Ambassador Hints Canada May Face Trump Blame for Midterm Losses

Pete Hoekstra, the US ambassador to Canada, told business leaders that Prime Minister Mark Carney and his government might face pressure if Republicans lose key seats in the midterm elections next week.

CTV News reported on Wednesday that Hoekstra made the comments during a closed-door meeting. He suggested that if Democrats win races in swing states such as Maine and Michigan, relations between the two countries could deteriorate. Trump might try to pin the electoral losses on Canada, according to the account.

Carney responded to the claims when asked by reporters. He described the suggestion as an interesting way of framing the situation. The two nations have been engaged in a tariff dispute for months. Ottawa has imposed retaliatory tariffs on goods from US states that rely heavily on trade with Canada. Carney said Canada will pursue a trade deal if possible, but noted that negotiators are not in a position to do so right now.

Hoekstra has faced criticism in Canada for his public remarks. Last year, he told a Michigan radio station that Trump’s idea of making Canada the 51st state was a sign of affection. He questioned why Canadians were offended by what he called a generous offer. He had also described the 2025 federal election in Canada as anti-American.

A petition signed by more than 225,000 Canadians asked the House of Commons to expel the ambassador this year. Signers argued his comments breached diplomatic protocols regarding interference in host country affairs. Recently, Hoekstra accused Canadian officials of meddling in US elections. He cited politicians criticizing tariffs in American media and an anti-tariff ad from Ontario that aired on US television.

Hoekstra told a Canadian podcast that if Canadian actions become election interference, America will respond. He advised Canadians to keep their noses out of American politics. Industry Minister Melanie Joly, who was a target of his comments, said Canada would never do that and would not accept the same treatment at home.

Speaking in Turkey, Carney said there was no merit to the interference claims. He expressed disappointment that the envoy sees it as his role to make such suggestions. Roland Paris, a foreign affairs adviser at the University of Ottawa, called the remarks extraordinary for an ambassador. He said the comments appeared designed to manufacture a pretext for the administration’s political difficulties.

The US embassy denied that Hoekstra said Canada would be blamed for a weak Republican result. Spokespeople said his words were grossly taken out of context from a broader discussion. They stated that the ambassador has consistently held that Canadian media overstate the relevance of Canadian issues in American elections. Americans will decide their elections based on issues important to them, the embassy said.