TORONTO — Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he will cut off electricity exports to three border states, including Minnesota, if President Trum slaps a 25% tariff surcharges on Canadian goods. Ford was firm: “If they want to try to annihilate Ontario, I will do everything, including cut off their energy, with a smile on my face.” Michigan, Minnesota and New York rely heavily on electricity generated in Ontario. “They want to come at us hard, we’re going to come back twice as hard,” Ford said. “They need to feel the pain.”
Verbatim
Ford: “We didn’t start this tariff war, but we’ll go dollar for dolar to win.” Ford acknowledged that Canadian trade pplicy is decided set by the national government but that t but provinces, like his Ontario, are of one mind.
Ford. Ontario premier. His favorite baseball proclaims: “Canada Is Not for Sale.”
Major transborder transmission lines. These are super-voltage transmission lines. Other line, less than 345kV, don’t appear on this moa. Image: North American Electric Reliability Corporation
Trump belligerence
Trump has blamed Canada for illegal traffic of the drug fentanyl into the United Sates and resulting thousands of overdose deaths, although he’s never produced supporting data about the quantity. Nor has he explained why U.S. border guards don’t intercept shipments. Trump has claimed that Canada treats the United States badly, claiming falsely, among other thnigs, that Canada forbids U.S .banks from doing business in Canada. He also has suggested the annexation of Canada as a 51st state, irritating Canadians to no small degree. Aside from negotiation bluster and bluff, it’s unclear why Trump has been picking at Canada. The countries have been trading partners and geopolitical allies historically.