Freeland's 'plan to stand up to Trump' targets $200B worth of U.S. goods
Liberal leadership contender calls for Canada to form coalition of countries targeted by Trump
Liberal leadership contender Chrystia Freeland released Monday what she's calling her "plan to stand up to Trump" — a policy document that includes the threat of big tariffs on U.S. goods to make the Americans pay if they go after the Canadian economy.
Freeland called on the federal government to take a hard line and "immediately publish a detailed, dollar-for-dollar retaliation list" that includes $200 billion worth of U.S. products that could be subject to Canadian trade action if President Donald Trump moves against this country.
Freeland said publishing that sort of list, before Trump even levies any tariffs, would be a sort of pre-emptive strike and a way to remind the American political establishment that coming after Canada will come at a cost.
"Being smart means retaliating where it hurts," Freeland said.
"If President Trump imposes 25 per cent tariffs, our counterpunch must be dollar-for-dollar — and it must be precisely and painfully targeted," she said.
She also wants to convene an "international summit" to form some sort of "coalition" of aggrieved countries that face threats from Trump. She said the summit should include leaders of Mexico, Denmark, Panama and the European Union.
Like Canada, Trump has threatened Mexico and the EU with punishing tariffs and has suggested the U.S. could forcibly annex Greenland, a Danish territory, and the Panama Canal.
"Trump thinks we are for sale and that he can push us around. This is a serious moment that demands a serious plan to fight for Canada," Freeland said.
Freeland has made fighting back against Trump the centrepiece of her leadership campaign so far. She has sought to remind Liberal voters she played a crucial role in renegotiating NAFTA the last time Trump was in office.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said Monday that Canada is still trying to get Trump to hold off slapping tariffs on Canadian goods through diplomacy.
But, if the tariffs go ahead, Canada is ready to respond with its own measures, she said.
"We will be ready for day one," she said.
Asked about Freeland's call to release a list of goods that could be hit with tariffs before Trump strikes, Joly said: "We believe diplomacy can work and that's why we're having conversations and we won't negotiate in front of the public."
Joly said there's still a chance that Canada's arguments against tariffs will sway Trump to drop his threats.
She said Canada is the biggest customer for U.S. goods and services and, when you exclude oil exports, which are driven by U.S. demand, the Americans actually have a trade surplus with Canada.
"We hope facts will prevail," she said.
As part of the diplomacy push, Joly said Canada is talking to allies, including the EU, the United Kingdom and Mexico, about Trump's threatened trade action and how they could collectively respond.
Joly will also meet with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday.
Trump has repeatedly justified tariffs on Canada by saying the U.S. is "subsidizing" Canada because it runs a trade deficit.
He has framed that deficit, which is largely driven by American demand for Alberta oil that trades at prices far lower than the world average, as a sign Canada is "ripping off" the U.S.
Trump has floated wildly inaccurate figures about just how large that deficit is — even claiming last Friday it was "$200 billion."
The U.S. government's own data suggests the trade in goods deficit with Canada was $55 billion US as of November 2024.
The world got its first look at how Trump plans to deploy tariffs to get what he wants from other countries over the weekend.
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, initially refused to accept deportees sent from the U.S. on American military planes only to change his mind when Trump went ahead with 25 per cent tariffs on Colombian goods.
Trump signalled late Sunday he would lift the tariffs after Petro agreed to take back Colombians who entered the U.S. illegally and were kicked out.
Trump is using trade threats to "unsettle Canadians," Freeland said, and Canada should do the same.
Drawing up a list of goods that may face retaliatory tariffs could lead to political pressure from the business community on Trump to back off, she said.
Freeland said targeting $200 billion worth of American goods for potential tariffs will make U.S. exporters "worry whether their businesses will be the ones we hit."
She floated tariffs on products coming from Trump's own state and swing states that were competitive in the last election.
Freeland said Florida orange growers, Wisconsin dairy farmers and Michigan dishwasher manufacturers should be potential targets for Canadian retaliatory tariffs.
Canada followed a similar playbook when Trump hit Canadian steel and aluminum with tariffs in his first term.
If Trump goes ahead with tariffs, the former finance minister also said she wants the federal government to immediately "stop the purchasing of any goods from any U.S. companies," with some national security exceptions.
"If tariffs are imposed, American firms, including American-based branches of international firms, will be barred from all projects funded by the federal government," Freeland said.
Carney says dollar-for-dollar response 'a given'
Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney, Freeland's main leadership rival, has also said he supports slapping punitive tariffs on the U.S. if Trump goes ahead with his promised 25 per cent levy on Canadian goods.
"Dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs by Canada should be a given and they should be aimed where their impacts in the United States will be felt the hardest. Every dollar raised by Canadian tariffs should be used to help support Canadian workers through this fight," Carney said in a media statement.
Carney is leaning on his experience helping to run the Canadian and British economies to pitch himself as the prospective Liberal leader with the best plan for the economy.
Carney said the federal government "must act now to boost investment in Canada."
"This will require dramatic changes to our economic policies, which I am proposing," he said.
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