Jun 4, 2025
The Empire Club of Canada Presents
A New Era for the Canada-US Relationship — Hon. Pete Hoekstra, US Ambassador to Canada
Chairperson: Jenna Donelson, President, Board of Directors, Empire Club of Canada
Moderator
The Honourable Lisa Raitt, Vice-Chair, Global Investment Banking, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
Distinguished Guest Speaker
The Honourable Pete Hoekstra, US Ambassador to Canada
Head Table Guests
David Olsen, Regional President & Principal Officer, PNC Bank Canada; National Chair, American Chamber of Commerce in Canada
Lisa Pearson, Senior Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, Hydro One
Pete Sheffield, Vice President External Affairs & Chief Sustainability Officer, Enbridge
Welcome Address by Jenna Donelson, President, Board of Directors, Empire Club of Canada
Good afternoon, everyone. I’m Jenna Donelson, Chair of the Board of the Empire Club of Canada, and your host for today’s event.
To formally begin, I want to acknowledge that we are gathering on the Traditional and Treaty Lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the homelands of the Anishinaabe, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat Peoples. I encourage you all to learn more about the Traditional Territory on which you work and live.
Today’s event would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors. The Empire Club is a non-profit organization. Our sponsors generously support the club. They make events like this possible, and they make viewing complimentary for those of you that are online. So, will you all please join me, in thanking our lead event sponsors, Hydro One, and Enbridge. Thank you. Thank you, as well, to our VIP Reception Sponsors, BMO, Bombardier, City Commercial Bank, Ellis Don, McKinsey & Company, National Bank of Canada, PNC Bank, Sussex Strategy Group, Think Research, Waste Connections of Canada, and the Society of United Professionals. Thank you, for your support today. Thank you, as well, to our Supporting Sponsors, KPMG, Air Canada, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, CPA Ontario, Invenergy, Norton Rose Fulbright, and Toyota Canada. Thank you. The Empire Club also deeply appreciates the ongoing support of our Lead Season Sponsors, Bruce Power, and Hydro One, and our VIP Reception Season Sponsors, Waste Connections of Canada, and Ellis Don. Thank you, for your continued support of us, through the whole season. And of course, a huge thank you to our Event Partner, the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada. We appreciate your partnership in making this happen—David, lots of good support out there. And finally, thank you to our Media Partner, the Toronto Star, and our AV Partner, Bespoke Audio Visual. Thank you, for your support.
If you have a question for the ambassador, please scan the QR code found on your program, or through the Q&A function, if you are online. For those of you that are online, if you require technical assistance, reach out using the chat function.
And on behalf of the club, and in partnership with AmCham, I’m thrilled to be welcoming you all here today. Among our 800 guests, we have leaders from business, diplomacy, and government. And we are all here for one reason, because we care very deeply about the strength and direction of the Canada-US relationship. And so, we’re honoured to welcome the Honourable Pete Hoekstra, Ambassador of the United States to Canada, Ambassador, thank you for being with us. We are all eager to hear what you have to say, in your first major address here in Toronto. And we are also pleased, to welcome Mrs. Diane Hoekstra, along with several other dignitaries, and distinguished guests with us today, including several of the Empire Club’s past presidents. And because there are so many dignitaries with us today, I’m going to ask you to please rise, so we can recognize you all together—I saw a few of you rising there. We are delighted to have all of you with us today, including our distinguished guests.
This event comes at a pivotal time, for both Canada and the United States. Just a week ago, King Charles III delivered Canada’s Speech from the Throne—only the third time a sovereign has done so. And in that speech, His Majesty said, “This moment is also an incredible opportunity. An opportunity for renewal, an opportunity to think big, and to act bigger.” Unity, global leadership and economic transformation will underpin a new foundation for Canada. Among the many priorities His Majesty shared, the speech emphasized the need to build a stronger, more secure, and more integrated North American partnership, one rooted in mutual respect, and common interests. It called for a new era of Canada-US collaboration, as sovereign nations, on energy, trade, defence, innovation, and infrastructure, and affirmed that the future of our prosperity and security lies in strong, values-aligned alliances.
In that spirit, we are honoured to host Ambassador Hoekstra, at a time when our nations are navigating a rapidly-changing global landscape, as neighbours and strategic partners. Today’s conversation also is a part of a long Empire Club tradition of advancing meaningful dialogue between our two countries. In 1988, we presented a joint address of President Ronald Reagan and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. In that speech, Prime Minister Mulroney reminded us that “We have not always agreed…but we have always agreed to begin from the basis of friendship between our two countries, and between ourselves.” Fast-forward 36 years, to this past September. We return, once again, to the theme of our relationship with the US, as Dr Janice Stein, Founding Director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy—who I think is here today—observed then, “The world is reorganizing, and our closest neighbour is our regional partner, as the world becomes regional. We have no choice…but to understand how we can matter more to the United States.”
