WASHINGTON—A frustrated Doug Ford admitted he’s fighting an uphill battle to change the hearts and minds of American lawmakers in his clash against President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs.
Buoyed by Canada’s nail-biting overtime victory over Team U.S.A. in the 4 Nations hockey tournament, the Progressive Conservative leader and Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston attended the winter meeting of the National Governors Association with bragging rights but a daunting task.
“No one down here knows what he wants, and we don’t know what he wants,” Ford said of Trump.
“What’s shocking to me is how misinformed a lot of elected officials down here (are), how critical a role Canada plays in their economy,” added Ford, speaking of electricity exports, critical minerals, steel and aluminum.
“When we tell them all this, they’re like, ‘Wow, we didn’t realize this.’”
Houston added: “We’re doing what we can under the circumstances.”
Ford’s meetings with several governors were delayed after their meeting with Trump at the White House ran long.
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky suggested state leaders from one party tend to be more sympathetic to Canadian concerns about tariffs and trade.
“Our Democratic governors certainly believe that we shouldn’t be looking at a general tariff against Canada,” added the second-term Democrat who said tariffs would push prices up for consumers in a “Trump tax.”
North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong, a former Republican congressman, said he believes Trump is using tariffs as a “negotiating tool” toward a renewed Canada-U.S.-Mexico free trade agreement.
“The White House wants to reset the deck and wants to bring manufacturing back home. And I think that’s a great idea.”
Neither governor thought much of Trump’s repeated taunts about Canada becoming the 51st state.
“I love hunting in Canada, and I love my neighbours to the north but I’m not particularly sure that’s the world’s greatest idea,” said Armstrong, whose state borders Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
“Canada is a proud country. We ought to respect that relationship. I hope the people of Canada know that is not how most Americans feel,” said Beshear.
He is concerned retaliatory tariffs could damage his state’s bourbon industry, but noted its biggest exports to the north are aerospace and automotive products.
“In Kentucky, you have two Republican senators saying we shouldn’t be doing this, as well as one Democratic governor,” he added, speaking of tariffs.
Trump stood firm on his plan for tariffs and making Canada the 51st state in a dinner speech to Republican governors Thursday night. Houston, a Progressive Conservative, was there in his red team Canada jersey.
There were few 51st state jokes, he said at a downtown hotel where the governors are meeting to discuss bipartisan national issues.
“I got a lot more fist bumps and ‘good luck tonight.’”
With Ford’s lead in public opinion polls apparently narrowing, he is eager to back up his campaign premise that he would be better than Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie and NDP Leader Marit Stiles to handle the tariff threat that could devastate Ontario’s and Canada’s economies while putting millions of American jobs at risk.
He met with the governors of New York, New Jersey, Vermont, Georgia, West Virginia and Nebraska as well as Canadian Ambassador Kirsten Hillman. Ford told the Star New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is interested in Ontario’s development of small modular nuclear reactors to meet the state’s carbon-free electricity needs.
It was his second Washington lobbying trip in just over a week.
Opposition leaders have mocked Ford’s claims he is best to fight Trump tariffs after a hot mic gaffe early in the campaign where he told people he “100 per cent” supported Trump to win a second term as president despite his campaign promises of tariffs.
In Etobicoke, where she was touting a platform that adds $9 billion in new spending to build schools and improve access to family doctors, Crombie mocked Ford’s latest D.C. trip.
“Another photo opportunity (with) low-level advisers?” said Crombie, maintaining the Tory leader should be home fighting the $189-million snap election he triggered instead of waiting until the next scheduled vote in June 2026.
Later in a meeting with the Toronto Star editorial board, Crombie said Ford should be more worried about the 2.5 million Ontarians that don’t have a family doctor than glad-handing in Washington.
Meanwhile, the Liberals parted ways with candidate Viresh Bansal in Oshawa over concerns about a homophobic comment and hateful remarks about Sikhs. The riding has been held by New Democrat Jennifer French since 2014.
The New Democrats released the party’s full platform that contained about $70 billion in new spending over the next three years. The spending would go toward a grocery rebate, boosting the number of doctors, and building affordable housing with an additional $830 million over 10 years for school capital improvements.
To help offset those costs, an NDP government would raise income taxes on people earning more than $300,000 a year, impose a “luxury tax” on residences costing $3 million or more and treat capital gains as income.
