Amid calls to cancel, Alberta’s Smith stands by plan to go to U.S. fundraiser

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith will go ahead with a trip to Florida to appear with right-wing podcaster Ben Shapiro. CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski has the

EDMONTON — Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is defending her plan to fly to Florida to appear at an event alongside a far-right U.S. influencer who calls Canada “a silly country,” saying it is her duty to do everything she can to reach out to Americans to prevent tariffs.

Smith is to make a speaking appearance Thursday with conservative media personality Ben Shapiro at a fundraiser for PragerU amid continued calls from the Opposition NDP for her to abandon the trip.

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In a fiery exchange in the house, Smith accused Opposition New Democrats of being defensive because they have done “zilch” to push back on the tariffs.

“The way you actually influence the decision on tariffs is you talk to American influencers,” said Smith, at times reading a list of elected U.S. officials and business leaders she has met with.

NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said Smith is using taxpayer money to fundraise for an extremist, Islamophobic organization that denies the history of American slavery.

Christina Gray, who leads the NDP in the house, responded to the premier’s taunts with her own list of meetings Nenshi has attended with political leaders.

“We have not called any racist Islamophobes who want to annex Canada,” said Gray.

Smith’s office has noted that Shapiro, the media personality she’s set to meet in Florida, believes the U.S. should lower tariffs on Canadian goods.

Shapiro has also written social media posts suggesting support for U.S. President Donald Trump’s idea of annexing Canada as America’s 51st state.

Shapiro has suggested Canada could become the “Puerto Rico” of the north, and that Canadians shouldn’t be allowed to vote in American elections.

“When we take Canada, you will be expelled to Panama to work the canal,” Shapiro posted on the social media site X in response to a post made by then-prime minister Justin Trudeau in January.

Smith has the backing of her chief of staff, Rob Anderson, who called the Florida foray a patriotic act of courage.

“The premier of Alberta going into the lion’s den to try and convince U.S. decision makers to cancel or even delay tariffs for as long as possible until our country is in a better position to defend ourselves with a strong leader is not only noble — it’s as Albertan and Canadian as it gets," he wrote on social media.

He called the “Liberal/NDP lefties losing their minds” over the mission “cowards.”

Meanwhile, Nenshi told reporters Smith’s decision to go to Florida shows an “appalling” lack of judgment.

He said her PragerU appearance will fall on Laylatul Qadr, considered the holiest night of the year for Muslims.

“All that Muslims in Alberta can talk about is how she’s insulted them by doing this,” he said.

The trip comes as Smith faced criticism this week for media comments in which she said she has urged U.S. officials to pause implementing tariffs on Canada during the election, saying the tariff threat was hurting her preferred candidate, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.

In an interview with Breitbart earlier this month, Smith said Poilievre is “very much in sync” with America’s direction under Trump.

On Tuesday, Smith said she’s been encouraged by federal officials and by other premiers to use her network of contacts south of the border to push against the tariffs.

“I note that when other premiers go and do American media, they’re praised. I wonder why it is that when I go and do American media, the members opposite have nothing but criticism?” said Smith.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 25, 2025.

Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press