These insights feel more relevant today than ever. As Canada advances its global leadership, we look forward to today’s open dialogue, clear thinking, and ambitious ideas—hallmarks of this forum, and the conversations the Empire Club has always championed.
And now, I am pleased to introduce someone who is integral to making today’s event possible. David Olsen is Regional President and Principal Officer of PNC Bank Canada, and National Chair of the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada. He’s here to deliver remarks on behalf of AmCham. So, will you all please join me, in welcoming David to the stage? Welcome, David.
Opening Remarks by David Olsen, Regional President & Principal Officer, PNC Bank Canada; National Chair, American Chamber of Commerce in Canada
Well, good afternoon. I’m Dave Olsen. I’m honoured to serve as the Chair of the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada. Our organization functions as the voice of US business in Canada. So, as soon as Ambassador Hoekstra was announced as the nominee, we immediately reached out to the Empire Club. We knew that this was the right place for his first remarks to the business community, and the economic capital of Canada, Toronto. Special thanks to Jenna Donelson, Kent Emerson, and the entire Empire Club team, for bringing this event together. And thanks to our friends at the Embassy, Mary-Beth Turner, Pamela Ward, as well as our local consulate, led by Baxter Hunt, and Brad Harker. And based on the attendance today, it looks like all this hard work was worthwhile. It certainly looks like we have a lot of interest in the path ahead, to grow and strengthen the Canada-US relationship. And I’m confident, Ambassador Hoekstra, that you’re the right person for the job and you won’t disappoint—no pressure.
Now, I’d like to spend a minute talking about the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada. We’re proud of the work that we do, and have done over the many years, to grow the largest two-way trade relationship in the world. In addition to our work to support Canadian companies that are expanding to the US, we leverage our policy committee work, under the leadership of our President, Rick Tachuk, who is here today, to drive positive change. And it’s no coincidence that all of our long-standing committees are aligned perfectly with all the topics of the day: trade, defence and security, life sciences, technology and innovation, tax, and our newest committee on energy security, that we literally launched yesterday, at the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C.
Now, as is true with all deep and complex relationships, there have been, and will be, issues, irritants, frustrations. Now, this has been highlighted in our annual US Business Confidence in Canada surveys, where we partner with Nanos Research, to poll the Canadian CEOs of US-headquartered companies. The trend line of these surveys shows declining confidence among US investors, since our first survey in 2017. In fact, the most recent survey in January of this year shows the index at an all-time low—considerably less than half what it was in our first survey. The drivers of this decline centre around regulation, bureaucracy, red tape, and taxation in Canada. Now, these are the largest investors and biggest employers in Canada. These business leaders help to direct capital investment, and intellectual property. As we all know, these resources are critical to drive the improved productivity and growth that we need here in Canada. So, we’re wise to listen, when they speak.
Now, business is very much influenced by the political landscape. So, with the election of a new government here in Canada, and the confirmation of Ambassador Hoekstra, we are encouraged that the tone and tenor of the relationship is on a positive trajectory. Prime Minister Carney’s recent visit to the White House, and the ongoing dialogue behind the scenes, reinforces our optimism. We at the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada believe that right now, we could be at a great inflection point, to take the Canada-US relationship to new highs.
Now, as someone who—on a personal side—someone who moved to Toronto 13 years ago, and has dedicated his entire professional life to cross-border banking and trade, I’m really hopeful. And I don’t have a great plan B, so I don’t have much choice. Now, in the interest of moving to the reason we all came today, I’m going to conclude my remarks, and hand things back to Jenna, to bring us closer to Ambassador Hoekstra’s upcoming keynote, and his fireside chat with the Honourable Lisa Raitt. Thank you very much. Jenna?
Jenna Donelson
Thank you, David, for those great remarks, for your leadership in championing the kind of cross-border dialogue, and cooperation, that today’s event is all about. All right. It is now my pleasure to introduce a senior leader in one of the most consequential cross-border sectors of our economy. Lisa Pearson is the Senior Vice-President of Corporate Affairs at Hydro One, where she leads communications, marketing, stakeholder relations, and community partnerships across Ontario. She’s a trusted advisor to boards and executive teams, and she brings deep experience from the private, public, and non-profit sectors. I’m delighted that she’s here to introduce the Ambassador. Will you join me, in welcoming to the stage, Lisa Pearson?
