Trump’s Trade Chief Pushing Him To Step Up Negotiations With Canada

President Donald Trump’s top trade adviser has been privately urging him to resolve a sweeping tariff fight with Canada, as both sides inch back to the negotiating table.   

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is eager to lower the temperature between the two countries and has been pushing Trump to return to negotiations, said three people with knowledge of his approach who were granted anonymity to share private discussions.

Talks between Washington and Ottawa collapsed dramatically in August, triggering an intense trade war that has impacted industries from autos to dairy and became a focal point of campaigns in key midterm battlegrounds. Greer’s sense of urgency is in contrast with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who has repeatedly resisted Canada’s demands for tariff cuts even as he has also increased his engagement with Canadian officials.

Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke by phone over the weekend, prompting Carney to say on X that the two sides hoped to hash out an agreement “in the coming weeks.” The post followed a POLITICO interview in which Carney said he was prepared to wait for a new American president to reach a suitable deal.

Greer “is very much a believer in this world order and realignment of trade policies, and he wants to have some successes,” said one of the people with knowledge of his approach.

While major hurdles remain, the effort by Greer is the latest signal that the U.S. and Canada are serious about averting an even steeper tariff hike that Trump has threatened to impose on Jan. 1.

A White House official, granted anonymity to share details on the administration's thinking, said,"Both Secretary Lutnick and Ambassador Greer have had discussions with their Canadian counterparts as this administration continues to work on the cross-cutting issues involving trade with Canada.”

“The whole Trump Administration is onboard as we engage with Canada and work towards finalizing the details of a deal that will deliver meaningful results for the American people," the official added.

According to the people close to the latest talks, a major part of Greer’s motivation for resolving the trade war is that it would allow him to make progress on renegotiating the broader U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that Trump orchestrated in his first term. The earlier deal, which went into effect in 2020, cut tariffs across the North American market.

Greer told Congress earlier this year that the administration was aiming to secure interim Canada and Mexico deals around the North American free trade pact before the end of 2026, while leaving some of the thornier issues in the discussions for 2027.

The trade representative “personally wants to get past this moment and actually iron out and work through the USMCA,” said one of the people with knowledge of his approach. “The only way to get there is to get through this.”

That feeling has only deepened in recent weeks, the person added, as the trade conflict has dragged on.

Greer, Lutnick and Trump have all been in regular contact with Canadian officials in the months since the breakdown in talks. Trump and Carney have spoken twice in the last two weeks, and Lutnick has intensified his engagement with counterpart Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for U.S.-Canada trade.

Lutnick torpedoed negotiations in August when he refused to drop tariffs on medium- and heavy-trucks. The Commerce secretary has not signaled he is willing to budge and meet Canada’s core demands to cut tariffs on specific industrial sectors, including steel and aluminum.

The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Spokespeople for USTR and LeBlanc declined to comment.

In Canada, Carney’s stand against Trump has proven to be popular domestically, but the U.S. tariffs are also putting a major squeeze on Canada’s much smaller economy. The pressure is heightened this week as Carney prepares to unveil a federal budget Thursday that could show tough economic projections.

Canadian officials also realize that the U.S. midterm elections may not significantly alter the Trump administration’s approach to the trade negotiations.

“There was a lot of hope for a while that the election would just change the trajectory of the conversation,” said one of the people with knowledge of the talks. “[The Canadians] realized if they don't get ahead of the election and show some goodwill and good signs, it could mean a more complicated path after the elections.”

On Tuesday, Carney said his relatively optimistic X post Sunday was an effort to mark the progress both sides have made since August.

“They're asking less and they're offering more, but we're not quite there," he said.

The two sides have yet to address disagreements that sank talks over the summer, however, and the U.S. officials responsible for drafting deal text have not been tasked with putting any new provisions to paper, according to one of the people with knowledge of Greer’s approach and a fourth person granted anonymity to discuss the process.

“It would be prudent for everyone to be realistic about how entrenched some of the positions have been, like Howard Lutnick’s view of automotive manufacturing in Canada,” said Flavio Volpe, a member of Carney's Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations. “It is, however, a positive development between two partners that need each other, that we are in agreement to try it again.”

Zi-Ann Lum contributed to this report.