'Canada's our family': North Dakotans worried about trade dispute

CTVNews.ca Staff</span>
Published Thursday, June 28, 2018 9:03PM EDT
Last Updated Thursday, June 28, 2018 9:05PM EDT

Nearly two in three North Dakotan voters chose U.S. President Donald Trump in 2016. He continues to enjoy wide support in the state, but that doesn’t mean voters there like his positions on trade with Canada.

That’s because a trade war could mean losing its biggest customers. North Dakota exported $4.4 billion worth of goods and services to Canada in 2016. That’s 82 per cent of its total exports.

In Fargo, Trump supporter Dee Belcourt was selling “Make America Great Again” hats outside a rally on Wednesday night. While she’s obviously a Trump fan, she wasn’t impressed by his recent “name calling.”

“Canada is great, U.S. is great, and (if) we stick together, I think we're good,” she told CTV Winnipeg’s Josh Crabb.

Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney said he’s “very concerned” about the tariffs that Canada is planning for July 1st in retaliation for Trump’s tariffs on Canadian-made steel and aluminum.

“We have a lot of Canadians that shop in our area and we do cross (border) trading as well,” Mahoney said.

“So for us, it's kind of like one of your best friends got insulted,” he said. “How do you bring that back together again?"

Simon Wilson, from the North Dakota Trade Office, said the relationship has already been damaged.

“You can’t say things and just take them back,” he said.

“So for us, it's been a little bit of a tough time,” Wilson added. “Canada's our family.”

Trump told North Dakotans at a packed rally on Wednesday that, “We love Canada but they’re taking advantage of us.”

Ottawa is expected to announce $16.6 billion in retaliatory tariffs on the United States on Friday. The proposed list of goods that will now cost Canadians more to buy from the U.S. includes everything from bourbon to motorboats.

With a report from CTV Winnipeg’s Josh Crabb

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