On Wednesday morning, the 18th of December, US President-elect Donald Trump proposed incorporating Canada into the US, calling it a “great idea” and further needling Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, reports Politico.
“No one can answer why we subsidise Canada to the amount of more than 100 000 000 US dollars a year? It doesn’t make sense! Many Canadians want Canada to become the 51st state. They would save considerably on taxes and military defence. I think that is a great idea. The 51st state!!!” he wrote on his social media platform.
This is not the first time in recent days that Trump has dug into Canada and the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, which was rocked by the resignation of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland.
“The Great State of Canada is shocked by the resignation of the Finance Minister or her firing by Governor Justin Trudeau,” Trump wrote on Monday. “Her behaviour was completely toxic and in no way conducive to making deals that benefit the very unfortunate citizens of Canada. No one is going to miss her!!!!”
The mocking posts come at a time of tensions between the two countries after Trump threatened to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian goods and accused the Canadian government of failing to address trade and immigration issues.
After meeting Trudeau at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida at the end of November, Trump referred to Trudeau as ” the Governor of the Great State of Canada”.
“It was a pleasure to have dinner the other night with Governor Justin Trudeau of the Great State of Canada,” he wrote. “I look forward to seeing the Governor again soon so that we may continue our in depth talks on Tariffs and Trade, the results of which will be truly spectacular for all! DJT.”
Meanwhile, Reuters reports that Canadian ministers on Tuesday publicly unveiled a border security plan that they presented privately to the incoming Trump administration to appease Trump. The plan focuses on surveillance, intelligence and technology to tackle transnational organised crime.
Prime Minister Trudeau’s unstable minority government says it will invest 1.3 billion Canadian dollars (909 million US dollars) over six years on border security. The plan focuses on fentanyl, illegal migration and organised crime.