EDMONTON — Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced new rules Wednesday on booze, gambling machines and government purchasing to fight back against sweeping U.S. tariffs.
But she said there won’t be any change to oil and gas shipped south.
Smith, speaking in Medicine Hat, said Alberta will no longer buy American alcohol and video lottery terminals or sign contracts with American companies. Alberta’s liquor stores are privately owned but still must order stock through the provincial government.
The move comes a day after U.S. President Donald Trump slapped 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods and 10 per cent levies on energy, saying he wants Canada to take action on cross-border drug traffic.
Other premiers have already announced bans on U.S. liquor along with other proposed penalties.
Smith reiterated that while oil and gas from Alberta is critical to the U.S. economy, she won’t play what she called that “trump card" by adding levies to oil and gas exports or cutting off the province's supply heading south.
She said doing so would only rebound on Canadian consumers, because the U.S. would respond in kind and Ontario and Quebec rely on cross-border oil shipments.
"Cutting off energy entirely would make Canada the bad guy for Americans, and we don't want that. We want the Americans to blame their struggles on the actual source of their problems - that being the Trump tariffs," said Smith.
Smith also echoed earlier comments from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who said the U.S. tariffs are part of a strategy to crater Canada's economy in a takeover bid.
"Trump's continued talk of using economic force to facilitate the annexation of our country has broken trust between our two nations in a profound way. It is a betrayal of a deep and abiding friendship," said Smith.
Although Smith said her province would love to increase oil exports to the U.S., she said it can't with the tariffs hanging over its head.
"Until our U.S. friends come back to reality, we will focus on efforts and financial means to export one of the largest oil and gas deposits in the world elsewhere," said Smith.
Smith said Alberta's government, along with all its agencies, school boards, Crown corporations and municipalities, will now only buy goods and services from local suppliers in Alberta, Canada or other jurisdictions that honour Canada's trade agreements.
Her government is launching an advertising campaign, and will work to help grocers and other retailers label Canadian products in stores.
Speaking directly to Albertans, she warned that if the trade dispute lingers for months or more, it will mean job losses, higher inflation and larger budget deficits for her government.
“The road ahead is very bumpy,” Smith said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 5, 2025.
Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press
