Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said if US President-Elect Donald Trump imposed a 10% tariff on foreign products, it “would be very, very damaging to Canadian interests across the board.” In response, Smith said she has been speaking with her fellow premiers, particularly Ontario Premier Doug Ford, and the federal finance minister. “And one of the pieces of advice I was given when I had a chance to meet with the US trade negotiator Robert Lighthizer was he said Canada has to put Canada first,” said Smith in a Saturday interview on Your Province. Your Premier. on Corus Radio. “He said the real issue we’re finding right now is Mexico doesn’t have balanced trade with the United States.” Corus Radio host Wayne Nelson started off by saying Trump has been vocal about imposing tariffs and renegotiating the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement. “How will Trump’s election impact Alberta and what actions will your government be taking to protect our economy?” said Nelson. While Mexico does not have balanced trade with the US, Smith pointed out it was inviting in investment from China that was undercutting manufacturing in the rest of North America. She added her advice as is Ford's is to take a Canada first approach and see if it can get a carveout because it has balanced trade with the US. At the moment, she said they have integrated trade with their energy and food markets, automobiles, and various other products. She said she hopes the Canadian government follows through on that advice. In the meantime, she acknowledged Alberta has been establishing its own relationships with the US. One of the large bargaining positions she said it has is it can provide it with energy security. If Alberta provided the US with energy security, Smith said it would not have to look to Iran or Venezuela for their products to put into its refineries. She called for it to look to it. “And so I think we have an opportunity to talk about expanding pipeline access into the US and using that as a bargaining chip at the table so we can benefit all Canadians,” she said. Smith confirmed on Friday she will be going to Washington, DC, for Trump’s inauguration in January. .Smith says she will attend Trump’s inauguration in Washington, DC .She was putting in the work by going to Trump’s inauguration and teaming up with like-minded US Republican governors on energy to ensure he does not slap Canadian oil and gas with a tariff. Alberta became the first foreign jurisdiction to join the Governors’ Coalition for Energy Security on Thursday, teaming up with 12 US states to promote energy affordability and security.
