Ontario budgeted $52M for commercials meant to fend off U.S. tariffs
It was a charm offensive aimed at American politicians and decision-makers for months.
Lawmakers landing at Washington Dulles International Airport were met with signs reminding them that Ontario is “an economic partner that helps employ millions of American workers.”
Politicians who thumbed through the pages of The Washington Post were told that Ontario is a “secure economic partner in an insecure world.” The message was even blasted out to the Super Bowl’s millions of viewers.
As Donald Trump was inaugurated and started his term as president, Ontario’s message of partnership was everywhere.
But achieving a level of saturation didn’t come cheap.
New invoices and documents, obtained by Global News using freedom of information laws, show the budget for the advertising blitz was set by Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s office at $52 million.
Between mid-December and mid-February, the provincial government shelled out roughly $38 million of that money to buy advertising space. The vast majority went to television commercials, particularly on Fox News.
When he unveiled the new strategy in November 2024, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Vic Fedeli said it aimed to underscore the United States’ close relationship with Ontario.
Fedeli wanted to push the narrative as Trump threatened massive tariffs and mused about Canada becoming the 51st state.
“It’s really important just to remind them subtly: we’re a trusted partner to your north, we’ve always been there for you and we’ll be there for you tomorrow,” he said.
By March, however, the United States had included Canada on its list of countries facing tariffs on steel, aluminum and autos. David Paterson, Ontario’s representative on Capitol Hill, conceded the high-value charm offensive had “been over for quite a while.”
Now, opponents of the Ford government are asking what exactly the province achieved by spending tens of millions of dollars beaming its message to American lawmakers who may not have been listening.
“The government should have been looking at: Was this changing minds? Was this influencing Donald Trump? It doesn’t appear to have done a whole lot,” Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said.
The province said the campaign made 1.9 billion impressions and reached more than 100 million people in the United States.
Commercials run after U.S. President Donald Trump elected
When Trump won the United States election on Nov. 5, 2024, Ford and his team kicked into high gear, fearing his threats of tariffs and annexation could have a crushing effect on the economy.
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By noon on Nov. 6, the premier’s office had asked to increase the planned budget for a “U.S. Partnerships campaign” from $20 million to $52 million, according to emails and other documents seen by Global News.
The plan was to run advertisements targeting the United States from January to March 2025. The strategy was then revamped and reworked to start earlier.
A massive commercial buy targeting Trump’s favoured television network, Fox News, was approved to begin in December on shows with estimated audiences ranging from 6.5 to 8 million people.
The government earmarked $17.6 million to buy advertising space on four Fox News prime time shows. It also grabbed slots during American football games. An extra $400,000 was spent to put up posters promoting Ontario at transit shelters in Washington, D.C. and at airports in the United States.
In total, the province spent $18 million in December, according to the documents obtained by Global News.
That spending continued in January and February, with another total of $19.8 million. The latter cost covered commercials on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Search and The Wall Street Journal, among others, alongside another chunk of television commercials.
The Ford government did not confirm to Global News if the entire $52 million budget for the campaign was spent.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade said the campaign made an impression.
“With the threat of tariffs, as one part of a larger engagement plan, our government launched an advertising campaign to reach Americans on American networks, highlighting our longstanding partnership and value in energy, critical minerals, and other resources that many states rely on,” they said in a statement sent to Global News.
“Our campaign received over 1.9 billion impressions and reached more than 100 million Americans, including key decision-makers who can influence trade policies with Canada and who routinely raise and celebrate the advertising campaign with Ontario officials during meetings.”
Critics question what the campaign achieved
More than six months after Trump’s election and the launch of Ontario’s campaign to win American hearts and minds, some are questioning what the province got for its money and why the commercials ran for so long.
When tariffs — which remain in place — were announced in March, Ford removed American alcohol from the shelves of the LCBO, said he would cancel a contract with Elon Musk’s Starlink and briefly threatened to cut off electricity exports to the United States.
The latter threat was quickly stood down in exchange for a meeting with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, but the tariffs were not removed. Critics believe none of Ford’s actions — including the pricey commercial campaign — have had any effect.
“What we see is overspending on advertising in the United States,” Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie said.
“And for what results, we have to ask ourselves. Did he stop the tariffs? He did not. Did he protect jobs? No, jobs are leaving the province. Did he strengthen our economy and diversify our trading partners? He did neither of those things.”
Stiles said the strategy wasn’t necessarily misguided at the beginning, but could have been cut short, with the money funnelled into relief for sectors like steel and auto manufacturing, which have seen tariff-induced layoffs.
“The government seemed to just keep wanting to throw money at advertising campaigns even at a time when Ontarians are really struggling,” she said.
Ford’s opponents have complained about his government’s use of advertising in the past, pointing to recent findings by the auditor general.
In December, the auditor general found the Ford government had spent more than any other administration on advertising. The province paid a total of $103.5 million in a single year for commercials.
The auditor general concluded those advertisements were “designed to promote the governing party” rather than to share an important message with the public.
Swaths of southern Ontario could see severe thunderstorms and flash floods on Sunday amid extreme heat.
Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued heat warnings and thunderstorm watches for parts of the province, as well as a thunderstorm warning for Stirling, Tweed and Madoc.
