It’s no secret that Louisiana is a red state, with more than 60 percent of its voters choosing Trump and only 38 percent choosing Harris back in the 2024 election. Still, it appears the people and even the leaders of Louisiana are not exactly happy with President Trump’s actions, as the governor of the state is now calling for Trump to apologize to Canada. Turns out Canadian tourists are a big part of Louisiana’s economy.
This plea came from Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser of the Republican Party, and he’s also the Louisiana governor in question. Apparently, Trump’s jokes and aggression towards Canada, such as trade war policies and wanting Canada to become the US’s 51st state, have driven away Canadian tourists from the US. Louisiana is reeling from this economic blow. In Nungesser’s recent trip to Canada, he was made aware that Canadians are staying away from the US. Hence, the Louisiana governor is now asking Trump to apologize.
“They just pretty much said that they’re not coming back until he’s either out of office or he apologizes. After the tariffs and the president’s comments, he let us know that people were dropping like flies,” recalls Nungesser, transcript courtesy of WWNO. This year’s Grand Reveil Acadien festival in Louisiana will see fewer Canadian tourists; the festival typically attracts Canadian tourists as it’s a celebration of early French settlers in Louisiana.
Some people aren’t sympathetic to Louisiana
For the record, Canadian tourism to the US has dropped by 30 percent, with many Canadian airlines not advertising flights to the US. At the time of writing, it seems Nungesser’s pleas to the president have fallen on deaf ears, as Trump hasn’t responded yet, but the festivals will still go on. Sadly, Nungesser just isn’t sure how festive it will be in the absence of a big chunk of the tourist population.
Despite this tourism problem that Louisiana is now suffering, essentially because of the president whom they voted for, a lot of vocal people online appear to be mocking their situation. Some also pointed out just how useless the plea for Trump to apologize was because it appears the Canadians have made up their mind.
“Nobody in Canada is going to accept an apology and just start going back. Ya’ll need to make some huge changes before you see that. The damage is done and Canada holds a grudge,” according to a Reddit user in r/LeopardsAteMyFace. Others were also worried just much public damage President Trump has inflicted on the US, “In less than a year, Trump has done DECADES of damage to the U.S. and Jeff Landry is a gutless coward and bigot who supported it.”
Some Canadians have chimed in on the discussion, and it turns out even their children are against Trump, “Im Canadian and even my kids are against America now.” For other states, however, dropping tourism might be a less immediate concern, as issues range from agricultural bankruptcy to medical staff shortages.
