Representative Image. / REUTERS/Patrick Doyle/File Photo

They say power—electricity—has no colour, but it can colour the economies of manufacturing hubs, provinces, and nations. US President Donald Trump has decided to proceed with his long-threatened tariffs on Canadian goods. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, fresh from his third consecutive mandate, is determined to colour the electricity flowing into the United States with a 25 percent surcharge.

The tariff war is getting “livid” with the outgoing Canadian Premier Justin Trudeau supported by Premiers of various provinces and territories making no secret of their intentions to resort to “tit for tat”. They have already started imposing “tariffs” on most American goods, with Justin Trudeau announcing a 25 percent tariff on imports worth US $ 30 billion.

Mark Carney, who is the frontrunner to succeed Justin Trudeau as Canadian Premier, sent a message to his supporters saying: "Canada is at a crossroads. The world is more uncertain, more dangerous, and more divided than it has been in decades. The next Liberal leader must be ready to meet this moment with serious leadership and a serious plan.

That’s why I stepped forward in this race—to fight for a strong, independent, and competitive Canada. One that invests in its people, grows its economy, and builds a better future. We need a leader who will put Canada first. We need a leader who will invest in Canadians. We need a leader who will build a stronger economy because a strong economy means a strong Canada.

The truth is we are now facing the most serious crisis in our lifetime. Donald Trump is back in the White House. The world is shifting fast, and Canada must be ready to stand strong.

Pierre Poilievre is the wrong person at the worst time. He takes his cues from Trump. He tears things down instead of building. His reflex is always to cut and destroy, never to strengthen and invest."

Canada is scheduled to get its new Prime Minister on March 9.

Groups supporting “Made in Canada”; while in Canada “Buy Canada"; "Donald Trump Canada is no US Dump”; and “Canada First” have been gaining both popularity and acceptability as more than 3600 American brands of alcohol have started disappearing from Liquor shops and vends in Ontario and British Columbia.

Ontario also threatened to end its $100-million deal with Elon Musk's Starlink internet provider. The U.S. companies will also be banned from procurement contracts as part of the province's response to President Donald Trump's tariffs on Canadian goods.

Premier Doug Ford, who is the chair of the Federation of Canadian Premiers, has been at the forefront in “tariff war," taking it across the international borders by warning lawmakers in New York, Michigan and Minnesota that if the trade war "persists" Ontario will put a 25 percent surcharge on electricity flowing into the states and potentially cut the flow off entirely.

Ontario supplies roughly 1.5 million customers in the border states with electricity.

"This is not the outcome anyone wanted," Ford said at Queen's Park in Toronto. "We could have poured our efforts into making Canada and the U.S. the two richest, most successful, safest, most secure two countries on the planet. Unfortunately, one man — President Trump — has chosen chaos instead."

Just after midnight, Trump moved ahead with long-threatened 25 percent tariffs on most Canadian goods.  A 10 percent tariff will similarly be applied to all Canadian energy exports heading south of the border.

The “tariff war" could wreak havoc on vital Ontario industries like auto manufacturing and steel production, drive up retail prices and fuel more inflation. Auto giants based in the province have warned that plants could be forced to halt production within five to eight days.

Intriguingly, Donald Trump, as president who signed the most recent free trade deal with Canada and Mexico, said in 2020 that it was "the best and most important trade deal ever made by the USA."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada's retaliatory response that included matching tariffs on $155 billion worth of U.S. goods — roughly $30 billion worth of goods right away and the remaining $125 billion in 21 days to give Canadian companies time to adjust their supply chains. He added that he believes Trump's ultimate goal is to weaken the Canadian economy so he can try to annex the country.

"First of all, that is never going to happen. Canada will never be the 51st state," he continued.

Doug Ford says he will ‘spare no expense to protect Ontario workers,’ while highlighting a slew of retaliatory measures in response to sweeping tariffs imposed by Donald Trump.  Ford has also threatened to surcharge or cut off critical mineral exports to the U.S. should the trade war linger.

"We also need to be ready to dig in for a long fight," Ford said. "We need to be ready to escalate using every tool in our tool kit."

Ford spoke just after hours Ontario's primary liquor wholesaler and retailer confirmed it will stop purchasing and selling U.S. alcohol. The LCBO previously offered some 3,600 American products sourced from 35 states, amounting to roughly $1 billion in annual sales. As the province's main booze distributor, it means grocery and convenience stores, bars and restaurants, and other retailers will no longer be able to buy U.S. alcohol.

Ontario is pulling 3,600 U.S. products off LCBO shelves in response to Trump's tariffs, with Premier Doug Ford encouraging people to buy Canadian brands instead.

He added that he believes Trump's ultimate goal is to weaken the Canadian economy so he can try to annex the country.

"First of all, that is never going to happen. Canada will never be the 51st state," he continued.

Ford has previously expressed support for the federal government to go "dollar for dollar" with retaliatory tariffs against U.S. goods.

The premier said American companies will not be able to bid on the $30 billion worth of procurement contracts the province awards each year or bid on contracts related to his $200-billion infrastructure plan to build highways, tunnels, transit, hospitals and jails.

"U.S.-based businesses will now lose out on tens of billions of dollars in revenues," Ford said. "They only have President Trump to blame."

As for the deal with Starlink to provide high-speed internet to northern Ontario, rural and remote First Nation communities, "it's done, it's gone," he said.

Doug Ford has also cautioned against tough times ahead.

"Businesses and families will feel the pain of this needless fight, but together we're going to stand up for Canada," he said. "We're going to get through this more united than ever before."