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Forecasters say the area halfway between Toronto and Ottawa could see wind gusts up to 90 kilometres per hour and hail the size of nickels.
Meanwhile, police in Toronto say they received reports of water pooling on the Don Valley Parkway on Sunday morning.
A thunderstorm watch was in effect for the city, and police say some lanes of the DVP were restricted.
The heat in southern Ontario, where humidex values have reached 40 C, could last until Thursday.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Residents of a tiny rural community in eastern Ontario pressed police on Saturday for answers about a disturbing attack on a young girl that investigators believed was caused by an animal — until they arrested a teenager in the case.
Nearly 100 people filled a small community centre in Quadeville, about 170 kilometres west of Ottawa, for a town hall organized by Ontario Provincial Police to address residents’ questions and concerns about their investigation.
Some have asked why the OPP alerted the community about a suspected animal attack on the eight-year-old girl before announcing two weeks later that a 17-year-old boy had been charged with sexual assault and attempted murder.
Police have said that they never ruled out other possibilities, and that their initial theory was supported by medical and pathology experts.
At Saturday evening’s town hall, police did not divulge any new information about the case that is now before the courts, but sought to assure residents they did everything they could to keep them informed throughout the investigation.
The community centre was packed, with no empty seats to be found. As people filed in, the temperature in the room started to increase on a sweltering evening, especially after someone shut off the portable air conditioning unit that was making noise.
“It’s a very traumatic time for this community because everyone knows everyone involved,” OPP Supt. Derek Needham said at the meeting punctuated by some tense moments.
When police opened the floor for questions, a man who identified himself as a relative of the victim asked why it took a long time for police to respond when the girl was initially reported missing on June 23, after she was last seen at a local store.
Police replied that it took time to bring officers to the scene to search the area.
“I could’ve done my own investigation,” said the man, adding that he lives three hours away.
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The OPP have said that they began their search for the missing child around 9 p.m. on June 23, and found her with life-threatening injuries not long after midnight.
Police asked people to keep their small children indoors amid fears of an animal attack but as their investigation continued, they discovered that there were no traces of animal DNA from the victim’s wounds. Police have not said what kind of evidence led them to arrest the teenage suspect, who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
Town hall attendee Sandy Musclow asked police how members of the community should interact with the families of the young girl and the suspect.
“A whole lot of healing needs to take place,” Needham said, adding that the best thing for families to do is reach out and have open communication.
After the town hall ended, Musclow said “it’s been a bit difficult to figure out” how to support both families.
“I’ve grown up with them and we really want to make sure that we feel like everyone can feel the pain and move forward together as a community,” she said.
Musclow said that although residents didn’t get much information about the police investigation at the town hall, she was glad to see the community come together. She also pointed to various fundraising efforts for the girl, who remains in hospital, and her family.
“I just feel that the police did a really good job at giving us some solace that they did the right thing for us and they did everything as timely as they could and they were really looking into everyone’s interest,” Musclow said.
OPP spokesperson Bill Dickson told reporters on Saturday that police were compelled to warn the public about a possible animal attack in the early stages of the investigation, even if they weren’t sure that was the case.
“We couldn’t undersell it because if we didn’t say something and warn people and it was an animal and another child was attacked, that would be horrible,” he said.
Dickson said one of the local churches is bringing in counsellors to work with the community and counselling services from the OPP will also be available.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
A new poll by Leger has found that Quebec residents are the happiest in Canada.
The web survey of nearly 40,000 Canadians found that Quebecers rated their happiness at an average of 72.4 out of 100, which is well above the national average.
New Brunswick followed Quebec with an average of 70.2, while Manitoba and Prince Edward Island finished at the bottom of the list.
Mississauga, Ont. had the highest happiness rating of the 10 largest cities, while Toronto was lowest.
Montreal finished second in the category.
The survey found that 49 per cent of respondents said their happiness level was unchanged over the past year, while 23 per said they were happier and 28 per cent said they were less happy.
“These results reveal a population that is both resilient and tested, affected by everyday uncertainty and challenges,” Leger’s executive summary read. “Happiness, while holding its ground overall, shows signs of fragility.”
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The survey found that people in the 18-to-24 and 24-to-34-year-old categories were more likely to report improved feelings of well-being, even if their overall happiness score remained below the national average.
In contrast, people in the 35-to-44 and 45-to-54 age brackets were more likely to report their happiness had deteriorated.
“There is a sense of well-being emerging among younger age groups,” the summary read. “However, this also highlights the importance of supporting adults in mid-life, who are more vulnerable to the pressures of working life.”
Quebec, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador were the three provinces with happiness levels above the national average of 68.7. They were followed, in descending order, by Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Manitoba and P.E.I. The territories were not included in the survey.
In the survey of the 10 largest cities, Mississauga and Montreal finished ahead of Hamilton, Calgary, Brampton, Ottawa, Edmonton, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Toronto, in that order.
Women reported slightly higher happiness levels than men, at 69.4 versus 68.0.
Leger says the overall results confirm “a level of happiness that is relatively high but stagnant or even slightly down compared to the pre-pandemic period.”
To get the results, Leger surveyed 39,841 Canadians aged 18 and up between March 31 and April 13.
Online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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