First interview since December | Chrystia Freeland assures that she “does not regret anything”

(Ottawa) “I am my own person, with my plan, and very clear ideas regarding what we must do,” said former Finance Minister and former Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday. TVA airwaves. The one who confirmed Friday that she would run for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada (PLC) will officially launch her campaign on Sunday.

“I am ready to defend Canada, and I know how to do it,” said Christia Freeland, in her first interview since her resignation which dealt the final blow to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The former big money maker presented herself as the person who is best prepared to face the tariff war that Donald Trump threatens to launch.

“First, we must start with a strong position,” she said, secondly emphasizing the importance of avoiding conflict with the United States. “There is a win-win option, that’s what we have at the moment,” she added.

Chrystia Freeland also said that Canada must work with its allies, emphasizing that “the United States is not the only strong country in the world.”

The candidate for leadership of the PLQ distanced herself from Justin Trudeau and his economic record, denouncing in particular the “electoral spending” of the former prime minister. However, she recalled that it was she who renegotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the first Trump administration between 2017 and 2018.

“When it comes to this question, my experience is a great thing, because I’ve done this before and succeeded,” she said.

M^me Freeland was sparing in her comments about Mark Carney, her main opponent in the leadership race and her son’s godfather, simply calling him an “excellent public servant.”

Asked about her plan to end carbon pricing, the former minister affirmed that she “is not abandoning the plan for climate action”. However, she noted that most Canadian provinces are against this measure introduced by the Liberal government and widely criticized by the leader of the Conservative Party Pierre Poilievre.

“If you’re truly a democratic politician, you can’t tell people, ‘You’re wrong,’” she explained. We must listen. »

Defend Canada

Earlier Friday, the leadership candidate announced she would launch her campaign on Jan. 19, the day before Donald Trump’s inauguration. In a letter published in Duty and the Toronto Starshe warned the United States against imposing tariffs.

“If you hit us, we’ll hit back.” We will not escalate the situation, but we will not give in,” she wrote.

She suggests “hitting where it hurts” by responding “dollar for dollar, in a precise and carefully targeted manner”.

“Let the orange growers of Florida, the dishwasher manufacturers of Michigan and the dairy farmers of Wisconsin be ready,” she warns. “If we are forced to do so, our response will be the biggest trade blow the U.S. economy has ever suffered. »

She recalls that Canada is the most important export market for the United States and that it surpasses that of “China, [du] Japan, [du] United Kingdom and [de] France united”.

This response could “generate up to $150 billion over one year”, the equivalent of “161% of revenue” collected in 2022-2023 with corporate income tax, she suggests.

This money could be used to help Canadians who would suffer the consequences of a tariff war.

“When it came to fighting for our great country, previous generations of Canadians never backed down,” she argues, recalling that they fought in two world wars, several in price of their lives.

“For those generations, our sovereignty was no joke. It was the choice that defined their entire lives,” she recalls.

The day after his resignation, Mr. Trump published on his network Truth Social all his disdain for Mr.^me Freeland, who at the time had revealed her negotiating skills.

“His behavior was completely toxic and not at all conducive to reaching beneficial agreements for very disgruntled Canadian citizens. We will not miss her! ! ! “, he wrote.

Chrystia Freeland thus becomes the second candidate to enter the race for leadership of the PLC after the former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England Mark Carney. The two have family ties as he is her son’s godfather.

M^me Freeland slammed the door of Cabinet in December, the day she was due to present her economic update, after learning that Prime Minister Trudeau wanted to replace her with Mr. Carney afterwards. His resignation plunged the government into crisis as a tariff war with the United States loomed.

Wilkinson renonce

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson announced Friday morning that he will not be in the starting blocks for the Liberal leadership race. He did not indicate whether he would support any candidate.

“Retiring from my ministerial position at this critical time would not, in my opinion, best serve Canadians and the country I love so much,” he wrote on X.

However, he plans to run in the next federal election in the riding of North Vancouver, British Columbia, where he was first elected in 2015.

A third candidate will announce her candidacy over the weekend. This is Karina Gould, currently Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Member of Parliament for Burlington, Ontario. At 37, she will be the youngest candidate. She intends to present herself as the person who can rebuild the political party.

Three other lesser-known candidates – Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq MP Jaime Battiste, Ontario MP Chandra Arya and former Montreal-area Liberal MP Frank Baylis – have indicated plans to enter the race .