In response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, the leader of Canada’s most populous province threatened to cut energy to the United States with “a smile on my face,” adding that “they need to feel the pain.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford doubled down on his threats during a mining convention Monday.
“If they want to try to annihilate Ontario, I will do everything – including cut off their energy with a smile on my face,” he vowed Monday, the Toronto Sun reported.
TRUMP REACTS TO TRUDEAU RESIGNATION: ‘MANY PEOPLE IN CANADA LOVE BEING THE 51ST STATE’
“They rely on our energy, they need to feel the pain. They want to come at us hard, we’re going to come back twice as hard,” he added.
The U.S. is a major customer of Canadian electricity, the report states, with New York, Michigan and Minnesota being Ontario’s three biggest customers of domestically-produced power.
In 2022, Canada’s revenue for electricity exports to the U.S. reached a record high of $5.8 billion, according to the Canada Energy Regulator.
Ford said he would match the U.S. tariff for tariff.
“That’s exactly what we’re going to do,” Ford said.
“The provinces have a big say in it, but it’s the federal government that’s leading the charge, and we’re going to stand shoulder-to-shoulder no matter who’s in the federal government.”
In response to the Trump tariffs, Canada announced retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods on Tuesday.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the heads of some Canadian provinces have also threatened additional measures.
“A fight with Canada will have no winners,” Trudeau said while speaking to reporters in Ottawa.
“We will never be the 51st state, but he (Trump) can do damage to the Canadian economy, and he’s started this morning, but he is rapidly going to find out, as American families are going to find out, that that’s going to hurt people on both sides of the border,” he added.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.