Introduction by Lisa Pearson, Senior Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, Hydro One
Thank you, Jenna, for that kind introduction. And on behalf of Hydro One, I want to thank you, and the Empire Club of Canada, for hosting this important conversation today. Now, it is not lost on those of us that attend these lunches frequently that you had to move today’s event to a much larger venue. That alone should tell you how seriously we, as Canadians, are taking this moment, and how eager we all are to better understand the forces shaping our future. We’re honoured today to welcome Ambassador Pete Hoekstra, and Mrs. Diane Hoekstra, to Toronto. We look forward to the insights the Ambassador will offer at this transformational moment. And although the Ambassador served as the United States Ambassador to the Netherlands, and his family background is Dutch, Ambassador Hoekstra has strong ties to this country. He knows firsthand, as someone whose Dutch parents were liberated by Canada during the Second World War, of the important role Canada plays in the world. The Ambassador’s long-standing connection to Canadians is also geographical. Hailing from Michigan, he spent his time building his career and expertise in a border state to Canada.
At Hydro One, we’re proud to sponsor today’s event, because, like Ambassador Hoekstra, we’re deeply connected to our neighbours to the south. In fact, we operate 11 transmission interconnections with the United States, which helps to ensure reliability, economic efficiency, and strong cross-border energy cooperation. Ambassador Hoekstra represented Michigan’s District in the US Congress for 18 years, where he became Chair of the House Intelligence Committee. He earned a reputation as a sharp, principled voice on national security, international relations, and democratic values. As I mentioned, he later served as US Ambassador to the Netherlands, from 2018 to 2021. He strengthened transatlantic partnerships, and advocated for shared democratic principles, at a time of global uncertainty. The Ambassador is known for his candour and his frankness, qualities that we certainly welcome today, in a consequential cross-border conversation. Please join me, in giving a warm Canadian welcome, to Ambassador Pete Hoekstra.
The Honourable Pete Hoekstra, US Ambassador to Canada
Thank you. It’s great for Diane and I to join you today. Thank you to many of you, who have expressed a warm welcome. Diane and I have felt nothing but a warm welcome, since we arrived in Canada five, I think, five weeks ago—not that anybody is counting—but we have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. We thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity that you provided, with me being the Ambassador, to go to Mackinac Island for three days last week—those of you who have been to Mackinac Island, I think you can appreciate how beautiful that is, especially when the weather is nice. For those of you that haven’t been, please go. It is an awesome place.
But the great thing today is, for me, as a, as an immigrant to America, is to make America’s case to you. To talk about what’s going on, and why it is so important—not only for us, as American citizens, but for you, as Canadian citizens, and the deep relationship, and the friendship that we have shared, you know, for so long.
You know, people call Donald Trump a transformational president, especially in this second term. You know, I couldn’t agree more. I got my start in politics in 1993, and I learned a little bit about transformational politics, about the last transformational figure in American politics—some of you may remember; some of you weren’t even born in 1993, but—Newt Gingrich, who became the Speaker of the House. I ran against a Republican incumbent, as a Republican, in a primary in 1992. I was working in the private sector, I was having a great career. And one night, I woke up, and I rolled over to Diane, and I said, “You know, I think I’m going to run for Congress.” And she said, “Go back to sleep, and you’ll feel better in the morning.” Well, you know, I didn’t feel any better in the morning. And I started talking to some friends, and some people that I really trusted, and I’d say, “I think I’m running for Congress.” And they’d start laughing. And they’d say, “Well, you’ve never talked about politics.” And then I told them why I thought I might be qualified, and that I’ve never done anything political. And they said, “Maybe that’s what we need right now.”
So, in 1992, I ran against a 26-year Republican incumbent—if you know anything about politics in America, winning and unseating an incumbent is almost impossible. I spent about $50,000; he spent three-quarters of a million. On election night, I had 48%—you think that’s bad; no, it’s good. We had a third candidate in the race; he had 42. So, I went on, in a solid Republican district, to become the next Congressman.
Got to Washington, and one day, Newt Gingrich called me. And my office, they were thrilled. You know, freshman Republican, you’re in the minority, you don’t count, but Newt Gingrich is calling. And I go in, and I see Newt, and Newt says, “Pete, what do you do every day?” That’s kind of like, “Well, excuse me, Newt. I’m a Congressman. You know, I vote, I go to committee hearings, I meet with constituents.” And he says, “I want you to stop all of that. Don’t do any of that.” He says, “You’re a marketing guy. I need you to work with me on a project, so that in 1995, when you come back, Republicans will hold the gavel. We will be in the majority.” So, I became involved working with Newt on the Contract with America. The rest is history. Transformational. For the first time in 40 years, Republicans controlled the House of Representatives. We did the Contract with America, a certain urgency, 100 days, cut taxes, we grew the economy. And we did something that people laughed, when we said we were going to do it, but we balanced the budget for four years straight. We transformed the American political landscape, at least for a period of time. Donald Trump is coming in, and trying to do exactly the same thing, and is having phenomenal success, as we go through this process.
