Ontario Premier Doug Ford is urging Canada to consider using Alberta oil and Saskatchewan potash as bargaining chips if trade negotiations with the United States fail. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has made it clear that won't happen.

Ford: "We are an energy powerhouse, and we could dismantle the U.S. if we wanted to ... They need to feel the pain rather than us constantly feeling the pain." pic.twitter.com/B3L9JdYbFz

— Scott Robertson (@sarobertson_) July 21, 2026

Following a meeting of Canada's premiers, Ford suggested Canada should be prepared to leverage Alberta's energy exports and Saskatchewan's potash industry in response to U.S. tariffs. He also floated the idea of restricting energy exports to the United States if negotiations break down, arguing Canada should use its natural resources to pressure Washington.

Smith rejected that approach, saying Alberta's energy sector will not be sacrificed to advance another province's trade strategy.

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Alberta's oil and gas industry supports more than 200,000 direct jobs, according to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP).

Using Natural Resources Canada's employment multipliers, Alberta's energy sector supports more than 500,000 direct and indirect jobs through supply chains, manufacturing, engineering, transportation and related industries.

Alberta's oil and gas industry is the province's largest economic engine, generating billions in royalties, tax revenues and exports that fund public services while supporting families across Western Canada.

Restricting Alberta energy exports would not simply hurt American consumers. It would also threaten Alberta jobs, reduce provincial revenues and undermine investor confidence in Canada's most important export industry.

These resources belong to Western Canadians. They are developed by Western workers, generate prosperity for Western communities, and are ultimately owned by the provinces—not by the Government of Ontario.

Doug Ford may believe Alberta's energy sector should be used as leverage in a trade dispute with the United States.

Premier Danielle Smith has drawn a clear line: Alberta jobs will not be sacrificed to support Ontario's preferred retaliation strategy.

For Albertans, the issue isn't simply about tariffs. It's about who gets to decide how Alberta's resources are used. Those resources support hundreds of thousands of Western Canadian jobs, and they are not Doug Ford's bargaining chips to be sacrificed on the bonfire of his mistakes.