Pete Hoekstra pulled from Ottawa conference for Washington meetings
Pete Hoekstra was pulled from a scheduled speaking slot at the Canada Strong and Free Network conference in Ottawa on May 8, 2026, after organizers said the U.S. ambassador to Canada was called to Washington, D.C., for urgent meetings. He had been billed as one of the event’s top speakers.
His removal from the program also takes him off a Canada-U.S. relationship panel later on May 8 that was set to include Conservative MP Jamil Jivani. The conference continued in Ottawa while trade talks between Canada and the United States remained ongoing.
Ottawa schedule changes
Hoekstra had been scheduled to speak on the morning of May 8 at the Canada Strong and Free Network conference. The change leaves a gap in a conference lineup that had put a sitting U.S. ambassador near the center of a discussion about the bilateral relationship.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith was still scheduled to speak on the afternoon of May 8. That kept the conference’s main stage focused on Canadian political figures even as Hoekstra’s absence removed one of the highest-profile U.S. voices from the day’s agenda.
Mike Pompeo on trade talks
On Thursday, former U.S. secretary of state Mike Pompeo told conference attendees that Canada should move past its irritation with the United States in the ongoing trade talks. His remarks set the tone for a gathering already centered on the relationship between Ottawa and Washington.
That backdrop made Hoekstra’s withdrawal more than a routine scheduling change. The conference was not only hosting Canadian conservatives and U.S. guests; it was also serving as a venue where speakers were publicly pressing for a reset in Canada-U.S. ties while those negotiations continued.
Jamil Jivani panel
Later on May 8, the conference was set to feature a panel on the Canada-U.S. relationship with Conservative MP Jamil Jivani. Jivani counts Vice President JD Vance as a close personal friend and recently returned from a second trip to Washington, D.C., where he and Canadian oil and gas companies met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
That leaves the conference with a different mix of speakers than organizers had first planned. Hoekstra’s absence removes the ambassador who would have represented the U.S. government in one of the event’s most visible sessions, while Jivani’s panel keeps the focus on the political and trade channels still active between the two countries.