You know, if you don’t remember anything else I talk about today, remember three words: what is Donald Trump, what did he promise the American people? “I’m going to do everything that I can, to bring more prosperity to all Americans. I’m going to bring more security to us as a nation, and I’m going to make you safer.” That is the agenda, the transformative agenda, that Donald Trump is pushing: prosperity, security, and safety. That is good for America, and that is good for our neighbours to the north. The more prosperous we are, the more safe we are, and the more secure we are, you will also feel the same.
What has he done? We secured our border, in less than 100 days. Doge saved us $175 billion. We’re working on a tax bill that we think will reduce the deficit, but stimulate economic growth. Those are things that we become a stronger economy; you will feel the benefits. And the benefits for North America will be even greater, as your government—and I’ve listened to Prime Minister Carney talk about this—seems like your government, the government that you elected recently, is focused on the same things: more security, more safety, and more prosperity. Transformative politics? Yeah. They create tension, because you’re changing the status quo. But the same way that we transformed the United States in 1995, ’96, and the years after, America became—we didn’t balance the budget by cutting spending. How did we balance the budget? Working with Bill Clinton, we brought more prosperity to the United States. And as amazing as it sounds in America, we as politicians couldn’t spend the increased revenues coming into the federal government fast enough. There was more money coming in than we could spend. We ended up balancing the budget.
Donald Trump has put together, I think, a remarkable team of people, who know how to make agreements, they know, they’ve all been transformative in their personal lives, and in the businesses that they have run. I have no doubt that they will bring prosperity to America. They will negotiate agreements, and they work on these things—and you can read this, from what Donald Trump has said—a win-win. They will negotiate recognizing the best agreements are where we win, and we make America great again, but we’re also working with folks that will benefit by signing and negotiating with us, and moving forward.
This is a mutually beneficial relationship. We have so many things that we can work together on. Can we work together on security? Absolutely. Can we work on, you know, more safety? Absolutely. Prosperity? Absolutely. You know, it’s dealing with things like critical minerals, it’s about dealing with, you know, defence spending—Golden Dome, you know, you go through the whole list of things, the list of things that we can work on is much bigger, and much longer, and much more important than the things that we’re debating right now.
I think you can leave here today—and hopefully, you will leave here—with a perspective that a relationship with, and our relationship with America, will not only make America more prosperous, more secure and safe, but as we transform, or as you transform, your Canadian government, and partner with the United States of America, you will feel exactly those same kinds of benefits. Had a great meeting with your premier, this morning, Premier Ford, and we talked about this. The things that we can do together, and that we will benefit from together.
With that, I think I’m going to have a discussion with Lisa, maybe take some of your questions. But again, thank you for allowing me to be here today. I am optimistic about where this relationship is; I’m more optimistic about where I believe this relationship is going. So, thank you very much, for inviting me.
The Honourable Lisa Raitt, Vice-Chair, Global Investment Banking, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
Thank you very much, Ambassador. Appreciate that. They even have little name tags, telling us which chair to put in here. That was very impressive, Ambassador. Not a single note.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
No.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
That’s how you speak.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
I speak, and I covered about 70 or 80% of what I wanted to.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Okay.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
But I like to think that it’s sometimes more effective, if people sense that it’s coming, you know, from how I strongly feel, and that I’m passionate about these things, rather than, “Oh, someone can write him a great speech, and he can read it.”
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah, that makes sense.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Now, there’s a lot of politicians in the room who would never attempt what you just tried to do.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Tried. Thank you for the compliment.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
I want to start with, first of all, by saying welcome to Canada, of course. You’ve been here for five weeks, which isn’t a lot of time. We’re a big country, we’ve got a lot of places. But I understand that you brought your skates with you, and you like tulips. You’re in the right place, in Ottawa.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
We’re in the right place. I bought the long skates, the racing skates—not that I anticipate I’m going to go very fast, but I bought them when Diane and I were in the Netherlands.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Okay.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
I was anticipating skating through my parents’ province on the frozen canals, you know, looking at the windmills, and all of those types of things. They never froze.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
They didn’t freeze.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
They didn’t freeze. But they have a big ice skating rink that’s partially enclosed, and so, I had the opportunity to practice. So, I am thrilled, I was thrilled, when I read that the canals, or the canal…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…in Ottawa froze for 10 days.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
I wasn’t quite as thrilled when I read that it was frozen for 10 weeks, okay? It’s kind of like, “Hey, I want to skate, but I’m not sure I want to skate for 10 weeks.”
