President Donald Trump hosted Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the White House amid historic tensions between both countries. Carney said Canada “won’t be for sale, ever” as Trump told reporters he thinks the country should be the 51st US state. On trade, Trump said he wants “friendship” with Canada.
While fielding questions from reporters, Carney repeatedly said that today’s meeting is hopefully the first in a series.
He said that with the election in the rear-view mirror, “This is the point at which a serious discussion begins.” “We have some very specific things to follow up on and build out from that,” Carney said.
The prime minister also interestingly characterized the conversations as “looking to find solutions as opposed to laying down terms.”
“It was a very constructive meeting. We have a lot more work to do. I’m not trying to suggest we can have one meeting and everything’s changed but now we are engaged — very fully engaged,” he said. “I feel better about the relations.”
Trump himself said Canada-U.S. relations are on better trajectory after Tuesday’s talks.
Speaking briefly to the press after the Canadian delegation left, the president said he was happy to see Justin Trudeau gone, saying the former prime minister and his deputy, Chrystia Freeland, were antagonistic and fostered a “bad relationship” between the two countries.
“I think this is a big step up. It’s a good step up for Canada,” Trump said of Carney. While he called Trudeau “the governor,” in a show of disrespect, Trump said he hasn’t done that with Carney and he may not in the future.
