President-elect Donald Trump continued his trolling campaign against Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who announced Monday he would resign, suggesting the U.S. and Canada should merge, saying in a social media post it would no longer need U.S. help to “stay afloat.”
President-elect Donald Trump—who has seemingly joked of a U.S.-Canada merger before—said if the two … [+] countries merge there would be no tariffs, lower taxes and the U.S. and Canada would be “TOTALLY SECURE” from Russian and Chinese threats.
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Key Facts
Trump referred to Canada in the post as “the 51st State”—an ongoing joke he began making last fall, along with referring to the prime minister as “Governor Justin Trudeau”—and said Trudeau resigned because he knew the U.S. “can no longer suffer the massive Trade Deficits and Subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat.”
Trump has heavily criticized trade deficits with bordering countries Canada and Mexico, and made increasing tariffs on foreign competitors central to his election campaign.
Trudeau announced his plans to resign “after the party selects its next leader” on Monday, and said “it’s become obvious to me with the internal battles that I cannot be the one to carry the liberal standard into the next election.”
In his Truth Social post, Trump also said if the two countries merged “they would be TOTALLY SECURE from the threat of the Russian and Chinese Ships that are constantly surrounding them.”
This story is breaking and will be updated.
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News Peg
Trudeau announced his plans to step down as prime minister and party leader in a press conference Monday after increased speculation he would do so amid growing pressure from his own party’s lawmakers. Trudeau said in the press conference he made the decision over the holidays, and he asked lawmakers to take a recess until March 24 so the Liberal Party can select a new leader, who will then take over as prime minister.
Key Background
Trudeau was elected prime minister in 2015, and has led the Liberal Party for 11 years. He began to face growing calls for his resignation over the last year, though, and Trudeau’s recent feuds with Trump over his proposed 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico increased concern in his party. Though Trump’s recent quips about Canada becoming the 51st state of the U.S. have typically been perceived as a joke, he has more seriously suggested plans to expand American territories in other directions and hinted that he wants the Panama Canal and Greenland under American control or ownership. On Dec. 25, Trump said on Truth Social that Greenland is “needed by the United States for national security purposes” and complained about the lack of say the U.S. has over the Panama Canal, which was built by the U.S. in the early 20th century and transferred back to Panama as part of a 1977 treaty.
Tangent
The Washington Post reported Monday that Trump is planning to walk back his tariff proposal and implement more targeted tariffs as opposed to the across-the-board levies he talked about while campaigning—though Trump denied the report and wrote it off as “Fake News.” After he won the nomination, Trump touted 25% tariffs he hoped to impose on all products from Mexico and Canada, and 10% tariffs on Chinese goods. Trump suggested the tariffs would push companies to manufacture more goods in the U.S. and shrink the federal deficit, though many economists believe tariffs could lead to price increases.
Further Reading
ForbesTrudeau Says He’ll Resign As Canada’s Prime MinisterBy Sara Dorn ForbesCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Reportedly Set To Resign This Week—Here’s What To KnowBy Siladitya Ray
