Washington state has a lot to lose in the escalating trade war between the U.S. and Canada. Already, President Donald Trump’s tariffs have driven up prices on American consumers, made it harder for businesses to sell products between the two countries and hurt border towns because of the steep decline in Canadians coming south to visit.
But a much greater threat looms.
After the Trump administration imposed 50% tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian products like hockey sticks last week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney didn’t just vow “dollar for dollar” retaliation starting Sept. 8. He went further.
“We will respond. We’re going to focus on what we can control,” Carney told reporters Saturday. “We’re gonna build.”
Carney is playing a much longer game here. He is inducing a willing nation to ponder an economic future increasingly decoupled from its longtime stalwart ally and trading partner. His government is planning billions of dollars in new infrastructure with the aim of doubling non-U.S. exports in a decade. That means supercharging its coastal ports and gateways.
For example: With little fanfare, Canada’s federal and provincial governments announced in July the development of a new 1 million barrel-per day oil pipeline from Alberta to British Columbia, to be loaded into tankers within the Salish Sea and shipped to overseas markets. The Trans Mountain Pipeline System already hauls more than 800,000 gallons per day, so the new capacity would more than double the volume.
Trump’s trade war has thus sowed the seeds of a greater long-term estrangement. Whatever his rotisserie of grievances he chooses to weaponize with his latest tariffs, he has placed in further jeopardy the movement of 330,000 people and $2 billion worth of goods that cross an undefended 5,525-mile border each day.
Washington’s own leaders have a role to play in how this state responds to this escalating tariff tit-for-tat. Lt. Gov. Denny Heck, in the wake of Trump’s tariffs, has effectively kept an open line with delegations to the north, bringing with him the simple phrase: “We love Canada.”
As The Times editorial board has noted in the past, leaders here, including Gov. Bob Ferguson, must work to maintain the bonds with their counterparts in British Columbia — or they risk losing them.
Even then, the dynamics of the U.S.-Canada relationship have likely changed for good. Americans should not expect a return to normalcy no matter who becomes president on Jan. 20, 2029.
Trump has created deep, unforgettable and unforgivable wounds in one of history’s most enduring country-to-country partnerships. Our professional sports teams play each other, our workforces build cars and complex machines with one another, and our troops have even died on the field of battle together. This is a betrayal of friendship — one that will take years to repair, if ever.
