Canada’s Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre rebuked President Donald Trump’s repeated suggestion that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state on Saturday.
Newsweek has reached out to the White House and Canadian Foreign Affairs via email for comment on Sunday.
Why It Matters
Trump has repeatedly suggested the U.S. could annex Canada and make it the 51st state since taking office last month. His remarks, as well as support for tariffs on Canadian imports, have strained relations with Washington’s neighbor to the north.
While leaders of Canada have been dismissive of joining the U.S., the repeated suggestion comes as the conservative party is now favored to win Canada’s next federal election following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation early last month.
The resignation came after members of his own Liberal Party urged him to quit as polls show the ruling party will lose badly to the opposition Conservatives in the next election. Canada’s next election must take place by late October and Trudeau’s resignation could lead to calls for it to be held quickly to ensure a new government is in place.
What To Know
At a “Canada First” rally in Ottawa on Saturday, Poilievre, the favorite to replace Trudeau, rebuked Trump’s desire to make Canada the 51st state and warned that he is prepared to defend Canadians at all costs.
“Let me be clear: We will never be the 51st state. We will bear any burden and pay any price to protect the sovereignty and independence of our country. We are slow to anger and quick to forgive. But never confuse our kindness for weakness. We are mild-mannered and made of steel,” Poilievre said.
He later addressed Americans stating that they rely on Canada for its oil, gas and critical minerals.
“Carry out the unprovoked attack on our economy and your consumers will pay more and your workers will make less. Gas prices will skyrocket. You will turn a loyal friend into a resentful neighbor, forced to match tariff with tariff and to seek friends elsewhere. Both our economies will weaken, leaving less money for defense and security and our enemies will grow stronger,” Poilievre said.
Trump first floated the idea of annexing Canada during a November dinner at Mar-a-Lago with Trudeau. In January, Trump escalated the rhetoric, asserting he would rely on “economic force” rather than military means to integrate Canada—a founding North American Treaty Organization (NATO) member and vital trade partner—into the U.S.
Trump agreed earlier this month to pause planned 25 percent tariffs on Canadian imports for 30 days after Trudeau announced new border security measures and anti-drug trafficking commitments.
Tariffs are taxes on imported goods, typically paid by the importing businesses, which can then pass costs onto consumers through higher prices. The importing business could be any American company that purchases goods from foreign suppliers and brings them into the country for resale, manufacturing, or distribution.
Tariffs are often used to protect domestic industries by making foreign goods more expensive and encouraging consumers to buy locally.
The temporary suspension averts an immediate trade confrontation between the U.S. and Canada, which exchanged $746 billion in goods in 2022. Trump had announced the tariffs earlier this month, citing concerns about fentanyl trafficking across the northern border. Canada had warned it would implement retaliatory 25 percent tariffs on $155 billion in U.S. goods if Trump’s tariffs took effect.
Andrej Ivanov/Getty Images
What Have Other Canadian Officials Have Said
Poilievre is not the first to oppose Trump’s rhetoric concerning Canada as Canadian politician Elizabeth May, who leads the Canadian Green Party, suggested at a press conference in January that three U.S. states—California, Oregon and Washington could become Canadian provinces, rather than Canada becoming part of the U.S. She said the three states, all of which are viewed as safely Democratic, would receive universal health care and stricter gun laws.
“Hey, Donald, have we got a deal for you? You think we want to be the 51st state huh? But maybe California would like to be the 11th province. How about it? California? Oregon? Washington?” she said.
Although such a change would be highly unlikely to actually happen, the proposal would have the support of 35 percent of Canadians, according to a recent poll from YouGov, which surveyed 1,030 Canadian adults from January 22 to 28.
Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair reacted to Trump’s continual overtures about Canadian statehood during a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels on Wednesday.
Blair called Trump’s comments “offensive” but said he doesn’t believe Canada is “sincerely threatened.”
“One of the things I think we need to be very clear to everyone, including Mr. Trump, is that Canadians will always stand up for our nation, our country,” he said. “We’re prepared to defend ourselves as required, and that always sometimes requires sacrifice.”
What People Are Saying
Canadian Member of Parliament Charlie Angus said on Saturday, National Flag of Canada Day: “On this festival where we celebrate Canada as a nation and our flag, I am encouraged. I want to thank Canadians. I want to say we are strong, we do not bendand we will never, ever, ever, kiss the ring of that gangster from Mar-A-Lago.”
Pierre Poilievre, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, in January: “Canada will never be the 51st state. Period. We are a great and independent country. We are the best friend to the U.S. We spent billions of dollars and hundreds of lives helping Americans retaliate against Al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attacks. We supply the U.S. with billions of dollars of high-quality and totally reliable energy well below market prices. We buy hundreds of billions of dollars of American goods.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, during a press conference on Wednesday: “Let’s be very clear. Conversations around the 51st state are a nonstarter. It’s never going to happen. But we have to take seriously what the president is saying and fold that into our thinking as we continue to stand up for Canada.”
President Donald Trump, when asked in a Fox News interview last Sunday if his comments about annexing Canada were “a real thing”: “Yeah, it is. I think Canada would be much better off being the 51st state because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada. And I’m not going to let that happen,” he said in the interview, which aired Sunday. “Why are we paying $200 billion a year, essentially a subsidy to Canada?”
What Happens Next?
While most experts cast doubt that borders will change between the countries either way during the foreseeable future, relations between the two countries are likely to remain chilled amid tariff threats.
Trump announced new tariffs on Canadian aluminum and steel last weekend, though the 25 percent tariffs on most Canadian imports went on a 30-day pause starting February 3.
