Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) is publicly breaking with President Donald Trump over his handling of the escalating trade war with Canada, calling it a “mistake” as she fights for political survival in a race where her Democratic challenger is now leading in the polls.
Collins told the Wall Street Journal that Trump’s own rhetoric toward America’s northern neighbor, including calling Canadian officials “governor” and pushing to rename Lake Ontario, has actively hurt efforts to resolve the dispute.
“We’re linked in so many ways. It’s economic, it’s emotional, and to hear the president gratuitously calling prime ministers ‘governor’ or suggesting that Canada should be part of the United States or renaming Lake Ontario is painful,” Collins said. “It is not conducive to getting back to the table and resolving these issues.”
The stakes are personal for Maine, which does $6 billion in annual trade with Canada, its top trading partner. Trump escalated the fight this week by threatening to ban Canadian alcohol, dairy and motorcycle imports, on top of previously mocking Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney with an AI-generated image showing Trump looming over him in hockey gear.
The political timing couldn’t be worse for Collins. A CNN poll this week showed Democratic challenger Troy Jackson leading her 48-45 among likely Maine voters, with two-thirds disapproving of Trump’s job performance and 70 percent calling the increased Canadian tariffs bad for the state. Collins is the only Republican senator seeking reelection this cycle in a state former Vice President Kamala Harris carried in 2024.
Despite her public criticism, Collins says she’s been quietly lobbying the administration through her own channels, staying in regular contact with Vance and pressing his case to trade officials on how the tariffs are squeezing several of Maine’s signature industries. She credited that lobbying with securing an exemption on tariffs for Canadian rock salt, essential for Maine’s harsh winters, pointing to one northern Maine community that stood to lose tens of thousands of dollars had the dispute over that particular product continued unresolved.
Jackson isn’t impressed. He argues Collins hasn’t used her power as Senate Appropriations Committee chair to meaningfully push back against Trump.
“She’s not willing to push back against Trump. They’re all scared of him, and here’s another example of how it’s hurting this state and this country, and she won’t really do anything,” Jackson said, dismissing her rock salt win as “nibbling around the edges.”
Collins pushed back on that characterization, accusing Jackson of mocking a real victory for Maine communities. Her office has also begun quiet discussions with Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s staff about potential legislation to terminate the Canadian tariffs altogether, while she’s reached out to fellow border-state Republicans, including Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, to build broader opposition.
For Collins, the dispute carries deeply personal weight beyond politics, noted the Journal. She has family ties across the border, including a French Canadian sister-in-law and bilingual, dual-citizen nieces, and says Trump’s rhetoric is already discouraging Canadian tourists from returning to towns like Old Orchard Beach just as the local economy had started to recover from a rough previous summer.
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