Christian Group Urges Trump: Keep Tariffs on Canada Until Carney Ends War on Christians

rairfoundation.com

In a bold and unprecedented appeal for international intervention, Canada’s leading pro-life and Christian advocacy organization, Campaign Life Coalition (CLC), is calling on President Donald J. Trump to make the normalization of U.S.-Canada trade contingent on Canada ending its escalating persecution of Christians and pro-life groups.

At a press conference outside the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa, CLC President Jeff Gunnarson issued a formal plea to President Trump ahead of the G7 Summit in Alberta: defend Canada’s religious minorities by keeping the tariffs in place. The group delivered a powerful letter, along with a petition signed by over 20,000 Canadians, demanding the U.S. take action against what they described as “an authoritarian crackdown on Christian Canada.”

“Mr. President, we ask that you speak up, clearly and firmly, and take a stand for Canadian citizens whose rights, freedoms, and institutions are under attack,” said Gunnarson. “These proposals amount to nothing less than a direct assault on Canada’s religious and pro-life communities.”


A Communist Playbook Unfolds in Canada

At the heart of the protest are two radical budget recommendations quietly slipped into a 2025 House of Commons report:

  • Recommendation 429: Revoke charitable status from all “anti-abortion organizations.”
  • Recommendation 430: Erase “the advancement of religion” as a valid charitable purpose under Canadian tax law.

If enacted, these measures would crush churches, pro-life pregnancy centers, soup kitchens, faith-based shelters, and countless Christian charities. And that’s not hyperbole—the proposals carry with them a shocking “revocation tax,” empowering the Canadian government to seize the buildings, funds, and properties of charities that can’t pay.

“This is not just an economic policy—it’s ideological warfare,” said Pete McClintock, CLC’s Communications Director. “These proposals would give the federal government the power to bankrupt and dismantle the institutions that form the backbone of Christian life in Canada.”


Silenced, Imprisoned, Erased

The press conference did more than expose legislative dangers. It cataloged a mounting war on Canadian Christians and Canadian freedom of belief:

  • Peaceful prayer is criminalized. Grandmothers like Linda Gibbons have been jailed for standing silently outside abortion facilities. Catholic priest Father Tony Van Hee was charged with defending speech near an abortion site.
  • Pro-life speech is suppressed. Mary Wagner was imprisoned for offering roses and compassion to women inside abortion clinics.
  • Religious symbols are banned. Quebec bars public employees from wearing crosses and threatens to outlaw public prayer entirely.
  • Christian churches have burned. Following what appear to be completely synthetic allegations of historic abuses, over 100 churches have been torched or vandalized. The federal government called the destruction “understandable.”
  • “This is a religious war,” said Debbie Duval, CLC’s National Organizer. “And it’s being waged not by outside forces, but by our own government.”

Three Parties, One Betrayal

Perhaps most damning: the attack is bipartisan. The Standing Committee on Finance, where these measures originated, included members from all major federal parties—Liberals, Conservatives, and the NDP.

“None of the federal leaders – Carney, Poilievre, or Singh spoke out,” said Duval. “Not one promised to defend Christian or pro-life Canadians. Their silence speaks volumes. Either they are cowards, or they are complicit.”


Campaign Life to Trump: No Trade Without Religious Freedom

CLC’s response is as strategic as it is defiant. Citing Trump’s past statements that “there can be no free trade with the United States without free speech,” the group is urging the former President to leverage U.S. foreign policy and trade power to halt Canada’s descent into ideological tyranny.

“Canada should not enjoy privileged access to American markets while it wages war against its own citizens,” declared Georges Buscemi, President of Campagne Québec-Vie. “Mr. Trump, hold Prime Minister Carney accountable. This isn’t coexistence—it’s Communist persecution dressed in progressive language.”

Buscemi and Gunnarson called on Trump and Vice President JD Vance to press the issue at the G7. They reminded the media of Vance’s words in Munich: “The gravest threat to Western democracies comes not from abroad, but from within.”


The Selective Persecution of Christianity

Although not explicitly stated at the event, it was evident to many observers that Canada’s proposed new laws will not apply equally to all faiths. Islam and mosques are expected to receive carveouts or accommodations, as has become standard in Western legal systems increasingly shaped by fear of “Islamophobia” accusations.

“You can be sure: when Christian soup kitchens are stripped of their status and churches shuttered, mosques will remain untouched, and their funding intact,” said one attendee. “This is the double standard of post-Christian Canada.”


Canada’s Shift from Christian Democracy to Secular Authoritarianism

The proposals reflect a larger cultural revolution sweeping Canada, a shift away from the Christian foundations explicitly recognized in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and toward a system in which the state becomes the highest moral authority.

“Christianity teaches that God, not government, is sovereign. That’s why communism always targets Christians first,” said Gunnarson. “Because our faith tells us there is something higher than the state.”

Campaign Life Coalition framed the issue in existential terms: This is not just about tax status. This is about survival.


Final Plea to President Trump

In closing, the group urged President Trump to draw a red line:

“Mr. President, over 20,000 Canadians have signed our petition. We beg you—do not let our suffering be ignored,” said Gunnarson. “Raise this issue at the G7. Use your voice. Tie trade to liberty. And tell Prime Minister Carney: You don’t get American markets if you burn down churches and jail Christians.”