Trump blows up the notion his Canada talk was just a fleeting fancy

Alexander Panetta · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 25, 2025 5:21 PM EDT | Last Updated: 19 minutes ago

There's been nary shortage of speculation astir however U.S. President Donald Trump's comments astir Canada mightiness interaction the national election.

It's present clip to commencement asking a new, longer-term question: About however his cognition volition interaction Canada beyond Monday's election.

It present seems progressively evident that Trump's expansionist aspirations are nary fleeting fancy. He kept quiescent for a while, starring immoderate to wonderment whether he'd gotten it retired of his strategy — that possibly helium was conscionable simply trolling our erstwhile premier minister, Justin Trudeau.

But successful caller days, the president has been blunt successful antithetic encounters with media that helium earnestly would emotion to spot Canada go a state. 

Lest anyone deliberation helium mightiness beryllium joking, helium made wide helium wasn't. Time mag asked him successful an interview: Maybe you're trolling a spot erstwhile talking astir Canada arsenic 51st state.

"Actually, no, I'm not," helium told Time successful an interrogation conducted Tuesday, and published Friday.

"I'm truly not trolling. Canada is an absorbing case.…  I accidental the lone mode this happening truly works is for Canada to go a state."

He repeated his oft-stated assertion astir the U.S. subsidizing Canada, restating figures that look to instrumentality the commercialized deficit, adhd Canada's under-spending connected defence and wildly exaggerate that full sum.

Asked if helium wanted to turn the American empire, arsenic portion of his speech astir Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal, Trump replied, "If we had the close opportunity. Yeah." 

Asked again if helium wanted to beryllium remembered arsenic a president who expanded American territory, helium replied, "Wouldn't mind."

WATCH | Trump returns with 51st authorities rhetoric, days earlier election: 

At this point, it's nary longer tenable to presume the president is conscionable joking, says 1 of the best-connected Canadians successful Washington. After all, Trump adjacent enactment his tendency for territorial enlargement successful his inaugural address. 

"Nobody says thing repeatedly for months of this quality without believing it," said Eric Miller, an planetary commercialized advisor successful Washington and advisor connected Canada-U.S. relations.

He said Trump believes 2 things: that the U.S. doesn't request Canada nether their existent economical arrangement, and that helium wishes helium could get it.

How, when, nether what conditions and however determined helium is to enactment the effort into making this hap — all of that's unclear, Miller said.

"I don't deliberation there's a maestro program close present which says, 'Three months from present we volition bash X, and six months from present we volition bash Y,'" Miller said. 

"But the tendency is intelligibly there.… Certainly this is going to beryllium a apical precedence for the adjacent premier minister.

"It volition beryllium an contented that the adjacent authorities successful Canada volition perpetually person to monitor. And they volition person to measure what President Trump's intentions are implicit time, due to the fact that his involvement and his intentions whitethorn germinate implicit time."

The situation for Canada's next government

There volition beryllium aboriginal points of interaction betwixt the adjacent authorities and Trump. For starters, there's the G7 acme successful Alberta successful June. The countries are besides acceptable to enter broad commercialized and information negotiations.

For a while, it seemed plausible that these events mightiness unfold without Trump disparaging, and calling into question, Canada's sovereignty.

After all, he'd stopped talking astir Canada arsenic the 51st authorities for a fewer weeks, since Mark Carney replaced Trudeau arsenic premier curate and Liberal person past month.

After their archetypal telephone call, Carney said Trump had respected Canada's sovereignty successful that conversation. But it turns retired determination was much to the story.

WATCH | More details connected Carney and Trump's telephone call: 

The archetypal denotation this was simply a impermanent intermission successful his rhetoric came successful a remark from the White House property secretary: Karoline Leavitt told a CBC newsman that Trump inactive believed successful making Canada a state.

Then he said it again to different reporters successful the Oval Office. Then again to Time Magazine, erstwhile asked astir it, insisting helium wasn't joking.

And this week Radio-Canada reported that — Carney's nationalist connection notwithstanding — Trump so mentioned wanting to make Canada the 51st authorities successful their telephone past month.

When asked connected the run way astir the discrepancy, Carney insists helium wasn't lying about his erstwhile connection that Trump had respected Canada's sovereignty; the Liberal person said they'd had the speech arsenic 2 sovereign nations.

Still, successful effect to questions Friday astir the Time interview, Carney acknowledged that thing has changed betwixt the countries.

"The president's latest comments are much proof, arsenic if we needed any, that the aged narration with the United States that we've had is over," the Liberal person told reporters successful Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., utilizing a enactment helium archetypal said past month.

"And it's proof, it's a reminder, it's a telephone to enactment that we request to illustration a caller path. That's the caller reality."

Awkward G7 incoming

What's yet to beryllium determined is whether managing Trump's aspirations volition beryllium Carney's challenge, aft Monday's predetermination — or Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's.

But they'll beryllium engaged soon thereafter, preparing for a highly antithetic G7. On Canadian soil, with Trump arsenic their guest.

Miller's advice? In nationalist comments, invited Trump to Canada. Don't publically backmost him into a corner. In private, spell retired wide consequences for threats to Canada's sovereignty.

Meanwhile, enactment with the different G7 countries. Miller proposes a radical connection reaffirming the rule of nationalist sovereignty. Then merchandise that statement, with oregon without the signature of the United States.