Canada wants urgent changes to trade rules for the auto industry. The U.S. may not even be listening

A wide-ranging Canadian diplomatic mission came south trying to catching Americans' attention during an abnormally busy week in Washington.

The top priority of Canadians here — from the trade minister, to opposition members, business executives and diplomats — was to plead for changes to a budget bill.

Canada has begun to hint, in public and in private, at something Mexico explicitly threatened Thursday: trade actions against the U.S. if the country's Congress proceeds with Buy American-style provisions they fear will devastate the Canadian auto sector.

The challenge for these out-of-towners is getting American lawmakers to take notice as they grapple with a succession of headaches.

What's already on the to-do list for the Democratic-controlled Congress in coming days:

In the backdrop is the one pervasive fear driving Democrats' sense of urgency to pass BBB: that they risk achieving little with their time in power, get wiped out in next year's congressional midterms, and watch Donald Trump mount his comeback.

Now Canada is here to tell people it's very unhappy with Pages 1870, Clause B (4), and 1873, Clause G of the bill, which would use tax credits to steer next-generation vehicle production to union plants in Michigan.

Canadian officials including International Trade Minister Mary Ng are making the country's case in about 50 meetings with members of the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives, administration and businesses.

The goal: get the Senate to amend or kill bits of the bill, already passed by the House of Representatives, which they fear could have a detrimental long-term impact on Canadian manufacturing.

After her meetings Thursday, Ng was asked a few times in an interview with CBC News whether she'd heard anything that gave her hope. She did not divulge specifics of the meetings.

Asked what the path is for Canada to knock down this provision, Ng replied: "This bill is before the Senate. The U.S. Senate. I am here," she said.

"And I am meeting with many senators. My colleagues are meeting with many senators.… We are going to keep up this advocacy."

WATCH | Canadians hit Capitol Hill to urge changes in electric car provision:

Some people who attended meetings this week said they didn't get any commitments but did hear ideas, primarily from the Republican side, about how these provisions could change.