“You know what, I’m going to make a counterproposal to the president: How about we buy Alaska and add Minnesota and Minneapolis to it at the same time?,” Mr. Ford said Monday, while he was speaking with reporters about the threat of looming tariffs and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation announcement.
This text is a translation of an article from CTV News.
For weeks, Mr. Trump has mocked Canada by referring to Mr. Trudeau as “Governor Justin Trudeau” and calling Canada “the 51st state.”
In a recent post on X, Trump’s son Eric also shared a photoshopped image of his father purchasing Canada on Amazon, as well as Greenland and the Panama Canal.
These mockeries come as Mr. Trump threatens to impose, from the first day of his mandate, customs duties of 25% on Canadian products imported into the United States. Donald Trump said the only way to avoid the tariffs was for Canada to stem the flow of drugs and migrants across the border.
Canadian officials, while taking the tariff threat seriously, have mostly ignored Mr. Trump’s insults.
For his part, Mr. Ford mainly said that Mr. Trump had a sense of humor and liked to joke when asked about his comments.
But on Monday, he apparently decided enough was enough.
“It’s not realistic,” he reported when asked about the threat of annexing Canada. “I know he (Trump) likes to make these comments and he likes to joke. I take this seriously. He can joke, but under my leadership, that will never, ever happen.
Ford made his latest comments on tariff threats as he reacted to Trudeau’s announcement Monday that he would step down as prime minister following a leadership race liberal to replace him.
Also read: Did Donald Trump hasten Trudeau’s departure?
Mr. Ford said that despite the political turmoil, he expects federal officials to remain focused on the tariff threat.
“We need all hands on deck. The Prime Minister must continue to do his job,” said Mr. Ford.
He added that if the tariffs, described by some experts as an “existential threat” to the Canadian economy, are implemented, Canada will have to take retaliatory measures.
“If they are implemented, we must ensure that the federal government has a solid plan,” said Mr. Ford. The Prime Minister said he would meet with all the Prime Ministers for a one-on-one meeting. I still want him to keep his promise. He will still be prime minister for another month, or even two months. This must be his top priority.”
Mr. Trump also reacted to Mr. Trudeau’s resignation on Monday, suggesting it was a sign that the country could not do it alone and doubling down on his efforts to make the case for a annexation.
“Many people in Canada would LOVE to be the 51st state. The United States can no longer support the huge trade deficits and subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat. Justin Trudeau knew this and resigned,” Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“If Canada merged with the United States, there would be no tariffs, taxes would drop significantly, and they would be TOTALLY SECURE from the threat of Russian and Chinese ships constantly surrounding them. Together, what a great nation it would be!!!”
With information from The Canadian Press