focus on inflicting targeted pain on the American economy that has a minimal impact on the Canadian economy.”

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“So, we’ve chosen very carefully what that retaliatory strategy will look like, and we’ll scale it accordingly depending on what we see the Trump administration produce,” said Holt during an interview with CTV Atlantic’s Todd Battis on Wednesday.

Trump has threatened both Canada and Mexico with sweeping 25 per cent tariffs if they do not stem the movement of migrants and drugs into the United States.

Canada responded by unveiling a $1.3-billion (US$909-million) border security plan, with an emphasis on surveillance, intelligence and technology.

Following Wednesday’s meeting between the country’s leaders, Holt says she feels encouraged.

“Our federal counterparts had really frank discussions, we covered a lot of ground, and we ended up united and on the same page about our shared goal, our singular focus on fighting these tariffs and eliminating them, and our united view on the steps that we’re prepared to take next week should the tariffs be put in place,” Holt said.

“The efforts that we’ve been taking, engaging with governors, senators, congress people and business leaders in the U.S. has generated a lot of allies and a lot of Americans that see what this is going to cost them. So, we’re hopeful that the tariffs won’t come into play, and if they do, that maybe they won’t be as broad-based as described. But we are prepared to act accordingly once we see what President Trump decides to do.”

Holt believes Trudeau’s strategy was a strong one, adding the premiers came on board to support.

However, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who attended the meeting virtually and did not take part in the press conference, said in an online post Alberta won’t be able to support Ottawa’s plan unless restrictions on energy exports to the U.S. are off the table.

Holt says, otherwise, the premiers were aligned during the meeting and says they are all on the same page about what next week looks like.

“I can appreciate the concerns that Smith has expressed about what might happen hypothetically down the road, I don’t think we’re there yet, but really, those are questions for Premier Smith,” said Holt.

Trump will take the oath of office and return to the White House in a ceremony on Monday to begin his new term.

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