Canada is broadening its power to clamp down on cartels after the Trump administration used tariff threats to push for stronger curbs of the cross-border illegal drug trade.

McKercher said the language used by Trump in his tariff directive “gives the game away.” Essentially, by proposing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, except energy which was set at 10 per cent, Trump is revealing the country’s dependency on cheap Canadian energy and a concern about prices rising too high for Americans.

Patriotic sentiment is bursting in Canada after President Trump’s threat to apply hefty tariffs and even annex the country. The damage to the two nations’ relationship could be lasting.