If the United States wants to sell its liquor to Canadians, or encourage them to travel south of the border, the White House needs to stop bullying us.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on August 17, 2026.

The call to dump American Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra is growing. E-7531 is a House of Commons online petition, which had more than 106,000 signatures on Aug. 13.

The petition, launched by a Calgary woman, is slated to be presented to Parliament by Green Party Leader Elizabeth May when the House of Commons reconvenes in the fall.

According to a weekly rolling average, almost 3,000 people were signing the petition daily before it made the national news and momentum grew.

The petition calls on the government to declare Hoekstra persona non grata and secure his removal from the country. It accuses the ambassador of making statements that undermine the relationship between Canada and the United States, and “making repeated interventions in Canadian political discourse inconsistent with diplomatic protocol.”

The ambassador has criticized what he characterized as an “anti-American tone” in the last election.

The Canadian government does have the power to expel diplomats, but it is a tool used very infrequently. Past diplomats have been expelled for allegations of spying, foreign interference, and criminal acts.

Hoekstra claims he is simply representing the views of U.S. President Donald Trump, and in that respect he is correct.

The petition also states that before Hoekstra became ambassador, he was linked to a Michigan-based voter identification app which was recently used by Alberta separatists to collect signatures for the Centurion project.

The Alberta Prosperity Project, a separatist group, says it has held multiple meetings with the U.S. State Department, although Hoekstra says the Trump administration has not met with those individuals.

The petition is claiming that the actions of Hoekstra, in promoting the annexation of Canada and working with separatists, is a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

It was Trump who continually raised the issue of annexing Canada, so the petition to kick Hoekstra out of the country reflects Canadians’ discontent with the political positions taken by the U.S. president.

Hoekstra has stated he is upset over the lack of American liquor on Canadian sales shelves, and by the decision of many Canadians to boycott travelling to the U.S.

Those positions are also a reflection of his government’s current position. Like it or not, Hoekstra is generally repeating the inane ruminations of his president.

But if we kick out the American ambassador for saying bad things, what about the status of other countries that do bad things?

Russia is currently involved in an illegal attack on Ukraine, but Ambassador Oleg Stepanov is still functioning in his office on Charlotte Street in Ottawa.

What would be the repercussions of removing the American ambassador?

You can rest assured that if Hoekstra were to be kicked out of Canada, our ambassador would not remain in Washington for long. Mark Wiseman’s tenure would be terminated, as well, leaving Canada in a very difficult position when it comes to negotiating the bilateral trade agreements that are currently under discussion.

Tabling a parliamentary petition can be done by any Member of Parliament, and it does not even mean the MP is in support of the document.

House of Commons rules require members to table valid petitions, but they are usually tabled by the MP in the constituency where the petition originated. In this case, tradition dictates that it should have been a Calgary parliamentarian since petition originator Leanne Walker lives in Calgary.

The petition itself does not require a vote of the House, but the document is also calling for the creation of a parliamentary committee to examine American interference in Canadian politics.

That may happen because it is something that could be of interest to representatives in every political party. It will also shine a light into the links between Alberta separatists and American supporters of Canadian annexation.

There is little likelihood that Hoekstra will be declared persona non grata. The legal and political ramifications would simply be too great to justify such a move. With a trade agreement hanging in the balance, the dismissal would be seen by the Americans as a direct slap in the face to the president.

But the fact that so many Canadians would support removal should send a message to Washington—if anyone is listening: if you want to sell your liquor to Canadians, or encourage them to visit your country, you need to stop bullying us.

Hoekstra may be a blunt messenger, but his message is directed by the Oval Office.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

Some might argue the president’s grievances about the Gordie Howe International Bridge are simply an attempt to distract from the global discussion about his racist post featuring former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as monkeys

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on February 16, 2026.

OTTAWA—If you build it, they will come. Except if opponents are friends of United States President Donald Trump.

Trump’s latest foray into Canadian politics is a false claim that a new bridge about to be opened at the Windsor-Detroit border should be delayed because no American steel was used in the construction, which is not true. He also stated that the bridge would not open unless the U.S. was compensated for everything it has given to Canada.

The irony of Trump’s complaints is that the U.S. government refused to participate in the initial cost of the bridge construction, which was fully financed by the Government of Canada. It is hard pressed to make labour or content demands on the project.

The president’s last-minute intervention is another example of how corrupt the American political system has become.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge has been in consideration for more than two decades.

The Ambassador Bridge, built in 1929, is North America’s No. 1 international border crossing. It is privately owned, and multiple attempts to build a new bridge beginning at the turn of the century have been blocked by the current owners, the American Moroun family.

Despite the obvious need for a second bridge, the Morouns’ political influence and lawsuits delayed the process for years.

In a newspaper column in 2012, journalist David Frum characterized the dispute as a conflict between private and public infrastructure where the monopoly led by the Moroun family used influence in Washington, D.C., to derail a proposed public sector bridge for decades.

Finally, in frustration, the Canadian government agreed to fully fund the joint bridge on the condition that the investment be recouped through tolls.

The proposed bridge was ultimately named after Gordie Howe, the popular Canadian hockey player who spent most of his NHL career with the Detroit Red Wings. The bilateral agreement was signed by the Canadian and Michigan governments, and both parties are joint owners of the bridge scheduled to open early this year.

The construction has taken more than eight years, and the project was led by the “Building North America” consortium which was selected in July 2018 to design, build, operate and maintain the bridge.

The $6.4-billion cost of the project was fully financed by the Government of Canada, a fact that seemed to be missing from Trump’s latest Truth Social grievance taking aim at the bridge’s ownership structure and claiming that Canada has “treated the United States unfairly for decades.”

Washington did not put out a penny for the project, so it is hard to claim that the U.S. has been treated unfairly.

Michigan politicians were quick to point out the second bridge will facilitate commerce and trade between the two countries. Governor Gretchen Whitmer weighed in to support the opening, saying that the bridge agreement was approved by her Republican predecessor.

The only people who seem to be benefitting from threats to stall the bridge opening are the family members who own the Ambassador Bridge.

As Frum pointed out in 2012, the move to block a second bridge is a perfect example of how public policy is stymied by private interests. In the end, it is the trade between the two countries that suffers.

That may fit with Trump’s agenda as he is obviously not interested in a seamless transportation network between Canada and the U.S.

But it certainly hurts his own country’s economic agenda, which is why Michigan politicians are all lining up in favour of opening the Gordie Howe bridge as soon as possible.

U.S. ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra has been assigned to manage the file for the president. Hoekstra is a former Michigan congressman.

Some might argue the bridge kerfuffle was simply an attempt by Trump to distract from the global discussion about his racist post featuring former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as monkeys.

The meme on Trump’s personal account on Truth Social stayed online for 12 hours, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt characterizing reaction as “fake outrage.” She claimed: “This is from an internet meme video depicting President Trump as the king of the jungle and Democrats as characters from the Lion King.”

Even Republicans chimed in to attack the post, with U.S. Senator Tim Scott “praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I have seen from this White House.”

Other Republicans condemned the post, but the president insisted he did nothing wrong, and was not about to apologize.

In most jurisdictions, such a racist publication would likely spark calls for resignation.

In this case, presidential filters, accountability, and respect are non-existent. Trump celebrates racism and inflames hatred.

It is just another crazy week at the White House.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.