(Washington) After two months of consternation and turmoil in Canada regarding President Donald Trump’s threats against his northern neighbor, the Republican leader did not mention Canada on Monday noon in his inaugural speech at the Capitol.
Posted at 6:24 a.m.
Updated at 2:59 p.m.
Kelly Geraldine Malone
The Canadian Press
Mr. Trump therefore provided no details on his threat to impose a general tariff of 25% on Canadian products on the first day of his new administration – one element of a vast program aimed at leading the deeply divided country on a radically different path.
The new president’s team is said to have prepared more than a hundred “executive decrees”, but it is not clear what they contain or which ones were to be signed immediately.
In a statement released Monday noon, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated the new American president, but he quickly emphasized the ties that unite the two neighbors.
“Canada and the United States enjoy the most successful economic partnership in the world and are each other’s largest trading partner,” he wrote. Our relationships create millions of jobs, attract billions of dollars of investment to the continent and ensure the security of our populations.
“Canada is working to strengthen this mutually beneficial relationship. We are investing heavily to support cross-border trade, strengthen our supply chains and create jobs on both sides of the border.
“We are stronger when we act together, and I look forward to working with President Trump, his administration, members of the United States Congress, and state and local government officials to bring prosperity to our populations, while protecting and defending the interests of Canadians,” concludes the Prime Minister, who is meeting his cabinet on Monday in Montebello, in the Outaouais, to determine the next course of action.
It appears that Mr. Trump has decided not to impose tariffs for now.
An official for Mr. Trump, who spoke on condition of anonymity while describing the new president’s plans on a call with reporters, referred to an article in Wall Street Journal under which the new president would only sign a memorandum directing federal agencies to study trade issues, including alleged unfair trade and currency practices by Canada, Mexico and China.
Different Investiture
Thousands of people wearing toques and hats bearing Mr. Trump’s image braved the bitter cold in Washington on Monday morning to go to the Capitol One Arena, where the inaugural events were moved due to the wave of cold.
Mr. Trump is the first former president to return to office since Grover Cleveland took over the White House in the 1892 election. He is the first person convicted of a crime to become president and, at 78, he is the oldest person elected to this position.
The celebration of his inauguration already looks very different from that of his inauguration in 2017. While thousands of people showed up for a demonstration against Mr. Trump in the nation’s capital on Saturday, officials do not expect whether there are massive demonstrations or episodes of violence on Monday.
-Mr Trump’s first speech as president, in 2017, painted a grim portrait of what he called “American carnage”, but it was overshadowed in the media by claims about crowd sizes.
That won’t be a problem this year, as a cold snap forced most events to take place indoors. Mr. Trump was sworn in in the Capitol rotunda, where country music star Carrie Underwood performed America the Beautiful a cappella, due to technical difficulties during the investiture.
Tech billionaires, world leaders, celebrities and athletes are among those expected to attend Mr. Trump’s inaugural address, including three of the world’s richest men: Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos.
Canadian elected officials in Washington
In his speech Monday, Mr. Trump spoke of a “golden age of America” and promised that his country “will once again prosper and be respected around the world.”
Noting that his inauguration takes place on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a U.S. holiday, he said his administration “will strive to make his dream a reality,” a reference to the quest for Mr. King for racial equality and his I have a dream.
Monday’s celebrations offered a stark contrast to the nature of Mr. Trump’s departure from the nation’s capital four years ago. Following the assault on the Capitol on January 6, Mr. Trump still refused to accept the result of the 2020 election and did not even attend Joe Biden’s inauguration.
Mr. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, were in attendance Monday.
Many Canadian politicians have traveled to Washington and are participating in an event at the Canadian Embassy, located on Pennsylvania Avenue, between the Capitol and the White House.
The co-leaders of Team Canada of Justin Trudeau’s government, the Minister of Industry, François-Philippe Champagne, and the Minister of Commerce, Mary Ng, are notably in the American capital.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith will also be in Washington. Mme Smith was at the center of controversy last week when she refused to sign a joint statement with the premiers of the other provinces and Mr. Trudeau that affirmed that all countermeasures were on the table to repel the customs duties that Donald Trump could impose.
Mme Smith, who recently visited Mar-a-Lago to meet with the president, stood out by refusing to consider any plan that would include possible taxes on oil exports or cutting off energy supplies to UNITED STATES.
With information from the Associated Press
