The column below reflects the views of the author, and these opinions are neither endorsed nor supported by WisOpinion.com.

MADISON, Wis. – Among the many jokes comparing the United States and Canada is this shortie, which seems appropriate for the times.

Q: How do you find a Canadian in a crowd?

A: Just start bumping into people until someone apologizes.

It would be funny except President Trump has now bumped into most of Canada’s 41.4 million people over trade and tariffs and no one has apologized … especially Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Likewise, no one is laughing in Wisconsin’s key industries because the prospect of tariffs and retaliatory tariffs now seems less like a “border bluff” than a real wall separating the United States and its neighbor to the north.

If tariffs on both sides take effect in early September, Wisconsin industry sectors such as those engaged in making products from paper, dairy, steel, aluminum, plastics and more will feel the chill of winter much earlier than expected.

From cardboard to cheese curds, and from tech-based machinery to toilet paper, Wisconsin products find their way north on a regular basis.

Canada was the No. 1 destination for Wisconsin exports of all descriptions at $7.52 billion in 2025. No other nation came close in dollar totals, with Mexico (about $4 billion), Netherlands, China and Germany (each around $1 billion) rounding out the top five. That’s according to figures collected by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., the state’s economic development agency.

Trade is a two-way street that led to Wisconsin importing $5.7 billion in Canadian products in 2025, according to Canada’s Consulate General in Chicago. It’s a somewhat similar list by product category, with agriculture, chemicals, energy and equipment leading the way.

Canada’s consulate noted another economic factor in its March 2026 figures: 146 Canadian-owned companies employ nearly 24,000 people in Wisconsin.

How did this squabble get so far out of hand, especially between nations that share similar traditions and a history of mutual defense? Explanations range from Trump’s ALL-CAPS social media style of policy intimidation to Canada’s baseline import duties and tariffs on some U.S.-made goods, despite free-trade agreements that date to 1989 and 1994.

Whatever the causes, trade disagreements lead to disruptions that increase costs for consumers and businesses alike.

“The current uncertainty of trade policy is not just having a negative (effect) on consumers in Wisconsin who have to pay more for goods, but also on businesses and other industries like agriculture that expect to export their products,” said John W. Miller, WEDC’s secretary and chief executive officer.

Business planning cycles depend on certainty in rules and supply-chain economics. On-again, off-again tariffs disrupt that.

In early 2025, a survey by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce showed that 86% of respondents supported tariffs on China due to a widespread belief that the nation was not playing by established rules. That same survey by the state’s largest business group showed just 56% of respondents backed tariffs on Canada and Mexico.

“Wisconsin is a manufacturing state; we’re an agricultural state,” WMC President Kurt Bauer said at the time. “We make things, we grow things, we process things, and we’re looking for markets around the world (in which) to sell them. Canada and Mexico have been very lucrative markets for Wisconsin-made products.”

Although WMC has not conducted a similar survey since, Bauer currently believes support for tariffs may have “eroded a bit” when it comes to Canada and Mexico. “I don’t like trade wars,” he added.

One goal of WEDC is to schedule trade missions with the state’s leading export-import partners on a regular basis. Trade tensions between the United States and Canada have made that difficult of late.

Trade missions set for March and November 2025 didn’t happen as planned because not enough Canadian companies wanted to meet with Wisconsin counterparts, citing the uncertain trade climate. There are no Wisconsin-Canada trade missions on the remainder of the 2026 published calendar.

As if cross-border tensions aren’t already high, Trump has signed an executive order to rename Lake Ontario, a native word that roughly translates to “lake of shining waters,” to “Lake America.” The only laughter you may hear is the mocking type coming from both sides of the border.

Still is past president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. He is an adviser to Competitive Wisconsin Inc., a non-profit policy group.