{"id":329709,"date":"2026-08-26T00:12:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T00:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/329709\/"},"modified":"2026-08-26T00:12:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T00:12:11","slug":"garry-douglas-critical-of-u-s-canada-trade-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/329709\/","title":{"rendered":"Garry Douglas critical of U.S.-Canada trade war"},"content":{"rendered":"

The U.S. and Canada are rushing into a trade war, with President Donald Trump threatening new tariffs against a variety of Canadian goods, including steel, starting in January. Just a few days ago, the U.S. enacted a separate 50% tariff on Canadian goods including agricultural products, prompting Canada\u2019s prime minister to promise a reciprocal response: tariffs on U.S. steel and dairy starting in September.<\/p>\n

For almost 34 years, Garry Douglas has served as president of the North Country Chamber of Commerce based in Plattsburgh (which he calls \u201cMontreal\u2019s U.S. suburb\u201d).\u00a0 Douglas told Capital Tonight that it\u2019s painful to watch an economic relationship, decades in the making, become so strained.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause we\u2019ve been so connected with Canada, particularly Quebec, more than any other place along the entire frontier, people are upset about it, unhappy about it, unsupportive of what the U.S. is continuing to do towards Canada in terms of tariffs and other conduct,\u201d he said referencing President Trump\u2019s rhetoric around making Canada the 51st state.<\/p>\n

Canada is New York state\u2019s largest and most important trading partner, accounting for billions of dollars in trade annually. New York imports $21 billion in goods from Canada every year, and exports $16 billion in goods to Canada.<\/a><\/p>\n

When asked if New Yorkers should care about the $5 billion trade imbalance that benefits Canada, Douglas said no.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe U.S. and Canada do not have, I repeat, do not have a traditional trade relationship. We have a traditional trade relationship with Bulgaria and Thailand, not with Canada,\u201d Douglas said. \u201cCanada and the U.S., for half a century and longer, have been purposely building a fully integrated economy in which we make things together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Douglas insists that numbers don\u2019t tell the entire story and that trade between the two nations is not out of balance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIsn\u2019t it an economic asset for us to have access to cost effective hydroelectricity and national gas and oil from a proximate next door secure neighbor?\u201d he asked rhetorically. \u201cWe\u2019re shooting ourselves in the foot.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Douglas, one of the most heartbreaking aspects of the trade war is that it was made personal in part thanks to comments by the president. In recent months, Trump has called Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney a clown on social media and suggested that the U.S. might rename Lake Ontario \u201cLake America.”<\/p>\n

Canadian tourism to the U.S. dropped by 21%, according to the New York state comptroller.<\/a><\/p>\n

The North Country Chamber of Commerce, which Douglas leads, created an award-winning video campaign<\/a> that airs across much of Canada in response to the drop in tourism. It\u2019s not meant as marketing, but rather \u201csincere messaging,\u201d Douglas said.<\/p>\n

Since the campaign was launched, there\u2019s been a 10% improvement in cross-border car counts this summer compared with 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could take years to repair (this relationship),\u201d Douglas told Capital Tonight.<\/p>\n

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