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
But you get tough winters in Michigan.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yes, we do. We get a lot of snow, but not as much ice.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
This is not a big surprise. So, one of the quirks about Canada, and probably, in other countries, too, is our title. So, as ambassador, you can be Your Excellency, as well. I get to be Honourable for life—although, there’s probably a number of people in here, who question that—but there’s a really cool one for mayors, that I understand that you heard about, as well. Do you know what mayors are called, in terms of their….
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah. Your Worship.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
What do you think about that? You think it’s a good thing?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
I want to be one.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Okay? I kind of like that. Yeah. We have a few things to learn.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah, I agree. That’s a good one to be. And when I was speaking with your wife, Diane—welcome, as well. You have family, Diane has family in Smithers, BC. And she indicated, she said, “Do you know where Smithers is, Lisa?” And I said, “Actually, I do.” But she said, “You know, it’s 700 miles away from Vancouver.” And immediately, in my Canadian brain, I’m going, 700 miles is 1100 kilometres, 12-hour drive. That’s how we know. So, when we say how far you are, Ambassador, we don’t measure in terms of miles or kilometres; you have to tell the person how far away it is in terms of where you want to drive to.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Smithers is a long way. Been there.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
It is indeed. It is indeed. Any plans to try other parts of the country?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah. During COVID, we had another ambassador to the US, who was in the Netherlands, to OPCW. And Diane was gone. And you know, Ken and I, we talked; I said, “Hey, let’s bike around the Netherlands.” And so, on a Saturday, we got on the bikes, we hit every single province, without cheating—like, putting the bikes on the back of a truck, or anything like that—and after seven days, we had biked around the Netherlands, and we had touched, and gone into, every single province.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
So, I’m going to try that in Ottawa, okay? I think, maybe, I can start from Ottawa; seven days later, I’ll still be in Ontario.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yes, you will. Definitely.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Maybe seven days after that, I’ll still be in Ontario. But yeah, we hope to see a lot of the country. It’s a beautiful country, a lot of important business centres. But obviously, when you’re in Québec, and Ontario—I’ll just stop there; I’ll just get in trouble with all the other provincial leaders, and those things. But no, we look forward to visiting a lot of these provinces again.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah. It’s a beautiful country. And we hope that you take advantage of the ability to see it all. When you got here five weeks ago, you came as an ambassador in a different time than other ambassadors—and there’s a lot of ambassadors in the room here tonight, actually. Can you give me an idea of what you encountered, when you came to Canada? Was it what you expected, in terms of the state of the relationship?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Well, I mean, obviously, for the last number of months, we’ve been watching the state of the relationship, and those types of things. And the, you know, I’m disappointed that some of the rhetoric has gone to where it has, okay? But that’s why I come, and I give a, you know, an optimistic message, okay? I talked to the President, I talked to Howard Lutnick, and they’re going to be the people that put together the tariff. And the good news for Canada is, you know, this is not—this is being settled at the highest levels of the US government, with the involvement of the highest elected officials, principally, with Donald Trump.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
So, when you get to an agreement, you know, again, if it’s Donald Trump being actively involved with his team on setting the parameters for an agreement, it can happen relatively quickly.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Much better than having 100 technocrats negotiating a—I don’t know how long USMCA was, but I know how much, I know how long NAFTA was.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
That takes a long time, to put that together. But the broad parameters, your prime minister, my president, they can do this quickly…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
… if they have the will and the direction to do it. And as long as they’re focused on what I’ve talked about, prosperity, security, and safety—as a leader, who wouldn’t want those three things—and recognize that, if they worked on these things together, we will all benefit.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
In your time as Ambassador in the Netherlands, in your time as, sitting as a congressman, did you ever encounter time at the G7? Is this gonna be your first time being the ambassador, when a G7 is happening in the country that you’re affiliated with it?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
It’s a lot, there’s a lot going on. I remember when we hosted the G8 last time, there’s a lot of people that come up here from the United States.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
There’s a huge contingent coming with the President. I’m not sure exactly how many cabinet members he will be taking with him, but there will be a number.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
So, I will see the President, I’ll have an opportunity to talk with him. But I probably, you know, the transformative policies that the President is working on, he is keeping his finger on that. You know, our Secretary of Commerce is keeping his personal finger on that. And you know, they’re not delegating that out to a lot—it’s kind of like, no, this is transformative. The relationship with Canada is so important. As President and as Commerce Secretary, I personally want to set that direction. That is the message that, you know, we’re getting from Secretary Lutnick, and most importantly, that is the direction that we are getting from the President.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah. You mentioned at the beginning about rhetoric. Rhetoric goes both ways. You hear us…
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yep.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
…talking about stuff up here, and you know, bills are being put in place or proposed that may be an irritant—I think you called it a pebble in the shoe—that have to be worked through. But you know, there is—you’ve answered this question many times, Ambassador, but I’m going to ask you to wade into it one more time, if you don’t mind, just because it would have been okay, but for the fact that it came up in the media again last week, and the notion of Canada and its sovereignty.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah. I mean, the President and your Prime Minister had a great discussion. You saw, you know, two or three minutes of the 34 minutes that they had the press scrum…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…in the Oval Office.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
But you know, in the substantive portion of the meeting, the lunch were, you know, 12 of us could leave and say, “Wow, I had lunch at the White House today.” There were two people that could leave, and say, “We had a serious substantive discussion about the future of our countries, and we are very positive about where the future of America, Canada, individually, where we can go. But also, what we can achieve together.” And so, and you know, I think the first time I was asked about that, after that meeting, I said, “Well, you know, as far as I’m concerned, you know, that discussion, if it continues, it will be between the Prime Minister…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…and the President.”
