Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says while she doesn’t want to assume anything after her meeting with U.S. president-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence over the weekend, Canada needs “to be prepared” that threatened tariffs are on the way.
Smith met with the president-elect at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday evening, and again at his golf club on Sunday morning. She was a guest of Canadian celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary.
O’Leary is proposing a massive AI data centre in northern Alberta. He recently expressed support for the idea of an economic union between Canada and the United States.
On Monday, Smith told reporters she had a “friendly conversation” with Trump.
“And I thought quite constructive, in which I emphasized the mutual importance of the U.S.-Canada relationship,” Smith said, adding she was also able to speak with members of the incoming U.S. administration.