Canadians need to "keep the pressure up" on the United States by buying local and avoiding travel there, despite a recent push from California to draw visitors from Canada, British Columbia's premier says.
David Eby says he had a "really good conversation" with California Governor Gavin Newsom this week as the state launched a campaign to re-engage Canadian tourists, but it's not enough to change current pressure tactics.
"It's difficult for me because here's a guy — and a state, a major economic partner of ours in British Columbia — onside on the tariffs, fighting the Trump administration," Eby said at a media briefing on Thursday.
"But I know for myself and for British Columbians and for Canadians, I'm not ready to go to the States."
Eby, who spoke with Newsom in a virtual meeting Monday, said he appreciated California's stance against the tariffs from the Donald Trump White House and called the governor "an ally of Canada's," but Canadians need to continue to buy local and avoid American travel until the threats from the American president are resolved.
"We have to keep the pressure up. We cannot stop right now, because we know as soon as we ease up on the pressure, the president will go back to his preferred tactics of attacking us."
Eby had previously said that his family cancelled plans to visit Disneyland in California, despite having already spent $1,000 on tickets before the trade war began under Trump.
Newsom launched the tourism campaign targeting Canadians on the same day he met with Eby, saying in a video message on social media platform X that two million people from Canada visited California last year and the state "has something for everybody."
"The state of mind in the United States of America has dramatically changed as it relates to the approach to Canada, and we want to make sure we send a message to our Canadian friends up north … (to) visit California," Newsom said in the video message.
Eby says he wishes the governor luck in his effort to combat the Trump tariffs, adding that he wants to maintain those strong people-to-people ties with U.S. residents.
"But at the end of the day, for British Columbians, for myself, we're not ready to go to the States and provide that support to the state when the president is attacking families here."
The campaign comes as U.S.-bound travel by Canadians is showing signs of rapid decline on multiple fronts, including Flight Centre Travel Group Canada saying trips by air between the two countries fell by almost 40 per cent year-over-year in February.
Flight Centre also said business air travel bookings to the United States have fallen 10 per cent.
Statistics Canada says Canadian return visits by car to the United States fell 32 per cent in March from the same period last year.
Newsom, a Democrat, has been a vocal opponent of Trump's trade policies, and he has filed a lawsuit in U.S. district court on the legality of the president's ability to impose tariffs without the approval of Congress.
Newsom's lawsuit filed Wednesday argues the International Emergency Economic Powers Act used by Trump to impose trade barriers on Canada, Mexico and China does not allow for the adoption of tariffs.
The Trump White House has slammed the Californian lawsuit, calling the tariffs "historic efforts to finally address the national emergency" of the United States' "persistent goods trade deficits."
Eby said that while he is glad to see California suing the Trump White House, Canada needs to continue the pressure on the U.S. economy.
He notes that Canada still faces U.S. tariffs on its aluminum and steel, softwood lumber and automotive goods, despite the United States putting reciprocal tariffs on a 90-day hold.
The premier said that for Canadians, deciding where to buy groceries and spend their vacations are the type of things that send a clear message to the Trump administration.
"And that is a multi-billion-dollar impact that has meaning in the United States that is pressuring the Trump administration, that is resulting in the kinds of things that we're seeing, which is the walk-back of tariffs, the talk about agreements following the federal election."
— With files from The Associated Press.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 17, 2025.
Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press