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah…
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
I misspoke. Okay? I should have said, “It’s going to be between the President, and the Prime Minister, and the media.” Okay?
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
…yeah. Yeah, that’s true.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
You know, the media can bring up things whenever they want…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…whether, you know the, I’ve met with a lot of you—and thanks to many of you, for the time that you and your companies have shared with me, to learn more about Canada. You know, we’ve done the same thing, on the other side of the border. On Monday, I had, you know, three meetings with Michigan Business—or, three meetings—that included a number of Michigan businesses. The week before, we did it on Mackinac Island, Select USA. And what I consistently hear from the business community, from people, everyday people on the streets, but also from, you know, from the politicians, the people that are setting the framework—I wish they’d say it a little louder, sometimes—but it’s, you know, they’re talking about, we want this to be a really, really positive relationship. And many in the business community believe they will come out of this, that this relationship will come out stronger, rather than damaged.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
And I feel the same way. Again, when you talk about the areas, you know, confronting China, national security, Arctic, you know, critical minerals, energy, and you go right down the list. A number of those things, they’re just starting now.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Okay? And how we deal with them is, are huge business opportunities, and national security opportunities, moving in the future. And with, I know on our side, with a president that is focused on economic growth and prosperity, he’s going to be looking to make those agreements that generate benefits to the American people. And you know, the President expects that those he negotiates with are going to be doing the same thing for their countries. That’s fine, that’s good. When I was in the private sector, we always liked smart competition, all right? Because if you had dumb competition, they’d sell below cost, they’d compete, and they would drive the whole industry down. If you were competing with really smart competitors, you know, you’d sharpen your pencil to win the contract. And, you know, sometimes you’d win, and sometimes you’d lose. But you wouldn’t drive the rest of the industry, you know, down the tubes.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative). In prosperity, safety, and security, what politician doesn’t love that? What, what person doesn’t love that? That makes a whole bunch of sense. But in advancing prosperity in the United States, one of the tools that the President is using is tariffs.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
And that has an impact on us, here in Canada—and a negative impact, in a lot of ways. How should we be thinking about what you just talked to us about, which is, eventually, we’re going to get somewhere where we’re better. But the pain right now can be kind of acute.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
The pain right now is being felt, you know, in the tariffs that the President has put in place on 232, and some of those anti-dumping. Because the President believes it is absolutely essential that there are certain core industries in America, that America can rely on, domestically. You know, the opportunity for Canada may be that some of those industries, and some of those products, actually, if you get them from Canada, they can be done in such a way that there will be, the US can view that as a positive to us. You know, and they’re working through the framework. And again, it’s a talented group. I’ve met a number of your folks, who have done this in the past. They are a talented group.
And I think, when smart people get in a room…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…and negotiate, they will come out with a good income—or excuse me, a good outcome—that all of us are going to look at, and say, “Hmm, things in here that I really like. I might be uncomfortable with a couple…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…but there’s some stuff in here that I’ve never thought about.” You know, these folks worked it out in a really positive way.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
As a former congressman representing Michigan, knowing the Ontario-Michigan relationship in the auto sector is unheard of—I mean, it’s an incredible relationship. How should we be thinking about our auto sector, here? Should we be worried?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
You know, I think the, you know, hopefully, as they go through these negotiations, that our chief competitor here is China. How do we use the strengths of the US auto industry? How do we use the strengths of the capabilities of Canada? And how do we bring those together in such a way that we’re beating China, and not each other? And again, I really believe—and you have a Secretary of Commerce. That is his job.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Okay? How do we win, in these types of situations? And I’ve got a tremendous amount of confidence in our Secretary of Commerce that that’s exactly what, those are the types of things that he’s thinking about.
