Alberta premier responds to Trump tariffs, will work with Ottawa on response

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith speaks to the media during the fall meetings of Canada's premiers hosted by Ontario in Toronto, Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Alberta’s premier says she’s “disappointed” with U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to implement tariffs on Canadian goods and said she’ll work together with Ottawa on a response.

Trump signed an executive order Saturday following through on threats to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods.

Afterward, Premier Danielle Smith posted to social media to say the province “will do everything in its power” to convince the U.S. to reverse the “mutually destructive policy.”

Smith pointed out and appeared to take some credit for Trump’s decision to reduce tariffs on Canadian energy to 10 per cent, including electricity, oil and natural gas.

“Which is partially a recognition of the advocacy undertaken by our government and industry to the U.S. Administration pointing out the substantial wealth created in the U.S. by American companies and tens of thousands of American workers that upgrade and refine approximately $100 billion of Canadian crude into $300 billion of product sold all over the world,” the post read.

CNN reports that Trump’s trade advisor Peter Navarro said the reduced tariff on energy was to “minimize any disruptive effects” they may have.

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While Smith expressed her intention to continue diplomatic efforts in the U.S., Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi accused her of missing the mark on protecting Albertan interests.

“It’s very clear that the Premier’s strategy of taking selfies and going to balls and parties ... it didn’t work,” Nenshi said.

“Unfortunately, spending all the time doing that has meant that the premier hasn’t been part of any conversations about, how do we protect workers and businesses and families in Alberta now? What do we do to help restructure our economy, and how do we move forward in this world?”

Speaking to press after the 2025 NDP Provincial Council, Nenshi said Smith’s very public work to try and secure exemptions for oil and gas ignores the needs of other Albertans who will be affected.

“Let’s keep in mind that while oil and gas is our most important export market or our largest export market, it’s not the only one,” he said. “The premier’s done nothing to assuage the fears of people in agriculture, and for producers, for ranchers, for all the other industries that export to the United States.”

Smith’s refusal to use export taxes on Canadian energy as a leveraging tool led her to split from the “Team Canada” approach at a First Ministers' Meeting on tariff responses in January.

In her Saturday post, Smith called for Canada to “come together” and committed to working collaboratively with the federal government and other Canadian leaders on a “proportionate” response using import tariffs on U.S. goods that can be easily purchased in Canada.

“This will minimize costs to Canadian consumers while creating maximum impact south of the border,” the post read. “All funds raised from such import tariffs should go directly to benefit the Canadians most harmed by the imposed U.S. tariffs.

“Alberta will, however, continue to strenuously oppose any effort to ban exports to the U.S. or to tax our own people and businesses on goods leaving Canada for the United States. Such tactics would hurt Canadians far more than Americans.”

Smith’s post also included her calls for the appointment of a border czar and the fast-tracking of new pipelines to Canadian coasts and increased national refining capacity.

Trump’s tariffs, which include tariffs on Mexican, Canadian and Chinese goods, are slated to come into effect Tuesday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with Canadian premiers Saturday afternoon. Later that night, he announced retaliatory 25-per-cent tariffs on $155 billion worth of American goods.

Those will come also come into effect on Tuesday.