Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) checked Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Wednesday for complaining about how Canada has treated the U.S. since President Donald Trump launched his trade war with the country last year.
Shaheen — in remarks to Lutnick during his testimony to the Senate Appropriations Committee — pointed to a roughly 30% drop in Canadian tourists visiting her state last year before arguing that the figure is due to “the loss of trust and goodwill” because of the administration’s rhetoric.
“How does insulting our closest ally and neighbor help the businesses in my state of New Hampshire and states all across this country that are hurting because of the loss of Canadian business and tourism?” she asked.
As Lutnick began to discuss how Canada “leans on” the U.S. economy, Shaheen cut him off to underscore that businesses on both sides of the northern border have taken hits due to comments from Trump officials.
“How does that help our economy?” she asked of Lutnick, who recently summed up Canada’s trade strategy by saying, “They suck.”
“It is outrageous that Canada will not put U.S. spirits on the shelf. It is insulting and disrespectful to America that they won’t even put—” Lutnick began.
“Absolutely,” said the senator, who noted that her husband has an interest in a company that has American spirits. “[Canada] won’t do it because of the insults from this president and comments like yours.”
Shaheen’s exchange with Lutnick arrives months before the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (or USMCA) is up for review in July. Lutnick has said that the president thinks USMCA is a “bad deal” that “needs to be reconsidered and reimagined correctly.” Notably, Trump wondered “who would ever sign” such a deal last year despite doing just that in 2020 when he called it the “best agreement we’ve ever made.”
The senator, in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper later Wednesday, emphasized that Trump officials aren’t helping by criticizing Canada, adding that the country is going to China for business deals instead of its neighbor.
