Poilievre lays out his plan to deal with Trump and help Canada weather the tariff storm

John Paul Tasker · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 02, 2025 12:53 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

On the time U.S. President Donald Trump is poised to deed Canada with a slate of caller tariffs that could torpedo cross-border trade, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre laid retired his program to instrumentality connected the Americans and assistance this state get done what's expected to beryllium a tumultuous economical period.

Poilievre told reporters helium hasn't spoken to anyone successful the U.S. enforcement subdivision since this commercialized warfare began, saying helium prefers to permission those discussions to the existent premier curate truthful arsenic not to disagreement Canada's "voice" and its attack to the "unjustified" American economical threat.

While helium hasn't been directly lobbying the U.S. for a reprieve oregon popping up connected American television, Poilievre said helium has been doing his "homework" and helium has a program to effort to neutralize the Trump threat.

His program includes a propulsion to renegotiate the commercialized woody with the U.S. arsenic soon arsenic possible, chopped income taxes astatine home, trim the superior gains taxation load for radical who put successful Canada, and basal up a concern liquidity enactment programme to springiness companies entree to currency to support workers connected the payroll through tough times.

WATCH: Poilievre says helium has not contacted anyone successful U.S. enforcement administration:

While acknowledging the Trump menace is an issue, Poilievre said his predetermination run won't beryllium squarely focused connected dealing with the American threat, arsenic the Ontario PCs did during their caller winning provincial predetermination campaign.

He said helium volition proceed to prosecute the Liberals for their perceived failures successful authorities and support his attraction connected different pressing issues similar the lodging crisis, adjacent arsenic helium faces pressure, including from wrong his ain party, to marque a hard pivot.

"I volition not halt talking astir these problems that predate Donald Trump and that volition outlast Donald Trump if we bash not hole them," Poilievre said, besides referencing the outgo of living, ostentation and crime.

"I volition beryllium retired determination each time outlining my program to support Canada against American tariffs, but I volition besides unapologetically beryllium retired determination talking astir my program to physique much homes, get radical disconnected drugs and into recovery, hole the fund and support ostentation down," helium said.

Plans for 'economic fortress'

As portion of his program to instrumentality connected Trump, Poilievre said a authorities led by him would make an "economic fortress" by turbocharging lipid and state improvement and pipeline operation to get much of Western Canada's resources to different parts of the state and astir the world, lessening the Canada's dependence connected the American market.

Poilievre said helium supports "targeted, reciprocal" tariffs connected American goods, but lone ones that bash the slightest imaginable harm to the Canadian system — a perchance tricky balancing act.

If helium wins the adjacent election, Poilievre said helium wants to beryllium down with Trump and hash retired a caller commercialized statement to regenerate the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) that the president has near successful tatters with his tariffs.

Poilievre said helium would similar to spot each Canadian tariffs connected American goods paused portion those negotiations with Trump are ongoing, arsenic agelong arsenic the U.S. besides agrees to intermission its tariffs.

As portion of those talks, Poilievre said helium volition acquiesce to Trump's demands that Canada walk much connected defence.

Poilievre confirmed for the archetypal time that a imaginable Conservative authorities would deed the NATO benchmark of spending 2 per cent of GDP connected defence — a multi-billion-dollar backing committedness that Poilievre said helium could initially money with immoderate imaginable tariffs connected American goods.

Poilievre besides laid retired what helium calls reddish lines successful immoderate dialog with Trump and his squad — things that Canada would ne'er hold to negociate away.

He said Canada indispensable support power implicit its borderline and its caller water, and prevention its automotive manufacture and its supply-managed workplace sectors.

He said Canada's currency, "our lands, our skies, our civilization and our authoritative languages," and protections for Indigenous peoples are besides non-starters.

"We volition support Canada's sovereignty," helium said.

Canada's system indispensable 'change dramatically': Carney

Poilievre's U.S. program is not radically antithetic from the 1 being pursued by Liberal Leader Mark Carney, who has already agreed with Trump to beryllium down close aft this national election — if helium wins — and commencement the process of renegotiating a new, broad economical and information relationship to bring this epoch of fractious relations to a close.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Carney has said helium volition instrumentality a pugnacious basal against Trump to support the country's interests — adjacent arsenic helium looks to negociate an off-ramp for this commercialized war.

"As I made wide to President Trump successful our telephone past week, I volition cull each attempts to weaken Canada, each attempts to deterioration america down, to interruption america down so that America tin ain us. That volition never, ever happen," Carney said.

"President Trump is successful the process of trying to fundamentally restructure the U.S. system and that means that our system present needs to alteration dramatically arsenic well."

Still, Poilievre said he's champion placed to support the state due to the fact that the Liberals person made Canada "weak" by restricting earthy resources improvement and overseeing lacklustre economical maturation successful caller years.

He said Carney can't beryllium trusted to unleash the vigor assemblage due to the fact that the Liberal person has promised to support Bill C-69, the past government's biology regulatory model that has been criticized by manufacture arsenic being excessively restrictive.

Carney has said however that he's unfastened to gathering a caller east-west pipeline to spur improvement and lessen Canada's reliance connected the U.S., fundamentally the sole export marketplace for our oil products successful particular.

Poilievre claimed Trump is "supporting" Carney and that the president has "anointed Carney the victor of the adjacent election" due to the fact that the Americans would alternatively negociate with Team Carney.

Poilievre said the Liberals would permission Canada "even weaker and poorer than it was implicit the past decade," and babelike and "vulnerable" to the Americans.

"Trump wants the Liberals to triumph a 4th term," helium said. "It is clip for a alteration with a caller Conservative authorities that volition enactment Canada first."