Liberal leadership candidate Chrystia Freeland visited Saskatoon on Thursday.
Julia Peterson
Saskatoon StarPhoenix
As federal Liberal party members prepare to choose their next leader in March, and with the promise of an upcoming federal election on the horizon, Chrystia Freeland says voters will determine how Canada emerges from “an existential moment for our country.”
“I think the ballot question — the most important question — should be ‘Who can fight for Canada? Who can stand up for Canada?’ Freeland said during a Thursday visit to Saskatoon.
“And I am the candidate who has done that already.”
Having served as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s finance minister and deputy prime minister until her abrupt resignation from his cabinet in December, Freeland says she is now running to replace him based on her economic track record and deep ties to the Prairies.
With the United States announcing — then backtracking, then re-announcing — tariffs on Canadian goods including aluminum and steel since U.S. president Donald Trump took office for the second time in January, Freeland said she’s eager to return to the negotiating table.
“One of the most important things that I led in government was our (2018) renegotiation of NAFTA,” she said.
“This is not the first time we’ve had some trade challenges with the U.S., and when President Trump threatened to tear up NAFTA (and) imposed tariffs on our steel and aluminum, it was my job to fight back. And we got a really, really good deal — don’t tell the Americans — actually better than the deal we had before. …
“Working together, putting in place a strong retaliation, we were successful and those tariffs were lifted without any concessions from Canada.”
Freeland said Canadians have already made it clear where they stand by voting with their wallets, boycotting American products and throwing their support behind Canadian businesses, and she’s eager to keep building that momentum.
“I am inspired and energized by the spontaneous and unanimous way that Canadians across the country have said, ‘We do not want to be the 51st state. We are going to stand up for Canada. We are going to fight for Canada.’ And you’ve seen it everywhere,” she said.
Freeland said resource-rich Saskatchewan could come out on top, if the province and the federal government collaborate.
“This is a time of great opportunity for Saskatchewan,” she said. “It’s a time when potash has never been more important for the global economy and for the Canadian economy as a form of economic as well as national security. It’s a time when energy, whether that is uranium or oil and gas, has never been more important for Canada and our relationship with the United States. …
“Everyone who mines potash in Saskatchewan (is) not only contributing to our economy and helping feed the people of the world, but contributing to Canada’s national security.”
Saskatchewan needs to be at the forefront of the response to the American tariffs, she said.
The Conservative Party swept every Saskatchewan riding in the last federal election. Freeland, who was born and raised in neighbouring Alberta, said the next Liberal leader will need to work hard to prove their bona fides and make sure the province gets its due on the national stage.
“I know people in the Prairies often don’t feel represented by the federal government, and they particularly feel un-represented by a Liberal government,” she said. “One of the reasons I’m running to be leader of the Liberal Party and the next prime minister of Canada is that I want to change that.”
Having collaborated with Premier Scott Moe during the 2018 NAFTA renegotiations and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Freeland described their working relationship as “really effective” and said she would be glad to continue working with him to “lead a Team Canada approach, stand up for our country and fight Donald Trump.”
She said Conservatives will also need to prove that they can, and will, stand up for the Prairie provinces’ interests on the international stage.
“The reality is, Pierre Poilievre … has spent the past couple of years denigrating Canada, talking Canada down, and he is not the guy our country can afford to have dealing with President Trump,” she said. “He is a Trump wannabe; he wants to be the apprentice, not the guy who stands up to him.
“And we are, right now, facing a direct threat — including a threat to our sovereignty — from the U.S. This is a moment that we need leadership that recognizes the gravity of the threat that President Trump poses.”
