Donald Trump knows the Canada-U.S. relationship 'in a way he didn’t before': Ambassador

Canada’s ambassador to the United States — and co-lead of the federal government’s Team Canada war room — says U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has a different understanding of the bilateral relationship than he did during his first term in the White House.

Trump, throughout this latest election campaign, has threatened to impose across-the-board tariffs on imports, to reopen America's trilateral free-trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, and to launch a mass deportation operation, raising fears of an exodus to Canada.

• Download the CTV News App for breaking news alerts and video on all the top stories

Despite that, Ambassador Kirsten Hillman told CTV’s Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an interview airing Sunday that trade negotiations during Trump’s first term, coupled with navigating the physical border during the COVID-19 pandemic, “sensitized” the president-elect to the uniqueness of Canada-U.S. relations.

“I think the difference is that he himself knows the importance of the Canada-U.S. relationship in a way that he didn't before,” she said. “We went through the renegotiation of the NAFTA, and it wasn't always easy, but we did come out with an agreement that is really, really effective, an agreement that has led to historic levels of Canada-U.S. trade.”

“And he knows that,” Hillman added. “So he can take credit for that.”

Trade experts and industry representatives have raised concerns about the potential consequences on both the American and Canadian economies of Trump’s promised tariffs of 10 per cent or more on imported goods. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce estimates the resulting economic impact in this country would be $30 billion annually.

When asked about the policy — and the lack of assurances from Trump or his team that Canada would be exempt from such a measure — Hillman insisted the relationship with Trump’s forthcoming administration is “starting from a different place” than it did when he first took office eight years ago.

“President Trump believes in tariffs as a policy tool, and that is a fact,” the ambassador said. “Does that mean that he believes in them as a policy tool in all circumstances, for all countries? No, I don't think so.”

She pointed to negotiations over Trump’s punishing steel and aluminum tariffs during his first term, as well as the NAFTA renegotiation, as proof Canada can make inroads with the incoming Trump administration.

“I'm not really in a position to speculate on the outcome, but I know that we have really, really good arguments to make,” Hillman said. “I know that we had some success last time and I know that we are laser-focused on this issue.”

• America Votes: Latest U.S. election news and analysis from a Canadian perspective

When pressed on the once-and-future president’s decision to remove the prior tariffs largely because of Canada threatening counter-tariffs, as well as whether Canada would threaten to apply retaliatory tariffs in this instance, Hillman said nothing is off the table.

“I think we can't speculate as to what exactly will happen, but I think that Canada will be prepared to consider all options to defend the interests of Canadians and defend the Canadian economy,” she said.

With files from CTV’s Question Period Senior Producer Brennan MacDonald

You can watch the full interview in the video player at the top of this article.