U.S. President Donald Trump is adding his voice to the chorus of Republican politicians who are blaming Canada for wildfire smoke drifting across the border.
Hundreds of active wildfires, most in northwestern Ontario, have triggered air quality warnings for states close to the Great Lakes, stretching from Minnesota to Maryland.
Trump threatened to top up the import tariffs he’s already levied on Canadian goods in response to the smoke that has drifted south of the border.
“We are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush therein, and the United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air,” the president wrote in a social media post on Friday.
“This is Willful Negligence, and becoming a yearly occurrence, costing the United States Billions of Dollars, which cost of this pollution must of necessity be added to the TARIFFS Canada is currently paying.”
The president said he intends to call Prime Minister Mark Carney to discuss the “totally unacceptable” situation.
Just hours before Trump’s post, Ontario Premier Doug Ford shot back at previous comments from American politicians who have blamed Canada for the smoke in recent days.
Ford urged the Americans to stop complaining about the wildfire smoke and instead send help — like Canada has done when U.S. states were struck by recent natural disasters.
Wildfires continue to rage across Ontario, forcing more evacuations
“If there’s some politicians out there chirping away, well maybe what you should do rather than complain is send support, send help, because we have done the exact same thing for our American friends. That’s what you’re supposed to do,” Ford said.
Ford made the remarks Friday in Toronto where he said he believes Americans are good neighbours, but need to start acting that way.
Four Michigan members of the House of Representatives wrote a letter to Carney warning him that the U.S. “will look elsewhere, and act on our own” if more action isn’t taken.
Carney did not directly address the letter when asked about it by reporters on Thursday, but took a jab at the current U.S. administration’s climate change policies.
“Climate change is everyone’s responsibility — truly everyone’s — including the United States,” he said in French during a news conference in London, Ont.
Tom Barrett, another Republican member of the House of Representatives, ratcheted that pressure up on Friday, suggesting in a post on X that the U.S. should halt the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge.
“Because Canadian wildfire smoke is pouring into Michigan. Do you think we should delay the Gordie Howe Bridge opening until Canada takes responsibility and gets control of these fires?” he asked in the post.
American political adviser Katie Miller — who is married to Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff — posted an image on X of a map showing Canada’s wildfires with the words: “This is why Canada should be the 51st state.”
For his part, Trump has created a new federal fire service and has revived a previously discredited “full suppression” policy in an effort to quickly stamp out wildfires on U.S. soil. That policy is under scrutiny after three U.S. government firefighters died in a Colorado wildfire last month.
Ford said he has spoken to other U.S. elected officials and noted that not all of them are attacking Canada: Some are offering help instead.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat, called the premier to ask how her state can contribute.
“I asked for water bombers, I don’t think they have the water bombers available. I asked for firefighters, anything that they can send,” Ford said.
Republicans blast Canada over wildfire smoke, air quality in northern U.S.
Northwestern Ontario Wildfires Latest: Evacuation order issued for area near Lac des Mille Lacs
The premier said Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, also a Democrat, asked for help to rescue two groups of campers stranded in the middle of a lake in wildfire country.
Ford said a joint operation between the Ontario Provincial Police and the Canadian Armed Forces managed to rescue both groups of campers, leaving Walz “so, so grateful.”
“As for other elected officials in the U.S., you know I have to remind the American people: When there were wildfires in California, we had our waterbombers on standby,” Ford said.
“When the hurricanes happened … we sent our linemen down there to reconnect [electricity]. We sent resources, we sent everything.”
In an interview airing Saturday on CBC Radio’s The House, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience Eleanor Olszewski told CBC News the U.S. criticism is off the mark.
“The challenge doesn’t know any borders,” she told host Catherine Cullen. “You could argue that we have mutual responsibilities, but the fact of the matter is we’re addressing those responsibilities by forest management techniques, for one, but also by responding, making sure our response to wildfires is as robust as it can possibly be.”
Olszewski said U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra wants the Canada/U.S. collaborative efforts to battle wildfires, where both countries come to one another’s aid, to continue.
“We have helped the Americans a number of times in terms of sending firefighters to assist the Americans regarding their wildfire situation, the Palisades fire previously,” she said, singling out Canadian efforts to help the U.S. battle destructive wildfires in California last year.
“In return, the Americans do send firefighters to assist us. So … this is a relationship that’s been ongoing for decades.”
