OTTAWA

— Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he is waiting to speak to American lawmakers and argue Canada’s case “at the appropriate time.” 

Poilievre made the comments in a podcast episode that aired Thursday as he prepares to return to the House of Commons next month, fresh off last week’s byelection win in rural Alberta.

“At some point, at the appropriate time, we will be engaging with American lawmakers to make the case for Canada and to make the case for the North American relationship,” Poilievre told

The Elev8 Podcast, which comments on Canadian politics. 

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s efforts to strike a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump to lower or outright remove his tariffs on Canadian goods have dominated his first four months in office since winning the April federal election.

That election saw Poilievre try to keep his focus on cost-of-living and crime issues, which prompted concerns within his own party and internal debates that he was failing to pivot fast enough to address the Canada-U.S. relationship.

Before the campaign began, Poilievre decided against voicing public support for what former prime minister Justin Trudeau termed his “Team Canada” approach for dealing with the U.S., with Conservative caucus members making scant mention of Trump.

Since then, Poilievre has stated that Conservatives were willing to work with Carney’s government to help secure a deal for Canada, but that he has not heard back.

Reached for comment, a spokesman in his office reiterated that Poilievre and his critic for Canada-U.S. relations “have reached out multiple times to offer any and all help to the Carney Liberals in negotiations with the Americans,” however, their “invitation has not been accepted yet, but it remains on the table.” 

Poilievre has accused Carney of breaking the promise he made during the spring election campaign that he was the leader most able to negotiate with Trump by so far failing to strike a deal.

He has also said that Carney has offered more concessions to the American president than Canada has received in return, pointing to the scrapping of the digital services tax, which would have targeted U.S. tech companies, and the lifting of Canada’s counter-tariffs on U.S. goods in compliance with the free trade agreement between Canada, the U.S., and Mexico.

Carney has defended doing so as necessary to strike a deal with the U.S., and defended his approach by saying Canada was paying one of the lowest tariff rates, given U.S. exemptions to goods covered by the countries’ free trade agreement, which is scheduled for review in 2026.

While a large majority of Canadian goods are covered by the deal, the country is still dealing with U.S. tariffs applied to certain sectors, such as steel and aluminum, lumber, automobiles, and copper.

-With files from The Canadian Press

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