Liberal leadership candidate Chrystia Freeland feels ready to stand up to Donald Trump in an “economic war” as Canada’s prime minister, she said during her appearance on the show Everyone is talking about it Sunday.
“I believe that Mr. Trump does not respect weakness,” declared Mr.me Freeland. In an interview conducted entirely in French, she repeated numerous times that she believes she will be able to confront Donald Trump in the coming years. Already, she considers that it is essential to use reprisals against the new American president when he makes threats to Canada. “I take Mr. Trump very seriously,” said the woman who apparently calls herself “the killer” by the President of the United States.
For her, a list of sanctions against the southern neighbors should be published “this evening” or at the latest tomorrow, in order to increase the pressure put on Mr. Trump. What’s important to the president, she said, is what his voters think. They are the ones who must “be afraid” for the new president to back down on some of his statements.
The leadership race
M’s biggest rivalme Freeland in the leadership race happens to be the godfather of his son, former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney. “He is an excellent public servant. But I am a politician,” she said during her interview.
-Several influential ministers have recently offered their support for Mr. Carney’s candidacy, such as Steven Guilbeault, François-Philippe Champagne and Mélanie Joly. Questioned on this subject, Mme Freeland has made no secret that his departure from the ministerial office certainly played a role in the balance. “I know there are people who are angry with me,” she continued. She defended her decision to step down as finance minister and deputy prime minister, saying “it was an impossible situation” for her.
“For several months, I had disagreed with the Prime Minister,” she continued, referring in particular to the promise that she describes as “electoralist” to give $250 to each eligible Canadian. This measure was then put on ice after his departure. “I saved Canada $6 billion by resigning,” she joked.
If she is chosen to lead her party on March 9, chances are she will offer the post of finance minister to Mark Carney, she confirmed. On the contrary, if it is her rival who obtains the position, she will remain a politician, she said at the end of the interview.
