WARMINGTON: It's 'elbows up' on both sides as Carney meets with Trump
But if Carney decides to go through with Tuesday's meeting at White House he has opportunity to tell president to both back off and that Canada will never be part of U.S.
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Turns out it’s not just Prime Minister Mark Carney who has his “elbows up.”
President Donald Trump’s are up as well. Or, perhaps, those are his fists.
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WARMINGTON: It's 'elbows up' on both sides as Carney meets with Trump Back to video
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The bad news is Trump says he will “talk” to Carney about turning Canada into America’s 51st state when they meet in Washington Tuesday.
The good news is the 45th and 47th president has ruled out using military force to achieve such a goal.
And no, this is not April Fool’s Day.
It was not a punking, trolling or pranking from the president. It just sounded like it. All of these things were said Sunday during Trump’s interview on NBC’s Meet The Press, with Kristen Welker.
When Welker asked Trump whether he’ll talk about “annexing Canada” on Tuesday, the president responded: “I will always talk about that.
“You know why? We subsidize Canada to the tune of $200 billion a year. We don’t need their cars; in fact, we don’t want their cars,” Trump said. “We don’t need their energy; we don’t even want their energy — we have more than they do. We don’t want their lumber; we have great lumber — all we need to do us free it up from the environmental lunatics.”
Carney has not commented on Trump’s comments.
One even wonders whether Carney will still even fly to the White House in light of the president’s decision to once again belittle Canada by talking about adding it as a state.
Or will he use that meeting to set the president straight on Canada’s desire to never become part of the U.S. and to also put into context the trade deficit narrative, which from a Canadian perspective, differs greatly from Trump’s version?
Carney told reporters Friday our traditional relationship with the U.S. is “over” and that Canada would be embarking on creating a new economy. It’s unclear if those comments prompted Trump to go back to his lines about acquiring Canada.
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Regardless, there is a stalemate between Canada and the U.S on trade and tariffs.
Carney has called the situation a “crisis.” The president continuing on with the rhetoric is major news since it’s the first time he has done so since Carney was elected last Monday. In their initial call Tuesday, Carney told reporters the issue of Canada becoming a state was not raised.
Carney told reporters Friday that regardless of the president’s desire, Canada becoming part of the United States is something that is never going to happen. However, as Welker worded it, “annexing Canada” is something still on Trump’s mind.
Trump added: “You look at our map … it’s just an artificial line that drawn with a ruler. What a beautiful country it would be. It would be great.”
However, when pressed by Welker if military force could be used to secure Canada for the U.S., Trump nixed the idea.
“I think we are never (going to) get to that point,” he said, adding, however, “something could happen with Greenland” but “I don’t see it with Canada, I have to be honest.”
Trump also complained Canada “doesn’t carry their full share” of military spending and “they think we are going are going to protect them, (and) we really we are.”
It’s bizarre language from a president to the United States’ best friend, considering Canada fought together with America in two world wars and continues to be a major trading partner of our southern neighbour.
It also puts Carney in a difficult spot.
There were cordial words spoken about Canada with Trump telling Welker “(Carney) called me, he was very nice. And I congratulated him. He had a victory, a very close victory, No majority or anything. So that’s going make it difficult, I think, for him to run. He nevertheless had a victory. He is a very nice man I think.”
But the overall tone was insulting, rude, disrespectful and dismissive – with Trump saying he doesn’t “think the American public wants to pay $200 billion a year to subsidize Canada.”
Said Trump: “We don’t do very much business with Canada. They do all their business, practically, with us. They need us, we don’t need them.”
Premier Doug Ford has said Canada annually exports about $593 billion worth of products to the United States while importing $484 billion which is not a $200-billion trade deficit.
As Ford has stated, Canada is the number one trading partner with about 20 U.S. states. But Trump seems adamant about his position.
Carney has already indicated Canada is moving away from its dependence on the U.S. So, this should be one interesting, if not vitriolic, meeting Tuesday.
Stay tuned.
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