QUESTION & ANSWER
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah. Ambassador, we only have a few minutes left—we could spend a lot of time; I appreciate the time you’ve given us. But there are some questions from the audience.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Okay.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
And one of them that has made it to the iPad in front of me is something that’s actually quite current, and it’d be very nice, if you could give us an insight into it. And it has to do with foreign students from post-secondary institutions in the United States. Any thoughts, or any words for Canadians who may be trying to go to Harvard right now? Like, maybe the Prime Minister’s file?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Well, I mean, you know, the, what the US is doing, okay. We cleaned up the border…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
M’hm (affirmative).
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…we’re now tracking down people who are murderers, thieves, and rapists, who are in the country illegally, and doing everything to get them out of the country, and make America safe. When I was on the Intel Committee, I would get briefed regularly by the FBI about students from China, in our universities, who are—and our research institutions—who were stealing our technology, or our research, sending it back to China; they would patent it before it ever came out of our research institutions. So, what the President is doing is he’s cleaning up that mess…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…all right? He’s cleaning up that mess. We recognize that American universities—and probably, Canadian universities—are phenomenal bastions of, of knowledge. Okay? That our enemies want to have access to. This is why we have so many foreign students. Not, you know—they want the knowledge, and in some cases, they want to steal our research. And so, the President is saying, no, we’re going to, we’re going to clean this up; we recognize the value of the commodity that we have, which are our research institutions—so, we still want people coming in, but we want to manage that process. Okay? With so many of the things that we’re looking at, America has been negligent. We have not managed our resources well, and we’re being exploited by those who want to destroy the United States, and who want to destroy the prosperity and the security of Canada, at the same time. You know, they’re not picking and choosing. If they don’t like the US, I think there’s a high probability they don’t like you, either.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
How should we think about US foreign policy, given what’s happening geopolitically right now? Just having heard what you said, and where does Canada play in that, for you?
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Well, Canada plays wherever it wants, okay? We’re looking for partners, in this process. But I think the, the President has clearly indicated, he wants to bring stability, okay? And I know he feels passionate about this. He feels passionate that, if we had, you know, if he had, if we had pushed harder on confronting Russia during his first term, hadn’t built Nord Stream, okay? Had funded NATO. And some of the Europeans laughed at the President’s agenda, when I was in the Netherlands. “Oh, you think the tanks are going to come across the border? Stupid Americans. That’ll never happen. You think the Russians are going to cut off the gas? They need the revenue. Stupid Americans.” Well, they did both things. And the President, now, wants to bring peace and stability into the Middle East, and he wants to bring it an end to a war—you know, and there are critics, obviously, of the President, on all kinds of things, okay? But critics as to, well, you know, Ukraine—give us an alternative, other than an endless war, where way too many Ukrainians, and way too many Russians have died, and where we, the Canadians, the US, and others, have invested way too many precious dollars, that could have been used to create long-term prosperity, rather than in missiles and bombs. This is a president who wants to stop the killing, and wants to stop it not only in these two, but put in place a structure of security and stability, that minimizes the possibility of these things happening in the future. That is why we are also focused on Iran, the threats that are out there. Why we’re also focused on, and appreciate Canadian cooperation on China. Stopping the, identifying the middle- and long-term threats, and putting in place the walls, the obstacles to them becoming the kinds of problems that we see in Ukraine, in the Middle East today.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah. And that’s the safety pillar of prosperity, safety, and security.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yes.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Well, what I take from our conversation today, Ambassador, is that you’re optimistic that we are gonna get through the rough waters that we’re in right now.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Yeah, I am. Yeah, I am. And you know, the good thing is, I think one of your ministers is meeting with our…
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Yeah. That’s right.
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
…Commerce Secretary today. The dialogue is open, the Prime Minister is talking with the President on a regular basis. We should take, you know—yeah, I take great confidence in putting smart people in a room, and coming to the right answer. And it’s about all of us helping to inform the people in the room about what this means to them, and their companies, and their organizations. And the, you know, I’ve been with the President now for the last eight-and-a-half, nine years. And, you know, a lot of times—and people don’t like to give him credit for this—a lot of times, most of the time, the President gets to the right answer. He gets to the right answer, that will bring us to each one of those things: prosperity, security, and stability.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
Excellent. Thank you very much, Ambassador…
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
Thank you.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
…to you. Thank you very much…
The Hon. Pete Hoekstra
It’s been a great, great opportunity.
The Hon. Lisa Raitt
…Mrs. Hoekstra, for being here, as well. We’re gonna ask Jenna to come on up. And while you’re coming, please, a round of applause for Ambassador Hoekstra. Thank you so much.
