Days earlier than the federal election and after greater than every week with out commenting on Canada, U.S. President Donald Trump as soon as once more introduced up his 51st state thought Wednesday afternoon.
The president was talking to reporters from the Oval Workplace, when he repeated his false claim that the USA “subsidizes” Canada to the tune of $200 billion a 12 months.
“I’ve to be sincere, as a state it really works nice. As a nation — contemplate the truth that what they do as a nation, 95 per cent of what they do is that they purchase from us they usually promote to us,” Trump stated.
The feedback come because the Canadian federal election had change into much less targeted on U.S. financial and sovereignty threats.
However Wednesday, Trump stated that if Canada did not commerce with the U.S., “as Trudeau instructed me, they’d stop to exist … which is true, definitely, as a rustic.”
Trump stated he known as former prime minister Justin Trudeau “Governor Trudeau, affectionately.”
And he stated he was “engaged on a deal” with Canada.
“I am working effectively with Canada. We’re doing very effectively,” Trump stated. “I’ve spoken to the present prime minister. He was very, very good. I’ll say we had a few very good conversations — superb, however I do not assume it is applicable for me to get entangled of their election.”
CBC’s Chris Glover spoke to Toronto voters about which federal chief they assume is finest to face U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats of tariffs and annexation.
The Prime Minister’s Workplace confirmed to CBC Information that Liberal Chief Mark Carney solely had one dialog with the U.S. president, a phone name on March 28. On the time, the 2 leaders described the decision as productive and Carney stated that Trump had revered Canadian sovereignty.
The Liberal chief has been campaigning on his capacity to take care of Trump.
The president was additionally requested Wednesday whether or not he would enhance tariffs on Canadian items, which to this point embrace levies on automobiles and auto components, metal, aluminum, non-Canada-U.S.-Mexico Settlement compliant items and an anticipated rise in tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber.
‘In some unspecified time in the future, it might go up’
“In some unspecified time in the future, it might go up,” Trump stated of the tariffs, although it was unclear how broadly he was talking. Most of his feedback had been targeted on the auto trade, however he additionally stated no auto tariff will increase are at the moment deliberate.
“All we’re saying is we do not need your vehicles, with all due respect,” the president stated. “We do not want their oil. We do not want their lumber. We do not want their vehicles, so I stated, ‘Why are we doing this?’ If we wanted one thing, that will be a special topic.”
The president repeated his $200-billion line twice Wednesday. Since December, Trump has cited varied figures, between $100 billion US and $250 billion US, in saying that the nation “subsidizes” Canada. Journalists and commerce specialists have repeatedly debunked the declare and stated it is not clear the place the U.S. president obtained such a big determine.
Canada’s commerce deficit with the U.S. was $63 billion US final 12 months, down from simply over $64 billion US in 2023. However Canadian vacationers visiting the nation — which border agency data shows is dropping — makes up for a few of that hole. Commerce deficits are additionally not thought of subsidies.
It is also removed from the primary time the president says the U.S. “does not want” Canadian oil, gasoline, automobiles or lumber. Actually, he began saying simply that in his first speech to leaders at the World Economic Forum, three days after his inauguration for his second time period.
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