Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) says she asked the White House to remove some tariffs affecting her state.
U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak during a luncheon in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Oct. 15, 2026. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
The White House says it is removing some Canadian products that are subject to 50 percent U.S. tariffs, and adding other products to the list.
The products being removed from the tariff list include paper products, certain machinery and refrigeration equipment, and packing crates and boxes. Newly added products include certain valves, carpets, and waste products, the White House said on Oct. 23.
Earlier on Oct. 23, Maine Sen. Susan Collins said she had been working with the White House to remove several Canadian products important to her state from the list of products subject to tariffs. Her announcement comes ahead of next month’s midterm elections, with the Republican senator in a close race against her Democratic rival, Troy Jackson. Tariff tensions with Canada have been a point of contention in the border state.
“Many of our farmers and growers rely on specialized equipment, packaging materials, and other products from Canada that are either unavailable from American suppliers or cannot be replaced without incurring significant expense,” Collins said on social media on Oct. 23.
“I will continue working directly with Administration officials to seek additional relief and encourage a broader trade agreement with Canada, our neighbor, ally, and largest trading partner.”
The adjustment applies to the list of products subject to tariffs under Section 338 of the U.S. Tariff Act of 1930, which took effect after trade talks between Canada and the United States collapsed in August.
The changes will be effective on Oct. 30, the White House said.
‘We Hold All the Cards’
U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier on Oct. 23 that Washington was close to reaching trade deals with both Canada and Mexico.
“We’re very close to a deal with Mexico … the same thing with Canada. Canada is working very hard to make a deal with us,” Trump told reporters in Washington.
The U.S. president added that, “we hold all the cards,” when it came to trade negotiations with both countries.
Willing to Wait ‘Months From Now or Longer’
Also on Oct. 23, Prime Minister Mark Carney said that Canada is willing to wait “months from now or longer than that” to sign a deal with the United States that benefits Canada. Carney also told reporters in Istanbul, Turkey, that Ottawa could hold out until “another administration” takes power in Washington.
“We are continuing to engage with the U.S. government. We continue to be ready to sit down in good faith to negotiate a trade deal that is in both of our interests … We could sign it this afternoon if the U.S. were there,” Carney said.
Trade negotiations between Canada and the United States collapsed in August, prompting Washington to impose 50 percent tariffs on $27.6 billion of Canadian goods on Aug. 22. Ottawa responded with its own counter-tariffs on Sept. 8, applying 15, 25, and 50 percent duties to approximately $27.6 billion in American imports.
Carney said on Aug. 22 that trade negotiations broke down because Washington sought to restrict Canada’s ability to make trade deals with other countries, wanted to omit medium- and heavy-duty trucks from tariff exemptions, and made demands that would restrict Canada’s protections around the French language and Canadian culture. Carney also said on Sept. 3 that disagreement over lumber tariffs with the United States contributed to the talks collapsing.
Washington has accused Canada of causing the trade talks to fail because of last-minute demands. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in September that Canadian negotiators introduced new terms in the final hours of the talks, and that they had sought to “blow up” the deal for “political reasons.”
Washington imposed import prohibitions on most Canadian alcoholic beverages, some dairy-related products, and motorcycles, beginning on Sept. 29. Trump has also threatened to raise tariffs on automotive and steel from 25 percent to 50 percent beginning on Jan. 1, 2027.
Chief Canadian trade negotiator Janice Charette said on Oct. 22 that there was no timeline for returning to formal trade talks with the United States.
“We’re having conversations to see whether or not we can come back to the table for a set of detailed negotiations,” she said. “We don’t know exactly when that’s going to happen.”
Charette also said she believed Canada would not return to tariff-free trade with the United States, because Washington is bringing in large amounts of revenue from roughly $240 billion in global tariffs.
“We’re into a new world, we don’t know what that looks like, and I know that the uncertainty is very, very difficult for people,” she said.