Canada holds the fourth-largest oil supply on earth, and Pierre Poilievre says it trades at $12 below the world price when it crosses into the United States.
Most of this year's Canada-US argument has been about who blinks first on tariffs. Poilievre came to New York to make the opposite case — that both countries should knock their tariffs down in both directions — and to sell American investors on a Canadian economy he describes as flat.
"If we have 50% tariffs on cars or trucks being assembled in Canada and then coming across is going to jack the price up to make it unaffordable."
Poilievre leads Canada's Conservative Party and its opposition, and was the polling favorite for prime minister before the 51st-state talk began. He represents a Calgary district where, he says, a $100 billion oil tank farm is being built.
I listened to the full segment so you can skip it.
Here are the 6 takeaways that matter.
👤 Guest: Pierre Poilievre, Leader of Canada's Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition, who represents a Calgary district
🎙️ Host: Larry Kudlow, who anchors Kudlow on Fox Business weekdays at 4 p.m.
📰 Published: 10 September 2026 on Fox Business, and on the Kudlow podcast feed
🟣 Apple Podcasts | 🔗 Episode page | ⏱️ 46 min
Key Takeaways
Canadian oil trades at $12 below the world price on its way into the United States, out of the fourth-largest supply on earth
Poilievre wants a pipeline to Texas, more refinery jobs there, and lower US gas prices as the trade
He closed the 51st-state question in one sentence, then spent the segment on tariffs instead
A 50% tariff on a Canadian-assembled truck is paid by the American buying it
His example is the F-150, the best-selling truck for 49 years, built with Canadian aluminum
America cannot produce enough aluminum for its own build-out, and the data centers are competing for the same electricity
Canada's economy is flat with virtually no growth, and his fix starts with permitting rather than spending
His own district permits large construction projects in a week; he wants that nationally
The pitch to American investors was explicit: bring the money, he brings the policy
1. Never The 51st State
Kudlow opened on Mark Carney against President Trump, and noted that Poilievre had a big polling lead in his run for prime minister when Trump began talking about Canada as a 51st state — which, Kudlow said, was not well received in Canada.
Poilievre did not spend long on it. Canada is never going to be the 51st state, and "We are America's best friend in the world."
What he wants instead is a stronger trading relationship in both directions — richer, freer, safer and more affordable, with the tariffs knocked down on both sides
Asked whether Carney and Trump will eventually come to terms, he answered by arguing the cost of not doing so rather than by predicting the politics
2. What Canada Did On 9/11
Poilievre turned the question toward the anniversary, which fell the day after the broadcast.
"It brings back memories of how Canada accepted 224 diverted flights and 33000 Americans that stayed in Canadian homes" — fed and cared for, on the day US airspace closed
He added that Canada then sent soldiers to Afghanistan to answer the attack on New York and Washington
Kudlow closed the interview on the same point, telling viewers not to forget that the Canadian cousins were enormously helpful, and that the two countries should get together
3. The F-150 Aluminum Case
The tariff argument he makes is an American consumer argument, not a Canadian producer one.
"If we have 50% tariffs on cars or trucks being assembled in Canada and then coming across is going to jack the price up to make it unaffordable."
"Everyone is going to lose but customers are going to lose. Manufacturers are going to lose. It just ain't worth it."
His worked example is the Ford F-150, which he called the best-selling truck for the last 49 years, and which runs on Canadian aluminum
America cannot produce enough aluminum itself, he said, and smelting it takes the electricity the country's data centers are also bidding for. Tariff the aluminum and the buyer pays more
The trade he described is symmetrical: he wants the Ohio electrician and the Texas plumber to pay less for a truck, and Canadian aluminum workers to earn more
He made the same case for softwood lumber, arguing tariff-free Canadian lumber would make American homes more affordable
4. Oil At $12 Below World
Poilievre's discount claim is the sharpest number in the segment: "look at the fourth biggest supply of oil anywhere on the earth it's trading at $12 below the world price you get a discount on that."
"I am from Calgary so oil country but we have the best resource in the world we sell it to you at a discount"
The deal he proposes is a pipeline south. Run it down to Texas, create refinery jobs there, and lower gas prices for Americans
"It is all possible through tariff-free trade."
5. How He Would Fix Canada
Kudlow asked him directly to fix the Canadian economy on air. The answer was four measures and a claim about the outcome.
"We have to have the fastest permits anywhere on earth."
"We have to lower taxes on energy, investment, work and homebuilding."
He wants the freest economy in the world, achieved by cutting regulations he describes as needless and unnecessary
"I think we can outcompete anybody if we do that." His stated ambition is for Canada to become the richest country on earth
The resource base he is arguing from: fourth in the world for oil, the third-largest uranium supply, and the longest ocean coastline
The starting point is not strong. He said the economy is flat right now, with virtually no growth, and framed the rest as potential rather than performance
6. Come Invest In Calgary
The last part of the interview was a direct pitch to the show's audience.
"There's a lot of opportunity in Canada." His ask of viewers: bring the investment dollars, and he will bring the policies that turn them into returns
The proof he offered is local permitting. In his own district, he said, local government offers one-week permitting for massive construction projects, done safely
That is what he credits for the $100 billion oil tank farm being built in the community he represents
He encouraged the investors watching to take a look at Canada now rather than after a change of government
Bonus Insights
The show replayed an older Kudlow interview with Poilievre before he came to the desk, in which Kudlow put it to him that he uses strong ideological language. Poilievre's answer: "I rarely talk about left or right I don't believe in them." Pressed on whether he was taking a page out of Donald Trump's book, he turned the question back on Kudlow and asked who he meant
Kudlow introduced the clip as not new but fabulous, and used it to set up the interview rather than to make a point about it
On his own timing, Poilievre said the next election is two and a half years away. He said he is the leader of the opposition, that he was on foreign soil, and that both countries' people come first — declining to turn the answer into a campaign one
Kudlow's framing of him throughout was as a free-market conservative, and Poilievre accepted the label without using it himself
Poilievre's bottom line is that the tariff fight is being paid for by American buyers and Canadian workers at once, and that the way out is tariff-free trade plus a Canadian permitting and tax regime fast enough to make the country worth the investment.
Products, Companies & Tools Mentioned
Ford F-150 (The best-selling truck for 49 years on Poilievre's count, built with Canadian aluminum — his example of who actually pays a 50% tariff)
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