Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught speaking off-camera on Friday. He said that President Donald Trump’s idea of making Canada the 51st state of the United States is a serious possibility.
Trudeau made these remarks during a meeting with business leaders. The meeting was about Trump’s plan to impose a 25% tax on goods imported from Canada. Trump has also suggested similar taxes on Mexico (25%) and China (10%), claiming it’s to stop illegal drugs and migrants from entering the U.S.
On Saturday, CNN reporter Paula Newton shared that Trudeau warned the business leaders at the meeting that Trump’s talk about taking over Canada is “very real.” Trudeau apparently made these comments after he thought the media had already left the room. In a recording played by CNN, Trudeau said, “Mr. Trump believes the easiest way to do this is by absorbing our country, and it’s a real thing.”
Newton explained to CNN viewers what Trudeau meant: When Trudeau says it’s a “real thing,” he’s saying that Trump sees this as a serious threat. The U.S. president is essentially telling Canada: negotiate a new trade deal with us on our terms, or we’ll keep pushing for this idea of Canada becoming part of the U.S. The Canadian government believes the U.S. will try to force this by putting heavy economic pressure on Canada. This could include measures that hurt Canada’s economy so much that joining the U.S. as the 51st state might seem like the only option.
Newton also spoke to people who were in the room during Trudeau’s speech. They said the meeting was cooperative, but many Canadians are now paying attention to this issue and are genuinely worried about it. Trudeau was trying to rally business and labor leaders to stand strong against this possibility.
Trump has repeatedly said he’d like Canada to join the U.S., claiming that Canadians would pay lower taxes if they agreed to such a deal. However, Trudeau has firmly rejected this idea. In January, he announced he would soon step down as prime minister, but before that, he wrote a response to Trump, saying, “There’s no chance Canada would ever become part of the United States. Both our countries benefit greatly from being each other’s biggest trading partners and close allies in security matters.”
