Canada's oil trades $12 below the world price, Pierre Poilievre told Larry Kudlow, and he wants a pipeline built to Texas refineries to move more of it south.
Most of the US-Canada trade fight is framed as a political standoff between Ottawa and Washington. Poilievre's pitch was closer to arbitrage: cheap Canadian energy and materials that American workers and consumers are currently paying tariffs to avoid using.
"We are America's best friend in the world."
Poilievre leads Canada's Conservative Party as Leader of the Opposition and represents an Alberta district that includes a $100 billion oil tank farm project.
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👤 Guest: Pierre Poilievre, leader of Canada's Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition
🎙️ Host: Larry Kudlow, former Director of the National Economic Council under the first Trump administration
📰 Published: 10 September 2026 on Fox Business, and on the Kudlow podcast feed
🟣 Apple Podcasts | ⏱️ 46 min
Key Takeaways
Canadian oil already sells to the US at a $12-per-barrel discount to the world price
Poilievre wants a pipeline extended to Texas to move more of it to American refineries
A 50% tariff on Canadian-assembled trucks would price out the F-150, America's best-selling truck for 49 years
Its body relies on Canadian aluminum; Poilievre says the tariff mainly raises costs for the electrician and the plumber buying the truck
Canada took in 33,000 Americans and 224 diverted flights on 9/11, and Poilievre invoked it directly ahead of the anniversary
His domestic platform: the fastest permits on earth, lower taxes on energy and investment, and fewer regulations
His own Alberta district approved a $100 billion oil tank farm project with one-week permitting, which he is using as the pitch to American investors
1. Never the 51st State
Kudlow opened by asking about the state of US-Canada relations after months of tension, including Trump's earlier "51st state" remarks.
Poilievre rejected the idea outright and reframed the relationship. "We are America's best friend in the world," he said, arguing Canada wants a trading relationship that leaves both countries "richer, freer, safer and much more affordable"
He tied the moment to the coming 9/11 anniversary. "It brings back memories of how Canada accepted 224 diverted flights and 33000 Americans that stayed in Canadian homes." He said Canada then sent soldiers to fight in Afghanistan in response to the attacks on New York and Washington
2. The F-150 Tariff Math
Kudlow asked whether Canada's prime minister, Mark Carney, and Trump would eventually resolve the tariff standoff. Poilievre made the economic case against the current tariffs directly.
"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." He said the result is that "manufacturers are going to lose," customers lose, and "it just ain't worth it"
His example was the country's best-selling vehicle. "Think about the best-selling truck for the last 49 years, Larry. F150. What goes around that? Canadian aluminum." He argued that America does not produce enough aluminum on its own to meet demand from its own auto plants and data centers, and that tariffing Canadian supply mainly raises what an Ohio electrician or a Texas plumber pays for the truck while doing little for the small domestic aluminum workforce
3. Oil at a $12 Discount
Kudlow noted Poilievre is from Calgary, oil country, and asked him to make the energy case.
"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," Poilievre said of Canada's reserves
He said building a pipeline extension to Texas refineries would create refinery jobs and lower gas prices for American consumers, all achievable through tariff-free trade
He offered a parallel pitch on softwood lumber, saying a rebate on Canadian lumber would help make American homes more affordable to build
4. How to Fix Canada
Asked directly to lay out a plan for the Canadian economy, Poilievre gave a straightforward supply-side platform.
"We have to have the fastest permits anywhere on earth. We have to lower taxes on energy, investment, work and homebuilding. We need to have the freest economy in the world cutting back on needless and unnecessary regulations."
He said Canada ranks among the world's larger suppliers of natural gas, holds the world's third-biggest supply of uranium, and has the longest coastline of any country, and argued the country is underperforming its own resource base
He acknowledged the current reality bluntly: growth is flat and there is "virtually no growth" right now, which he framed as the opportunity rather than the ceiling
5. The Pitch to US Investors
Poilievre closed by inviting American money into Canada directly, using his own district as the proof of concept.
He said his own district's local government shows what's possible, where "they offer a one week permitting for massive construction projects safely"
Poilievre pointed to a $100 billion oil tank farm project in his own district as evidence of what fast permitting can attract, and told Fox Business's audience of investors to take a look at Canada
Asked whether he would run for prime minister again in roughly two and a half years, Poilievre said he currently leads the opposition and put the two countries' shared interest plainly: to "save some money and jobs for people in both countries"
Bonus Insights
Before the sit-down, Kudlow played an older clip needling Poilievre about how often he uses left-wing and right-wing as labels. In the clip, Poilievre said: "I rarely talk about left or right I don't believe in them"
In that same clip, Kudlow suggested Poilievre was borrowing a page from Donald Trump's playbook, and Poilievre needled back that plenty of Canadians would guess who Kudlow meant
Poilievre's calling card as he sat down was an aside about New York City itself: "Here we are heartened big apple today"
Poilievre's bottom line is that Canada is underpricing its own energy and resources for American buyers already, and that removing the tariffs on top of that discount would make both countries richer.
Products, Companies & Tools Mentioned
Conservative Party of Canada (The party Poilievre leads as Leader of the Opposition)
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