How a meeting with Donald Trump Jr. led Canada's premiers to an $85,000-a-month lobbying firm

How did Canada's premiers end up hiring a Washington lobbying firm for $85,000 US a month? The story involves a meeting with Donald Trump Jr.

It was at an encounter with the president's son that one of them met the head of a lobby firm that helped organize the premiers' visit to Washington this week.

The Council of the Federation — the grouping of the 13 provincial and territorial leaders — hired Checkmate Government Relations LLC to help it connect with U.S. officials in hope of averting a trade war. 

Yukon Premier Ranj Pillai says he and his counterparts decided to act late last year, following Chrystia Freeland's surprise resignation from the federal cabinet. 

He says they were all meeting at an airport Hilton in Mississauga, Ont., at the time, talking strategy about how to deal with the tariff threats then being raised by president-elect Donald Trump. Three former ambassadors to Washington were also in the room, and the old political hands swiftly realized Freeland's departure was a crisis imperilling the Trudeau government, and would mark "a significant change," to how Ottawa would deal with Washington.

"At that moment, we all knew that we had to do what we could," Pillai told reporters this week, as the premiers visited the U.S. capital.

He reached out quickly to the president's son, whom he'd met once before, and was invited to a get-together days later in North Carolina.

Pillai says he raised the subject of trade tensions. Donald Jr. made clear he did not speak for the incoming administration. But among the people in the room was a young lobbyist who introduced himself —  Charles F. McDowell IV, a hunting buddy of the younger Trump and a partner at Checkmate Government Relations.

"We were all hanging out. There was a number of people there together," he said. 

Pillai later mentioned McDowell  to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, the current chair of the Council of the Federation, who was soliciting ideas as they began planning a Washington visit.

Pillai said he told Ford: "Look, this is somebody I think that has maybe an effective ability to deal with the Trump administration or to get the doors open."

The resulting contract is available for public viewing online thanks to the U.S. Foreign Agent Registration Act. It says the firm will help the premiers, but makes no promises about the outcome of any talks. 

The company also employs Chris LaCivita Jr., the son of Donald Trump's campaign co-chair.

The firm is new to Washington. It has its roots in North Carolina but has moved to the capital, just as co-founder and McDowell's brother, Addison McDowell, entered Congress this year.