Jenna Donelson
Thank you, Ambassador, and thank you, Lisa. Let’s give them one more round of applause, while I invite you to take your seats again. We’re gonna be closing out, so the two of you are welcome to head back down to the table, if you’d like. All right. Thank you, everyone, for joining us today. We have a couple more speakers, before we are closing out. It’s now my pleasure to invite to the stage another Lead Sponsor, and supporter of the Empire Club of Canada—and if you’ll excuse me, I just need to find the information here; I have some background music, while I do so. And we’ve got it back.
I’m pleased to welcome a representative from our Lead Sponsor, Enbridge. Enbridge is a valued partner of the Empire Club of Canada, and a long-standing supporter of cross-border collaboration, energy innovation, and North American prosperity. Pete Sheffield is the Vice-President of External Affairs and Chief Sustainability Officer at Enbridge, where he leads the company’s sustainability strategy, climate policy, ESG performance, and government relations across the United States. Will you all join me, in welcoming Pete Sheffield to the stage?
Note of Appreciation by Pete Sheffield, Vice-President External Affairs & Chief Sustainability Officer, Enbridge
All right. Thank you, Jenna, for that introduction, and to the Empire Club, for its long-standing role as a convener of these important discussions. And to that end, thanks to Lisa Raitt, for so skillfully leading today’s conversation. And most importantly, thank you to Ambassador Hoekstra, and Mrs. Hoekstra, for your years of dedicated public service, and Ambassador, for your thoughtful remarks with us today.
So, we’ve been together for a while now—I promise you, I only have 45 minutes of remarks; they were provided for me, they’re not spontaneous. No, first, a quick snapshot, around Enbridge—Jenna gave a thumbnail, so I won’t repeat it, other than just to acknowledge a few things. So, we proudly serve as a reliable conduit to North American economic integration. We operate four energy delivery businesses across eight provinces and one territory, 43 US states, and five G7 countries. Energy flows are fundamental to the Canadian-US relationship. Our two countries have been trading energy for over 150 years, and we have highly integrated energy systems. And access to affordable and reliable energy resources continues to be the backbone of North America’s growth and prosperity.
This is a competitive strength for both Canada and the US, that we don’t see changing. Balancing energy supply and demand will be even more critical in the years ahead, to power digital economies, innovation, and growth. And Enbridge is seizing these opportunities. We have $28 billion of energy projects currently in execution, and we see upwards of $50 billion in further investment opportunities between now and the end of the decade. Energy infrastructure is capital-intensive, and these investments require policy predictability. Capital flows to jurisdictions that are open for business, and the US will remain a leading destination for Canadian energy. And at the same time, this is a pivotal moment here in Canada, to enable market access across this country, and among our global trading partners, to ensure access to vast energy resources that we have here in Canada.
Ambassador, we share your optimism expressed today on the Canadian-US relationship, and the opportunities to continue working together, strengthening this enduring tie that binds our two countries together, and we view it as more important today than ever. Events like these today are vital to shaping our path forward, and we appreciate that you spent the time with this community to express your optimism. And so, with that, I’ll thank you all for joining us today, and turn it back over to Jenna.
Concluding Remarks by Jenna Donelson
All right, thank you for that, Pete. And thank you, once again, to all of you, for joining us in a conversation that could not be more timely or important. I’d just like to take a minute to recognize one more special group of people. We have our students and young leaders in the room. We have students from Queen’s University, U of T, and Humber Polytechnic. We’re glad you’re here. Thank you, for joining this conversation. You’re all a part of our community, and we appreciate you helping us advance public dialogue on topics that matter.
If you would like to stay connected to us, please subscribe to our newsletter, by scanning the QR code that’s found on your tables. We also have an exciting new membership program, so please see our staff at the registration desk, if you would like more information.
I hope you will join us at our final event of the season. This Thursday, the Honorable Kinga Surma will be delivering Infrastructure Ontario’s Market Update, and talking about protecting Ontario by building faster. In-person tickets are sold out, but you’re welcome to join us virtually, by signing up through our website—and I hope you do so.
You may have noticed today, our next event—many of our events, this season—have sold out and sold out quickly. So, you can secure your seat for the exciting speeches we have next season, by signing up for the new Season Table Patronage Package. That QR code is found in your program. Please check it out, as it is a time-limited offer until July 15th.
I am delighted to say thank you to all of you, for joining this event. As a club of record, the Empire Club events are all recorded, and available for your viewing online. A recording of this event will be available shortly. I wish you all a wonderful afternoon. Thank you, for joining us. This meeting is now adjourned
