Canadians Call for Banning Trump and MAGA Supporters Forever — But the Real Fury Is Aimed at the Ambassador

Over 220,000 Canadians have signed a House of Commons petition demanding that the government declare U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra "persona non grata" and request his removal. The unprecedented backlash comes as President Trump's annexation rhetoric and trade war have pushed America's northern neighbor to a boiling point. While some are now calling for banning Trump and MAGA supporters entirely, analysts say the real message is a "loud and clear" warning that Canadian patience has run out.

OTTAWA — If there is one thing Canadians have made clear in recent months, it is that they have had enough of President Donald Trump — and they are not afraid to say it.

A House of Commons petition calling for the expulsion of U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has become the most popular in Canada's parliamentary history, with more than 223,000 Canadians signing as of August 18 — and the petition remains open until November 18 .

The petition, started by Leanne Walker of Calgary and presented by Green Party leader Elizabeth May, accuses Hoekstra of repeatedly making statements that damage Canada-U.S. relations and interfere in Canadian domestic politics . The most inflammatory charge: Hoekstra has "normalized" President Trump's repeated threats to annex Canada as the 51st U.S. state .

"He called Trump's threats 'a term of endearment,'" one signatory wrote on social media. "That's not diplomacy. That's contempt."

The Ambassador Under Fire

Pete Hoekstra, a 72-year-old former Michigan congressman appointed by Trump in 2025, has drawn outrage from the moment he arrived in Ottawa . At his confirmation hearing, he initially acknowledged Canada's sovereignty. But in an interview last year, he described Trump's annexation rhetoric as "a term of endearment" — a comment that has haunted him ever since .

The petition also accuses Hoekstra of interfering in Canadian politics, including his claim that Canada's 2025 federal election was "anti-American" — a comment that infuriated Canadians who had just elected Prime Minister Mark Carney in a surge of nationalist sentiment fueled precisely by Trump's trade war and annexation talk .

Under Canadian law, a petition with more than 500 signatures must receive a government response. The Hoekstra petition has blown past that requirement by a factor of 400. But analysts agree: the government is highly unlikely to actually expel the ambassador .

"Canadians understand that," wrote one commentator. "This petition isn't really about Hoekstra. It's a loud and clear warning to the U.S. that Canada's patience has run out." 

The 'Ban MAGA' Sentiment

While the petition focuses on the ambassador, a parallel sentiment has emerged on social media and in public discourse: some Canadians are calling for banning Trump and MAGA supporters from entering Canada altogether .

"This is the trouble," one Canadian wrote on a discussion forum. "Interrogate them at the border and should they be Trump supporters send them back. They are a threat." 

Others have pushed back, calling the sentiment "hypocritical" after years of Canadians lecturing Americans about tolerance and inclusion . A Trump supporter living in Canada asked: "What do you want to do with the Trump supporters that live in Canada? Kick them out of Canada?" 

But the broader anti-Trump sentiment extends far beyond online forums. On April 5, 2025, hundreds of Canadians took to the streets in cities across the country — Montreal, Halifax, Winnipeg — to protest Trump's rhetoric . In Montreal, demonstrators gathered at Mount Royal Park holding signs reading "51, c'est non" ("51 is no") . In Halifax, hundreds braved pouring rain and stood in puddles to sing along to Canadian classics .

One protest organizer, former journalist Alain Saulnier, said: "Our most important message was: when you're at home, locked in, and you hear that Donald Trump might invade Canada and all the Trumpist values might contaminate us, you're paralyzed, you're afraid." 

The Trade War Burning Beneath

The fury over Hoekstra and Trump is not happening in a vacuum. A punishing trade war has pushed U.S.-Canada relations to a historic low. Trump is set to impose punitive tariffs on $200 billion in Canadian goods starting August 19 — a move Canada has vowed to retaliate against .

Talks between U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Canada's chief negotiator Janice Charette have stalled over key sticking points including automobile and lumber tariffs. Washington has refused to lower a 10% tariff on lumber and only agreed to reduce auto tariffs to 15% — levels Ottawa says it cannot accept .

"The Americans are treating us like a colony, not an ally," one Canadian business owner told reporters. "And the ambassador is just the face of that contempt."

What Actually Happens Next?

While actual expulsion of the ambassador is nearly impossible, the petition is a powerful signal . The House of Commons must now respond, and the debate that follows could further strain relations.

Meanwhile, Carney has warned that the "old world order is done" and that "middle powers" like Canada must come together to resist global superpowers . Canadians, by the hundreds of thousands, are demanding their government take a stand.

One protester in Halifax, Debbie Baker, 66, attending her first-ever demonstration, summed up the feeling: "At my age, it was time to stand up and say something. I'm proud to be Canadian. I'll be damned if anyone takes control of this country — whether it's someone elected in Canada or someone south of our border." 

The story is developing. Canada's House of Commons is expected to formally respond to the petition in the coming weeks. With more signatures piling up daily and the trade war escalating, the message to Washington is clear: Canadians are not backing down.