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A call by one of Donald Trump’s top trade advisers for Canadian lobbyists to “get the hell out of our country” was laughed off on Tuesday by Prime Minister Mark Carney as new U.S. trade restrictions on Canadian goods took effect.
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro made the comments, which were televised on CSPAN, during a conference in Washington, D.C., as he discussed U.S. national security and trade issues, according to BNN Bloomberg .
The world gets it now: tariffs bring countries to the table.
— Peter Navarro (@RealPNavarro) September 29, 2026
Everyone lined up to negotiate. Canada? They showed up with lobbyists.
Message to them? Get the hell out. pic.twitter.com/JES6qaHZZl
His thoughts then veered to the trade war when the topic of Canada was raised.
“Do you really want to spend any time on Canada?” Navarro told the host. “Because Canada, economically, is like a rowboat; we’re an aircraft carrier. How’s that gonna end? Any Canadians here, please, if you’re on K Street, get the hell out of our country.
“Because the problem you have is you lobby this country, you’ve been successful in the past and you think you can keep doing that. Memo to Canada: You cannot do that, OK? That game is up.”
Don’t interfere in ‘our elections:’ Navarro
Navarro, who also advised Trump during his first term as U.S. president and is a key proponent of reducing the country’s trade deficits, then added a stern warning ahead of November’s midterm elections.
“If you interfere in our elections in Maine or Michigan, you will pay even more dearly,” he said.
Mark Carney laughs when asked about Trump saying Canada will apologize pic.twitter.com/jcJXx4sKMQ
— Scott Robertson (@sarobertson_) September 29, 2026
When asked during a news conference in Vancouver about those comments and Trump speculating on Monday that Canada will apologize in the coming weeks to settle the trade dispute, a smirking Carney chuckled before offering little response.
“I take note of both comments, how’s that?” he said. “No response to either.”
Navarro’s comments came on the same day that a U.S. ban on select Canadian goods came into effect. Some of those imports include motorcycles like Bombardier’s popular three-wheel Can-Am Spyder, alcohol, cheese and other agricultural products.
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Canadian goods banned from U.S. market
The bans, which came into effect at midnight, were the latest escalation in a trade war that has seen the once-staunch allies impose tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of imports, a refusal by American officials to extend the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement and Trump rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America.”
Carney, meanwhile, has been seeking trade deals abroad in response to the rift and was welcomed by the European Commission earlier this month during President Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address, where she proposed that Canada become an “associate member” of the European Union.
Speaking at the White House on Monday , Trump again trashed Canada as the “worst country” to deal with, while adding that federal officials “take advantage of us” and “feel entitled.” He also said he expects Canadian officials “in the next three or four weeks, they’re going to come to us and they’re going to say, ‘We need to get rid of all the tariffs.’
“We’re going to win everything,” Trump said. “We even have Lake Ontario is now ‘Lake America.’ … But they’re going to come in and they’re going to say, ‘Sir, we’re sorry.’
“They’ve treated the United States very, very badly. I think a deal will be made, but it’s gotta be a fair deal.”
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