Overview

• President Trump escalated tariffs on Canadian imports to 35 percent this week, citing a northern border emergency to curb alleged fentanyl flows.
• The Manhattan Institute report shows less than 1 percent of US fentanyl seizures occur along the US–Canada border, with nearly all supplies entering via Mexico.
• Counties on the US–Mexico frontier registered 32 times more fentanyl powder and 78 times more pills seized than those bordering Canada.
• Canada has appointed a national “fentanyl czar” and committed over $1.3 billion since 2024 to bolster border enforcement and interagency coordination.
• Analysts warn the tariffs could inflate costs on $413 billion of annual Canadian exports and prompt retaliatory measures, even as policymakers debate their efficacy.