Anita Anand defends Canada’s trade amid Trump’s threat

President-elect Donald Trump posted on social media Monday that on his first day in office, he would impose 25% tariffs on all goods imported from Mexico and Canada until those countries stop illegal immigration and the flow of illegal drugs, such as fentanyl, into the United States.

Minister of Transportation Anita Anand was in Hamilton to respond to the threats.

The transportation minister also emphasized that the economic relationship between the two countries needs to remain strong to sustain the $3.3 billion in trade and goods that cross the border every day.

Anand says Trudeau’s government has experience dealing with Trump, particularly with an administration that has shown itself to be unpredictable.

U.S. Customs agents seized only 43 pounds of fentanyl at the northern border last year, while more than 21,000 pounds were seized at the southern border.

The U.S. Border Patrol made 56,530 arrests at the Mexican border in October alone, compared to fewer than 24,000 arrests at the Canadian border between October 2023 and September 2024.

Trump will take office on January 20th, and Anand says the strong partnership between U.S. border services, the FBI, CBSA, and the RCMP needs to continue.