Alberta vs. everybody.

When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the provincial and territorial leaders met in Ottawa on Wednesday to discuss how to respond to U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s threat to impose potentially devastating tariffs on Canadian goods, there was a notable absence.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who attended the meeting remotely while out of the country on vacation, was not at the closing press conference when Trudeau and the other leaders (B.C. Premier David Eby also attended virtually) announced that they had agreed on a Team Canada approach.

But when Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who is the current chair of the Council of the Federation, heard Smith had not signed the joint statement from the first ministers, the conversation turned to unity.

Trudeau said export taxes, including on energy resources, can’t be ruled out and that Canadians should be putting the country first. He then pointed out that the one industry Trump has directly threatened is the Canadian auto industry, but Ford was on board with retaliatory measures.

“Remember one thing: United we stand, divided we fall,” said Ford, when asked about Smith’s position.

“When you have someone that’s attacking your country, trying to take livelihoods off people, I’m gonna fight like you’ve never seen before,” he said, later adding: “I don’t care if you’re from the orange party, the blue party or the red party. We’re going to be united. We’re Canadian. We’re going to get this done.”

Smith, for her part, argues she is standing up for Alberta and the thousands of jobs tied to the oil and gas industry. And that any retaliatory measures should not disproportionately affect one jurisdiction more than another.

“Federal government officials continue to publicly and privately float the idea of cutting off energy supply to the U.S. and imposing export tariffs on Alberta energy and other products to the United States,” Smith said in a post on X after the Ottawa meeting.

“Until these threats cease, Alberta will not be able to fully support the federal government’s plan in dealing with the threatened tariffs. Alberta will simply not agree to export tariffs on our energy or other products, nor do we support a ban on exports of these same products.”

The war of words continued Thursday when Trudeau criticized Smith at an event in Windsor, Ont., pointing out that Ottawa helped Alberta in 2018 by purchasing the Trans Mountain pipeline.

“At the end of the day, all premiers but one, Danielle Smith, chose to put Canada first and to come together as Team Canada, so that Canada could show a common front against the incoming U.S. administration’s potential unfair practices,” he told reporters.

“I would actually like to point out to Danielle Smith that Canadians know the importance of standing up for each other. That’s why Canadian taxpayers bought the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, to be able to get Albertan oil to new markets.”

Smith re-upped her stance on what a “Team Canada” approach should look like, advocating for new pipelines and calling for Alberta to be treated “as an equal partner,” referring to equalization payments sent east.

While news trickled out Thursday that Trump was considering three tariff plans that would affect Canada, a federal government source said Ottawa would unveil proposed retaliatory tariffs on an initial round of American imports on Monday if Trump immediately proceeded after his inauguration.

Smith of course, who met with Trump at his resort in Florida last weekend, is set to attend the inauguration, where she says she will continue to advocate for Alberta.

This is the weekly Alberta newsletter written by Alberta Bureau Chief Mark Iype. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was forwarded to you from someone else, you can sign up for it and all Globe newsletters here.