The Gordie Howe International Bridge, linking Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, is set for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday and is expected to open to traffic later this month. the milestone arrives as former President Donald Trump continues to claim the bridge is not a U.S. asset and threatens it during the upcoming review of the USMCA trade deal. Canadian and Michigan officials, however, emphasize the project as a joint symbol of cross-border cooperation, according to the source report.

Michigan's 50% Stake — Paid for by Canada

Under the financing structure that surprised many onlookers, the Canadian government covered the entire construction cost , which began in 2018, with repayment planned through future toll revenues. Michigan, meanwhile , holds a 50 percent ownership stake without making any upfront investment, the source article notes. former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, a Republican who negotiated the project, has publicly refuted Trump's claim that the bridge is not a U.S. asset, writing that Canada and Michigan are equal owners and that the United States secured its half-ownership for free.

That arrangement means the Gordie Howe Bridge is a uniquely Canadian-financed American asset — a fact that has become a flashpoint in the current trade dispute.

The Ambassador Bridge's 25% Trade Share

The new crossing enters a market already dominated by the privately owned Ambassador Bridge, which handles about 25 percent of all U.S.-Canadian trade and is critical to the auto manufacturing supply chain, as the source reports. The Moroun family, which controls the Ambassador Bridge, previously sued to block construction of the Gordie Howe Bridge, seeing it as a direct competitor.

By diverting traffic from the aging Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit-Windsor tunnel, the new span is expected to reduce congestion and improve the flow of goods at one of North America's busiest border crossings. The source quotes Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat, calling the Canadian-funded project a “huge boon” to her state's economy.

Rick Snyder vs. Donald Trump: A Republican Split Over Ownership

The dispute over the bridge's ownership has split the Republican party. Trump has insisted the bridge is not a U.S. asset and demanded its transfer to the federal government. But Snyder, a fellow Republican who oversaw Michigan's role in the deal, countered that claim directly. The source reports Snyder wrote that Canada and Michigan are equal owners and that the United States secured its half-ownership without any financial outlay.

This intra-party clash leaves the bridge's future governance uncertain, especially if Trump's trade threats escalate into formal action during the USMCA review.

What the USMCA Review Could Mean for the Crossing

The bridge's inauguration coincides with the scheduled review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), a process that Trump has said he will use to press his demands. The source notes that Trump has threatened the bridge in that context, without specifying what form that threat would take.

Open questions remain.. Will the U.S. federal government attempt to assert ownership over Michigan's stake? Could toll revenues be redirected or tariffs imposed on the new crossing? And how will the Moroun family's legal challenges — already a hurdle — evolve under a potentially hostile White House? The source provides no answers on those points, leaving the fate of this joint infrastructure project tied to the volatile politics of North American trade.