A senior US official on Tuesday demanded that Canadian lobbyists leave the United States, warning Ottawa against seeking to influence American politics.
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told Canadians working on "K-Street," the district where many lobbying firms operate, to "get the hell out of our country."
"The problem you have is you lobby this country, and you've been successful in the past, and you think you can keep doing that," he said at an event in Washington, DC.
"Memo to Canada: You cannot do that. Okay, that game is up."
"If you interfere in our elections in Maine or Michigan, you will pay even more dearly," he added.
Noting the rollout of reciprocal tariffs, Navarro claimed there were "lines at the door" at the US Trade Representative and that "countries were begging us."
While saying he loves "the Canadian people," he took aim at Ottawa's negotiators.
"I do not love the Canadian negotiators," he said. "You just can't trust them."
Speaking at a news conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney avoided directly responding to Navarro's remarks but expressed Canada's readiness to negotiate trade relations in "good faith."
"I'll just say this on trade. It continues to be the case that Canada stands ready to negotiate in good faith what is there, which is a mutually advantageous trade arrangement that respects both our countries' sovereignty," he said.
After trade talks between Canada and the US collapsed last month, the US moved to impose 50% tariffs on key Canadian goods.
Canada's retaliatory tariffs on $20 billion worth of US goods took effect Tuesday, escalating a trade war between the neighbors.
Canada clarified that the counter-tariffs only apply to goods originating from the US and will not affect shipments already in transit on the day of implementation.
The dispute has intensified dramatically under the Trump administration, with successive rounds of import taxes and retaliatory measures.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the Canada-US trade gap, pointing to it as a core reason for imposing tariffs and regularly alleging that Ottawa is "ripping off" America.
